Pierce Manufacturing successfully completed its ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 9001:2008 Surveillance Audit by ABS Quality Evaluations (ABS QE), an independent third-party organization. ISO 9001:2008 is an internationally recognized standard that sets forth a set of requirements aimed at achieving customer satisfaction. Pierce completed its surveillance audit and there were no major or minor findings. The company was first certified to ISO 9001 standards in 1998.

Two types of auditing are required to become registered to the standard: auditing by an external certification body, such as ABS QE, and audits by internal staff trained for this process. The aim of the audit is a continual process of review and assessment, to verify that the system is working as intended. The audit also finds out how the system can improve and to correct or prevent problems identified. The ISO standards require that all employees in the company, especially upper management, embrace quality control in their day-to-day activities.

The International Organization for Standardization was established in 1947 and is an association of 170 members, with each representing their own country. ISO employs a system of technical committees, sub-committees and working groups to develop international standards.