The STOW-TT Assessment Process
The STOW Assessment Process
When the STOW Project Office receives the signed contract and payment of the application and audit fees, an Assessor will be assigned to conduct the audit. The Assessor will contact the company to make arrangements for the audit. The Assessor will email the audit plan to the company prior to the commencement of the audit. A hybrid approach will be used for STOW audits. The opening & closing meetings as well as the documentation review will be conducted remotely, and the Assessor will advise the company of the platform to be used to conduct these aspects of the audit beforehand. Assessors will visit companies’ sites to conduct interviews and the Physical Conditions Tour. At the opening meeting, the Assessor will discuss the details of how the assessment will be conducted and will provide a checklist to the company. The company will sign the checklist at the end of the close out meeting and will receive a copy for their records.
The assessment for STOW certification is a two-stage process:
Review of HSE Documentation and Records - The Assessor will review the company’s HSE documentation and records. Companies will be required to upload their HSE manuals and records to the STOW database. There is a secure portal on the STOW database for contractors to upload their HSE manuals and records. These documents will only be accessible to the assigned Assessor and personnel from the STOW Project Office for on screen viewing using their login credentials. This will enable tracking of all sign-in attempts for access to your documents. If the company’s HSE documentation is not meeting the STOW requirements, the Assessor will discontinue the assessment and write the assessment report indicating the findings.
Charter signatories can request access to the HSE documents submitted by contractors during the audit process. All requests for access to contractors’ HSE documents must be made via the STOW database and will be sent directly to the contractor. The contractor will be notified when a Charter signatory company submits a request to access their HSE documents and will have the option to allow or deny access.
A Site Visit - Once the company’s HSE documentation meets the STOW requirements, the Assessor will continue the assessment to determine if what is documented is in effect. This will include interviews with employees and a physical condition tour of the company’s facility.
If at any point during the physical site visit, the company is not demonstrating conformance to the STOW HSE requirements, the Assessor will immediately stop the audit and inform the client. The client will have the option to continue the audit but, the request must be made to the STOW Project Office in writing. The Assessor will then write the assessment report indicating the findings of the two- stage assessment.
Upon completion of the documentation review and the site visit, the Assessor will have a close out meeting with the company at which time he/she will discuss the findings with the company’s representatives and inform if the company is being recommended for certification. At this meeting, the company must agree on a schedule to close out the non-conformances identified by signing the summary of non-conformances presented by the Assessor. The company will also sign the checklist confirming the audit scope, the site/s assessed and the activities conducted during the assessment. Companies must receive a copy of the signed checklist and non-conformance from the Assessor upon completion of the close out meeting.
The Assessor will write and submit the audit report with the recommendation to the STOW Project Office.
The STOW Project Office will submit the draft audit report to the Technical Committee for review of the audit findings, scores and the Assessor’s recommendation, During this period, if necessary, the Technical Reviewer will raise and resolve concerns with the Assessor on the draft audit report.
Following completion of the Technical Committee’s review, the report will be submitted to the STOW Implementation Board for final review and subsequent approval.
Application Procedure for a Holding Company with subsidiary companies (not separate legal entities)
Where it involves a holding company under which other companies operate the following would apply:
One application will be done in the name of the holding company.
One application fee will be applied.
One Assessor fee will be applied.
One audit report will be submitted by the assigned Assessor.
One certification fee will apply.
One STOW Certificate will be prepared and will include the name of all the companies operating under the holding company.
If one company fails the audit, the audit will be stopped and the holding company (inclusive of all associated companies) will be denied certification.
Application Procedure for a Group of Companies where each company is a separate legal entity:
Where it involves distinct legal entities, the following would apply:
Applications will be done for each legal entity.
An application fee will be applied for each legal entity.
With regard to the Assessor fees, the STOW Project Office will use the company with the greatest number of audit days and add days to this amount.
Separate audit reports will be prepared by the Assessor for each legal entity.
The certification fee will apply for each legal entity.
A STOW Certificate will be prepared for each legal entity.
If any legal entity fails the audit, that entity only will be denied certification.