The standard applies uniformly to companies in any industry of any size. Many companies require their suppliers to become registered to ISO 9001 and because of this, registered companies find that their market opportunities have increased. In addition, a company's compliance with ISO 9001 insures that it has a sound quality assurance system, and that's just good business. Registered companies have had dramatic reductions in customer complaints, significant reductions in operating costs and increased demand for their products and services. 9000 registration is rapidly becoming a must for any company that does business in Europe.
Many industrial companies require registration of their own suppliers.