Starting 6th September 2021, Certification Bodies are required to be registered on GWO WINDA. During the following two years, Certification Bodies, auditor and training providers will migrate their GWO records and formal documentation transfers (audits and certifications) onto WINDA. Certification Bodies will have a key role, facilitated by auditors, in verifying training providers who must now have their WINDA registration associated with their GWO Certification Body. For new training providers (those joining after 6th September 2021) establishing an auditor relationship through a Certification Body is a prerequisite for WINDA registration.
Before accessing WINDA for the first time, Certification Bodies need to register at winda.globalwindsafety.org via the 'Certification Body Registration' option and complete the online sign-up form. As well as the usual detail, Certification Bodies must upload their ISO documentation (in pdf format)and include their ISO certificate number. There is a drop down list of options to help with this. Once the form is complete, applicants must accept GWO's Privacy Policy and applicable Terms & Conditions before accessing WINDA is possible. After form submission, email verification is required after which GWO review applications within two working days. A confirmation email which includes account instructions and a WINDA ID follows.
Please note: private email addresses such as; hotmail, gmail, yahoo etc. are not acceptible when registering as a Certification Body in WINDA.
The first tasks for a newly registered Certification Body are to edit its profile; create auditor user profile(s) and additional certification body user logins. For example for internal non-auditor team members. To attain a full functionality and provide audits, Certification Bodies must first have at least one approved, active auditor user.
Certification Bodies are responsible for timely record keeping and the maintenance of their WINDA profile. A Certification Body profile must include at least one Auditor user profile. Where a certification body has only 1 GWO qualified auditor associated with their WINDA record, failure to undertake the require number of audits (as described in GWO's Requirement for Certification) will lead to the suspension of the certification body’s WINDA registration.
Certification Body profiles that are not active for 24 months will expire. Before expiry GWO will alert the account holder to the need to take action. Regular account log-in will avoid expiry. Once expired GWO will not be able to reactivate the account.
Certification Bodies profile registration in WINDA provides more online interaction in the assurance of training providers. From 6th September 2021 (with a transition period of two years), Certification Bodies must connect their WINDA profile to the GWO training providers they assurance and certify. Connecting to existing training providers is achieved by searching for relevant training providers within WINDA using their WINDA ID and other details and clicking on the 'Plus icon' on their profile. After the training providers agrees this link both certification body and training provider are able to view audit requirements on their audit table. Certification body will be able to provide audits and administrate training providers profile.
The WINDA database is where training providers and auditors interact and administer audit records and certificates. From 6th September 2021 Certification Bodies can administer records and check audit status using the WINDA Audit table. To access the WINDA Audit Table log into WINDA. Access to the Audit table is via clicking on the 'Audits' icon or selecting 'Audit' in the upper menu.
The audits table shows all completed audits and all audit requirements for each Training Providers' certificates. The full population of the Audit Table will occur over the course of the two year transition period starting 6th September. Existing processes can be used in parallel during these two years with audit records and certificates migrated to WINDA in a timely way.
During a two year transition period, starting 6th September 2021, Certification Bodies must transition their certifications and audits for training providers in a timely manner linked to their regular audit cycles.
