Honeywell Southern Africa was announced as the winner of the internationally recognised South African Excellence Award, Business Sector, Level 1. Presented by the South African Excellence Foundation (SAEF), on 9 November, the award represents the highest level of national recognition for performance excellence. Although the awards have been running in South Africa for three years, this is the first time a local organisation has obtained a sufficient score to qualify for the coveted Level 1 commendation.
"We are extremely proud to have won the award and see it as a visible demonstration to our staff, customers and partners of Honeywell's commitment to business excellence and quality," said Nick Buick, MD, Honeywell Southern Africa.
"Business survival and growth in South Africa depend on a number of factors, including productivity, flexibility, quality and efficiency," adds Buick, "as one of the founder members of SAEF, Honeywell recognises the benefits of a globally accepted means of measuring and enhancing performance excellence. With barriers to trade now open, the effects of international competition are increasingly felt and it becomes ever more important that local organisations strive for high levels of efficiency and quality to develop a competitive edge."
Recognised internationally and based on the principles of the European Foundation for Quality Management Model and the American Malcolm Baldridge Model, the South African Excellence Model provides a framework for self-assessment which enables local organisations to identify both their strengths and areas needing improvement.
According to Honeywell's Quality Manager, Hettie Viljoen, who has spearheaded and managed Honeywell's quality drive since 1994, the major focus has always been on customers and staff. Says Viljoen, "In any quality and excellence program an organisation has to understand that its success lies in its people. At Honeywell our primary focus has been towards creating and providing the right solutions for customers and motivating and understanding the needs of our own personnel."
Honeywell's implementation of the Excellence Model has involved planned improvement actions which have been monitored rigorously for progress. It has also provided the company with an effective means to coordinate initiatives such as ISO 9001 and Six Sigma. The many benefits to the organisation have included more streamlined processes, better customer interfaces, improved employee satisfaction, rationalisation and consistency of service.
Established in South Africa in 1969, Honeywell Southern Africa is a leading supplier of high technology solutions for industrial and environmental control applications in some of the country's leading process plants, hotels and commercial buildings. As part of a global controls company, the organisations' mission is to work with customers to help them achieve leadership through technology.
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