The rules behind the paperwork
Written procedures are not required if: the US and UK thresholds
Many SOPs exist because a regulation said so, and those come with duties to keep and revise them. Knowing which rule a procedure answers tells you what must stay behind when a copy is licensed.
When the law does not ask for anything in writing
In the UK an employer must record its health and safety arrangements only where it employs five or more people. HSE's guidance puts it plainly: with fewer than five employees you do not have to write anything down, though it is useful to do so.
Source: Written procedure rules
Procedures a regulator expects to see
US drug manufacturers must have written procedures for production and process control, approved by the quality control unit, with any deviation recorded and justified. Employers with highly hazardous chemicals must write operating procedures for each covered process, and procedures for controlling hazardous energy must be developed, documented and used.
Source: Written procedure rules
Procedures you must keep
An oil storage facility must keep its written inspection procedures and the signed test records with its spill prevention plan for three years, and a drug batch record has to be retained for at least a year after the batch expires. A licensed copy never replaces the one the regulator can ask for.
Source: Written procedure rules
Also on Sell SOPs to AI
The quality systems these procedures are kept in are on SOP software for manufacturing.