The purpose of the CERCA quality programme is to provide tools to manage and certify the quality of the scientific infrastructures belonging to CERCA centres, especially, but not limited to, their scientific and technical platforms. The programme can also cover other organisations within the perimeter of the CERCA system, including its spin-offs.
Some centres have ISO 9001:2015 quality certification or other more specific certifications. The project is intended to apply to any centre, infrastructure or spin-off, so it covers a range of levels and seals, including ISO 9001:2015 and other useful standards relating to research activity.
There are currently seals that provide a limited range of certification for aspects such as research documentation or research staff. However, unlike the CERCA programme, none of them provide a single framework covering the management, processes and quality of the work done, including the competencies, knowledge and skills of the research staff, the documentation of the stages and the results of the research or research processes.
Quality programme
Aims
To provide tools for managing and certifying the quality of scientific infrastructures, innovation and transfer units and the CERCA centres themselves, as well as research projects and companies created from these projects.
Scope
CERCA centres, scientific-technological platforms, innovation and transfer units, research projects and spin-off companies created by the CERCA centres.
Lines of work
The programme has three lines of work:
A. Managing the quality of the organisation or quality seals for centres, infrastructures, transfer units and spin-offs. Organisation and project management.
The aim of this line of work is to develop a management model for research that ensures the highest levels of organisational excellence and covers the processes and operational management of research and infrastructures.
It is based on the ISO 9001:2015 standard and EFQM-type excellence models, and is intended to progressively provide organisations with the tools and methodology they need as they grow, in a simple format that is suitable for whatever structure and resources they may have.
B. Documentation for a CERCA centre to set up a spin-off company
C. Certification of specific research projects and the sustainability thereof
This line of work covers the requirements for managing a project, the professional profiles of research and support staff, the correct and effective documentation of projects and the preparation of reports.
Organisations can work on all three lines at the same time.
Quality management
Who is it for?
- Research centres
- Centres facilities
- Spin-off companies
What is certified?
1. Quality management planning
- Methodology for assessing risks and opportunities
- Innovation/research targets and planning to achieve them
- Change planning methodology
2. Operation
- Definition of service requirements
- Processes and phases of research activity
3. Initiatives
4. Innovation or research process
- Methodology for overseeing operations
- Monitoring established work processes
- Monitoring implementation
- Delivery
- Incident and non-conformity monitoring
What is certified?
1. Quality management planning
- Methodology for assessing risks and opportunities
- Innovation/research targets and planning to achieve them
- Change planning methodology
2. Operation
- Definition of service requirements
- Processes and phases of research activity
3. Initiatives
4. Innovation or research process
- Methodology for overseeing operations
- Monitoring established work processes
- Monitoring implementation
- Delivery
- Incident and non-conformity monitoring
5. Assessment
- Monitoring, analysis and measurement of each phase
- Regular internal audit of operational compliance
- Regular management review of project progress
What is certified?
Obtaining ISO 9001:2015 certification from ICDQ.
1. Planning
- Methodology for assessing risks and opportunities
- Innovation/research targets and planning to achieve them
- Change planning methodology
2. Organisational context
- Knowledge of the organisation and context
- Stakeholders
- Scope of the management system
- Management system and processes
3. Leadership and commitment
- Leadership in the organisation
- Research-centred organisational policies
- Roles, responsibilities and organisational authority levels for research
4. Resource management
- People management
- Infrastructure management
- Work environment management
- Monitoring and measuring resources
5. Traceability
6. Knowledge requirements and skills
7. Awareness raising and communication processes
8. Documented system information
9. Oversight of operations
- Definition of service requirements
- Design and development processes and phases
10. Initiatives
11. Innovation or research process
12. Technology transfer
13. Methodology for overseeing operations
- Monitoring established work processes
- Monitoring implementation
- Delivery
- Incident and non-conformity monitoring
14. Assessment
- Monitoring, analysis and measurement of each phase
- Regular internal audit of operational compliance
- Regular management review of project progress
What is certified?
Obtaining ISO 50006:2019 certification.
Guidance on standards and obtaining certification for the following standards:
UNE 166002: RDI management systems
UNE 166006: RDI monitoring and intelligence systems
UNE 166008: RDI management: Technology transfer.
Quality in the creation of enterprises
Who is it for?
- Spin-off companies
What is certified?
The quality of the documentation produced in the process of setting up the company.
- Details of the promoter
- Legal form
- Location
- Shareholders' agreement
- Concept assessment
- Target market
- SWOT analysis
- Human resources planning
- Marketing strategy
- Financial forecast
Which documents are included:
- Promotion team
- Legal form
- Location
- Compliance with internal regulations:
- Intellectual property
- Transfer agreement
- Staff agreements
- Shareholders' agreement
- Partnership agreement
- Data collection agreement (for statistical purposes)
- Valuation (a valuation of intangible assets is recommended)
- Investors deck (one pager): including ESG values, SDGs and quality management
- Business plan (recommended)
Quality in project management
Who is it for?
- Research centres
- Spin-off companies
- Research projects managers
What is certified?
UNE 166001 guidance: requirements for RDI projects.
Certification of excellence in resource management:
- Defined skills required and skills assessment
- Research and support staff
- Infrastructure management for each project
- Project workplace management
- Project monitoring and measurement
- Traceability
- Required knowledge
- Communication and project reporting processes
- Quality of records for each phase of the project
- Documented project information
- Financial reports
- Intellectual property of the project
- Technology tracking and competitive intelligence
- Idea management
- Project development
- Protection and exploitation of results
- Market launch
- Results
What is certified?
DNSH (do no significant harm) assessment/certification of the project.
A. Preparation of DNSH reports
B. Evidence and justification of the principles
Certification authority:
Endorsements:
