What is Sedex? Sedex Pre-audit – SMETA

Sedex is a non profit organization (NPO) which is established to innovate ethic practices in business and social accountability in global supply chain. As the largest association for sharing information, and social accountability in global supply chain, Sedex is an effective and innovative supply chain management system, helping to reduce risks, protect company image and improve supply activities.

Collaborating with international auditors, Sedex ensures the best practice of business ethic, environmental and social accountability in supply chain.

Working with Sedex, the auditor will be a part of the biggest cooperation program in managing and sharing information in supply chain; contribute/ gain a lot knowledge from the development of best practices, and participate in global workshop on responsibility in supply chain – challenges and opportunities.

Sedex brings the working experience of auditors to control and improve the efficiency of social responsibility assessments by enhancing coordination and reducing duplication.

In 2006, Sedex first convened a global network of AAGs - working groups to assess business ethics / social responsibility, and help to shape the good practice in the world. The AAG team consists of commercial review companies, independent auditing unit, buyers and providers who are members of Sedex and NGOs.

The AAGs have developed the Sedex Member Ethics Evaluation Program (SMETA), an evaluation process that combines good practice in ethical assessment techniques in a way overall approach. SMETA is designed to reduce duplication of effort in evaluating business ethics and has become one of the most widely accepted in the world.

Sedex offers online database allowing members to store, share and report in four core fields:

•  Labor standard
•  Health and safety
•  Environment
•  Ethic in business

Sedex allows auditors to use their collaboration platform in the following ways:

1. An independent auditor may register a free evaluation account provided with basic system functions to update and manage reviews conducted and uploaded by independent auditors.
2. Certification companies may have access to additional functionality including the ability to update and manage assessment data in multiple locations from a centralized account.

Since its establishment, the Sedex standard has increased to over 50,000 members, 23 areas and presented in 150 countries.

Benefits of joining Sedex

• The non-profit organization Sedex is committed to continuous improvement of ethical and responsible practices in the supply chain.
• Sedex promotes sharing to lessen the paper burden on providers when dealing with multiple retailers / customers requiring assessment of social responsibility data. Suppliers can upload evaluation results and share with their customers, avoid repetition, administrative procedures, the number of audit to help reduce costs.
• Sedex also allows for the sharing of good practices at the place of assessment: the assessment can be uploaded at the location of the audit, details of the pre-audit program, participation in community and non-governmental projects, typical examples in evaluation report.
• Members of Sedex include the leading global brands and thousands of registered suppliers in more than 150 countries. Member branches are growing significantly every month and an increasing number of clients are interested in Sedex.

Sedex purpose

Buyers can see and get ethic information management of their suppliers in a safe location.

Suppliers can enter their information of social accountability and share with customer on Sedex.

Main requirements of Sedex

1. Forced labor
2. Freedom of association
3. Health and safety
4. Child labor and young workers
5. Basic salary
6. Working hours
7. Discrimination
8. Subcontractors, working at home, outsourcing
9. Discipline
10. Other issues:

• The rights of working and migrating, labor agency
• Environment
• Business practices

CONTACT KNA CERT FOR PRE-AUDIT - CERTIFICATION ISO 9001:2015

• Contact: KNA Cert Co., Ltd
• Centre: 11^th floor, Ladeco Building, 266 Doi Can street, Ba Dinh District, Ha Noi
• Tell: 093.2211.786 – 02438.268.222
• Email: salesmanager@knacert.com  Website: www.knacert.com.vn