We believe in the importance of having and maintaining the International Organization of Standardization (ISO) in our areas of business. It aligns with our four core values: Quality, Team Work, Accountability and Relationships. Over the last few months, our team have been busy at work improving and implementing strategies to renew our ISO 9001 Quality Management Systems and ISO 14001 Environment Management Systems to ensure Queensland Gaskets stays top of class.
What is ISO?
ISO is the international body of standards, with 167 Standard Bodies, representing, ensuring and upholding the qualifications for standards in their countries. Beyond setting and ensuring high standards and guiding organisations, ISO offers a range of services that support strategic business goals.
As a local manufacturer, we believe it is important to stay up to date, have the appropriate processes in place and be certified especially in terms of ISO quality and environmental systems.
Quality Management Systems
ISO9001 sets out the criteria for quality management that can be used for organisations no matter the size or field of work to ensure quality. The key principles governing the standard are strong customer focus, motivation and implication of top management, the process approach and continuous improvement. The goal for organisations is to identify their current processes and acknowledge ways in which they can improve. Customers trading with businesses holding an ISO9001 can know that they are receiving consistent, good-quality products and services.
Environmental Management Systems
ISO14001 creates a framework for companies to follow as part of an effective environmental management system. The key areas of focus are identifying and adapting ways an organisation can operate to make them more sustainable and environmentally conscious.
Journey to Certification
We continued to maintain our ISO 9001 after first qualifying in 2012. We put in place the planning to obtain ISO 14001 in late 2021 following from request from our customers to meet these standards. The certifications were completed earlier this year. The project and process were run by Willam Fennell, Production Support at Queensland Gasket, who has a strong invested interest and understanding of the industry and our requirement to deliver quality products to our customers.
"The primary focus for undertaking the project was to ensure that our customers can rest assured when working with us that we maintain a high level of quality and environmental focus in our work,” says William.
“It provides customers security that we constantly deal with the insights of how we operate, maintain traceability, continuous improvement and continuity in our work.”
Over the last six months, the following new forms of sustainable practices have been implemented into the business and factory. All setting us up for an even greener and more cost-efficient production.
Providing a win-win situation that helps keep our electricity costs down while being more sustainable for the environment.
This process was undertaken over a journey of time, instead of throwing out working lightbulbs, the bulbs were left to their end-of-life cycle before being swapped for a more sustainable alternative.
When the time came to upgrade the forklifts in the factory, the electrical versions provided a stronger environment and business sense.
Wanting to further work on our environmental impact, we will be reviewing our current recycling and waste management system to help identify ways we can further improve our processes, including reusing and recycling cardboard and metal as much as we can.
Quality and Customer Commitment
Quality plays a crucial role in the processes and services we provide. Providing our customers with a thorough understanding of the processes we use to maintain our high quality, allows them to know they are working with a reputable manufacturer.
By successfully obtaining our latest certifications, we want our customers to feel comfortable continuing to conduct business with an Australian owned and operated company that provides high-quality services while reducing our environmental footprint.
