Cross Rental Services
Cross Rental Services is a UK-wide provider of temporary heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems, delivering everything from portable radiators to 2MW industrial boilers and chillers. Whether restoring emergency heating to a commercial building or cooling a critical MRI scanner, they respond quickly and deliver reliable temporary solutions to keep operations running smoothly.
In 2021, Cross Rental implemented ISO 9001 Quality, ISO 14001 Environmental and ISO 45001 Occupational Health and Safety. As the company grew, more clients began requesting UKAS accredited certification, prompting the decision to transfer their ISO certificates to a UKAS accredited provider.
This case study explores how Cross Rental successfully transitioned to UKAS accredited certification and the role ISO consultants like ISO QSL play in supporting the process.
Winning tenders with ISO certification
Cross Rental originally adopted ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 to strengthen their competitive position during tendering. These certifications allowed them to join key procurement platforms such as Constructionline and Hire Association Europe, where prospective clients actively search for qualified and compliant suppliers.
In addition to building credibility, ISO certifications significantly simplified the tendering process. Malcolm Cook, QSHE Manager, explains:
“Without ISO certification, we would have to provide lots of separate documents. Instead, we can provide just one certificate.”
Transitioning to UKAS accredited certification
As Cross Rental grew, client requests for UKAS accredited certification became more frequent, a common requirement for larger or more complex tenders.
While non-accredited certification meets the needs of most businesses, UKAS accreditation is sometimes required to meet higher-tier compliance requirements. For example, Constructionline accepts non-accredited certification up to Silver membership, but Gold and Platinum require UKAS accreditation.
It’s important to understand that the ISO management systems, whether accredited or non-accredited, are fundamentally the same. The difference lies in who certifies you and how. UKAS accredited organisations must remain impartial, which limits the level of support they can provide during the process. That’s where experienced ISO consultants like ISO QSL can make a real difference during the process.
To meet evolving client needs, Cross Rental had no choice but to transfer their ISO certifications to a UKAS accredited provider. While the UKAS process can be daunting for many, Cross Rental felt well prepared. Malcolm commented:
“I had very little concerns about the process because we were already doing everything required.”
That confidence stemmed from successfully implementing and maintaining their ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certifications with ISO QSL for over three years. Malcolm worked closely with Lead Auditors Graeme Silk and Perry Simpson, who was also their account manager at the time. Reflecting on the support he received, Malcolm said:
“When I produced something, Graeme would say, ‘that’s not quite right, do it this way’ or, ‘that’s a great idea, let’s enhance it even more’. There are only two people in the business managing the ISO, so having that external person, whether it’s someone from client services or a lead auditor, confirm that I’m on the right track gave me the confidence to carry on and build from there.”
Graeme, who supported Cross Rental even before Malcolm joined the project, shared his perspective:
“I had already been completing consultancies with Cross Rental prior to meeting Malcolm. Having helped to implement their integrated management system (IMS), I assisted Malcolm in his understanding and navigation of the system. Right from the outset, I was impressed with Malcolm’s ability to adapt to new situations and to grasp concepts within the system. His willingness to adopt new ideas and flexibility to carry them out were superb.
All this, allied to a very strong work ethic and a superb attention to detail, resulted in enhancing the existing system to a very high standard indeed. The Business Support Director, Lesley Reeves, supported Malcolm during this period superbly as well.”
One of the most valuable tools ISO QSL provided was the Overview Document, a manual for your ISO systems that pulls key processes, policies and records into a single, accessible document. Malcolm shared:
“I can’t speak highly enough of Perry. She’s absolutely fantastic. She was always there, always replied to me, and provided that support network. She created a consolidated management system for us. That document was a great help during our stage one and stage two audits. It pulled everything together from across the ether and put it all into one document that we were able to refer to many times.”
Malcolm also praised the templates and resources available through ISO QSL’s client portal, and he’s a great example of how to get the most from them, using the resources as a foundation and tailoring them to suit the needs of your business:
“They gave me a clear direction of where I wanted to go. I used the templates as a starting point and expanded on them to make them work for our business. For example, the audit report template was really good. I took what was available, and I just expanded it. Graeme helped me a lot with that too.”
The UKAS Audit
To find a UKAS partner, Cross Rental went out to tender. This resulted in them working with Interface NRM, a trusted referral partner of ISO QSL and a UKAS body we regularly recommend.
When the audit took place, Cross Rental passed first time, and with just one minor non-conformance. This is an impressive result for a management system covering three ISO standards across six sites.
ISO QSL remained closely involved throughout the process, offering expert guidance and reassurance. Reflecting on the experience, Malcolm recalls:
“Having Graeme and Perry on hand was really helpful. We could run questions by them that came up in our stage one and stage two audits. This gave us peace of mind.
Without a company like ISO QSL, we would have struggled going straight to UKAS. If ISO QSL were a UKAS body, we would never have left.”
Graeme adds: “Whilst understanding the commercial drivers to transition the IMS system from certification to UKAS accreditation, it was with sadness that we said adieu to such a lovely client!
Nevertheless, we assisted in preparing the system for its assessment by Interface NRM, and provided support and advice when requested during their stage one and stage two audits. We recognise that this was a necessary evolution of the Cross Rental business, and for my part, I am proud to have assisted in the process. I genuinely wish Lesley, Malcolm, and all at Cross Rental the very best for the future.”
Perry shared: “As Cross Rental’s account manager, Malcolm and I had already established a trusted working relationship with regular check-ins and catch-up calls, and it was evident from our first meeting that Malcolm has admirable commitment and drive for continual improvement and ISO compliance.
It was bittersweet to recognise their need to transition to UKAS accredited certification; despite this signalling the beginning of the end of our work through customer support, I had every confidence in Malcolm’s ability to achieve the next step in Cross Rentals ISO journey. Overall, Malcolm & Graeme’s joint efforts formed a compliance dream team that could only result in success.
It has been a pleasure to support Malcolm and Cross Rental with their IMS, and I wish them every success with maintaining their UKAS certification.”
Graeme concludes: “During the process, the ISO QSL team worked together superbly to support Cross Rental in not only establishing but continually improving a very detailed and comprehensive IMS reflecting the requirements of the ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015 and ISO 45001:2018 international standards. The superb relationship that exists between the Account Managers and senior staff at ISO QSL and their Lead Auditors in the field manifests itself as a superb and unique service provided to the client. The work that ISO QSL did with Cross Rental was an excellent example of how it should be done!”
Words of advice for others
For those new to ISO certification, Malcolm has this advice:
“Learn the process and shadow someone who’s done it. I’d carried out many audits before, but not to ISO Standards. The principles were the same, but there’s a different language and structure to how ISO works. So, learn as much as you can. Speak to people doing it all the time like your Lead Auditor or client services.”
Cross Rental’s success highlights the value of partnering with an experienced ISO consultant. With ISO QSL’s support, and Malcolm’s dedication, hard work and commitment to learning and improvement, the company transitioned smoothly to UKAS accredited certification, passing their audit first time with confidence.
Accredited vs non-accredited certification: what's the difference?
Deciding between accredited and non-accredited ISO certification can be confusing. While the management systems themselves are essentially the same, the key difference lies in who certifies you and how the certification is delivered.
For most businesses, non-accredited certification is enough and provides a cost-effective route to ISO certification. However, it’s important to understand the difference, especially when tendering or working with clients who specify UKAS accreditation.
