Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (WRAP) is the world’s largest independent certification program, specifically meant for the apparel, footwear, and sewn products sectors. This certification focuses on product quality as well as practices within the organization.
With increasing demand in the textile and footwear industry, there comes the need to increase production. Many companies, especially in developing countries, are looking to target countries with growing markets, and this is where internationally-recognized standards play an important role.
The WRAP entails that although a company might be looking to expand its production, it does not neglect the standards for quality as well as ethical and social responsibility. If a company has the WRAP certificate, it means that the company conforms to the regulatory requirements of safety and quality of the products as well as follows guidelines for labour and environment standards.
- Features and Benefits
- Applicability
- Consulting Methodology
WRAP is mainly for the apparel, sewn products and footwear sector, promoting lawful, ethical and safe manufacturing. Although the certification is internationally recognized, the guidelines are based on local regulations of labour laws and human rights. WRAP specifies 12 principles that the company must incorporate into their operations. The certification is based primarily on the level of compliance to these principles.
The 12 WRAP Principles consist of:
- Compliance with laws and workplace regulations
- Prohibition of forced labour
- Prohibition of child labour
- Prohibition of harassment or abuse
- Compensation and benefits as required by law
- Hours of work as limited by law
- Prohibition of discrimination
- Health and safety
- Freedom of association and collective bargaining
- Environment
- Customs compliance
- Security
The certification is divided into three categories – Platinum, Gold and Silver. The difference between the three is the time that certificate stays valid. The companies will have to comply with all the regulations but will be certified for set time, after which the enterprise will have to renew the certificate. The renewal process also includes thorough inspections.
- Platinum (Valid for 2 years): Facilities demonstrate full compliance for three consecutive certification audits
- Gold (Valid for 1 year): Facilities demonstrate full compliance with WRAP’s 12 Principles.
- Silver (Valid for 6 months): Facilities demonstrate substantial compliance with minor issues.
Like any safety and quality management standard, WRAP certification also can be a strong too for the company to tap into new markets and improve overall performance. Some of the major benefits include:
- Ensures apparel, footwear and other sewn-goods workers are treated fairly and humanely
- Improves your brand’s reputation among consumers as a fair employer
- Reduces health and safety hazards in the workplace, as well as industrial action
- Improves employee engagement and boosts productivity
- Avoids expensive litigation and reputational damage if one of your factories is found to be breaking relevant laws
WRAP certification applies to manufacturers of clothing, footwear and other sewn products.
The WRAP standard requires a company to conduct an internal pre-requisite audit, where it gathers data, documents as well as evidence of practices and processes. The company will have to mention the changes it has made and the reformations it inculcated. After this, several phases of audits will help the company gain the certification.
Technocrat Consultants helps companies with it inter audits, restructure its operations, acquire the certifications and renew it. Our team is dedicated to supporting our client to gain the certification and use to improve its overall compliances for the customers.