Quality Alchemist (品質煉金術師): HKTIC 30th AGM and Product Certification Talk

Tonight was the HKTIC 30th Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Annual Gathering. During AGM, the chairlady Ms. Christina Law (Intertek Testing Services Hong Kong Ltd) reported the activities in 2010. Moreover, She pointed out the contribution of HKTIC in Testing and Certification (T&C) Industry below.
i) Preparing and launching T&C certification scheme which had applied SME funding and approved. (18 month project)
ii) Cooperation with the Government HKSAR to increase business opportunities for T&C industry including HKCTC advisory committee, Hong Kong Qualification Framework – T&C advisory committee
iii) HKTIC benefit for members such as TDC discount for promotion platform and established membership & training sub-committee.

Then Ms. Law introduced the keynote speaker.

The keynote speaker was Ms. Ada Fung (Deputy Director, Housing Department) and her topic was “Product Certification of Construction Materials”.

Firstly, Ms. Ada Fung introduced the vision, mission and core values of Housing Department that was called 4Cs (Caring, Customer, Creative and Committed). Moreover, she added that many different management systems were implemented in Housing Department such as ISO 9001, ISO 14001, OHSAS 18001, ISO 26000, ISO 31000 and ISO 50001, etc.

Then Ms. Fung briefed Testing and Certification Services in Hong Kong and the establishment of Hong Kong Council for Testing and Certification (HKCTC) in September 2009. She would focus on construction material for coming product certification.

Ms. Fung mentioned the quality housing concept that partnering for change to assure built quality as follows:
i) Assuring product quality & productivity
ii) Assuring quality of workmanship and materials on site
iii) Assuring quality of workmanship and materials off-site

She also emphasized the upstream quality control was very important in product certification.

Housing Authority surveillance check of building materials on site was stated. It demonstrated the participated point for production certification in the stage “Materials arrival on site”.

HKAS and Professional Institutes had played a role in the flow.

After that Ms. Fung explained what Product Certification is. Production Certification is the process whereby a product is certified to achieving prescribed standards and quality requirements, through regular factory surveillance and periodic sampling and testing of products by third party of accredited certification body.

There were four benefits of Product Certification below.
i) Promoting industrial quality through upstream control
ii) Continuous surveillance of production process in factory to ensure consistent production quality
iii) Greater confidence on product quality to recognized standards
iv) Product Certification Mark to enhance product reputation, and hence business opportunities and competitiveness.

Following diagrams showed the workflow of product certification.