DANGOTE CEMENT GETS SON'S CERTIFICATION

By Peter Egwuatu
The Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON), yesterday awarded Dangote Cement Plc with NIS BS OHSAS 18001: 2007 and  NIS 9001: 2008 Quality Management System certificates in recognition for meeting its standard.

Speaking at the award ceremony in Lagos, Director General, SON, Dr. John Ndanusa Akanya  commended Dangote Cement for its commitment to meeting quality standard, saying, ' by this achievement, the company has joined the lofty class of Occupational

Health and Safety /Quality Management System certified companies in Nigeria'.

He commended Dangote for becoming the first cement company to achieve this certification in Nigeria, saying, ' Dangote Cement has already dominated Africa and will continue to  provide employment for not only Nigeria but Africa as a whole'.

According to him, ' the relevance of quality and continual improvement in the current competitive market environment, which focuses on customer satisfaction cannot be overemphasized, being extremely important in expanding organisation's local and export trade capabilities, raising the competitiveness of its services and goods in the market and thereby improving organisation's image'.

He disclosed that SON has certified Dangote Cement three plants, which include: Dangote Cement in Apapa, Obajana Cement plant and Benue Cement plant in Gboko.

'The model of these systems, to which Dangote Cement Plc system is being certified shifted emphasis from conformity to rules and regulations to actual performance output and aims at the development of Occupational Health and Safety /Quality Management System that provides for continual improvement and customer focus with emphasis on reduction of waste in the supply chain.

The ISO system certification is a mark of conformity of management systems to generic requirements and as we are all aware, quality is a moving target and as such does not have a finishing line.'

To this extent, he cautioned Dangote to continuous keep quality as this is just a journey that has no end. 'We will continuously monitor the company and where it needs advice we will give . Also we will not fail to withdraw these certificates once Dangote fails to adhere to quality' he added.

In his own comment, Alhaji Aliku Dangote, stressed that the award being received by Dangote Cement is a significant milestone in the company's journey to being a world class organisation.

According to him, ' Quality Management System, as you are all aware, is a standard that helps organisations put in place processes that ensure consistent product quality and enhance customer satisfaction. Our cutting-edge technology gives us a competitive edge in the market'

With this development, he said, ' 13 of our subsidiaries now have Quality Management System ISO 9001 status. We have also started the process for the implementation of the Occupational Health and Safety Management System OHSAS 18001 to enhance our leadership profile in the cement bushiness not only in Nigeria but also in Africa' he noted.