Case Studies

FLO-DRY ENGINEERING LTD

The Company

Flo-Dry Engineering is a small, privately-owned, Albany-based company specialising in the design, manufacture and installation of byproduct processing systems and technology. The company designs and builds waste treatment plants that allow food processing companies to efficiently extract tallow, stock feed, fertiliser or bone gelatin products from animal waste.

Flo-Dry Engineering also designs, builds and installs sewage treatment, odour control and energy conservation systems and has successfully installed plants in New Zealand, Australia, Britain, India and Chile. A process to convert inedible animal tallow (a byproduct of rendering plants) to biodiesel has been recently been piloted and is now being commercialised, along with another research project involving the electro-dewatering of municipal/industrial sludge.

The company attributes its success in a highly complex and demanding field to the ability of its engineers “to apply advanced technology to create cost-effective, practical solutions to process problems.”

ISO 9001

ISO 9001 certification was first awarded the company in November 2006 and according to Flo-Dry’s senior chemical engineer, Praveen Bhagat, has since been a vital element of successful company bids for contracts both in New Zealand and overseas. “Flo-Dry Engineering is now able to compete for global tenders that were denied us in the past because we did not have ISO: 9001:2000 certification, which is the basic standard required for most tenders for waste water treatment and rendering plant projects worldwide.”

Why Telarc?

“Telarc was the only company we contacted to help us through the ISO certification process. We knew it to be a reputable agency with a long track record in the certification area and that it had the capacity to deliver at very short notice. In June 2006, we had just 14-15 weeks to bid for a very important Australian project for which ISO 9001 was a prerequisite. Telarc auditors helped us meet that deadline and have since played a major role in encouraging us to maintain our quality management system and identify areas where further improvements can be made. Overall, Telarc’s involvement in establishing and maintaining ISO standards has considerably improved the performance of Flo-Dry as a company.”

The Benefits of Partnership

Implementation benefits

“Implementing ISO-9001:2000 in a very small engineering company has been a big challenge because of the cost (and time) of implementing formal operating and system procedures and making sure they work effectively. However, the commitment of our staff has been total and strongly supported by our managing director who encourages company engineers to continually improve their systems and establish Flo-Dry Engineering as a top performer in the quality management area. The commitment of senior management--at some financial cost to the company--is the essence of our success.”

Certification benefits

“As a result of ISO 9001:2000:

• The company now has well-defined contracting processes (pre-bid phase, tender phase and post-award phase) and identified systems to control these processes.
• The company’s management system is now well structured and defined. All processes have been documented in sufficient detail to allow them to be followed easily. An internal audit process is in place and functioning well.
• The company’s quality management system (QMS) is now documented in a quality manual which is accessible through the shared company network.
• The company has continued to develop its two new product lines (the biodiesel production process and electro-dewatering) and has ensured that they are covered by the QMS.

Since the adoption of ISO 9001:2000, the company has also:

• Implemented recommendations from audits to improve its health and safety system.
• Identified the need to include checks on legislation changes that may affect its projects.
• Continuously monitored customer satisfaction. Customer complaints are reviewed and handled satisfactorily through the improvement process.

In short, quality is now recognised as the company’s core value and its requirements are carefully considered before it commits itself to any major jobs/contracts.”

Why ISO 9001?

ISO 9001 is the most commonly used international certification standard. It provides a framework that enables businesses to develop and implement their own effective quality management systems for the manufacture and supply of virtually all products and services.

October 2008