Petrotrade receives ISO certification

Sydney Kawadza Senior Writer—

One of Zimbabwe’s largest and fastest growing petroleum group, Petrotrade staged a major coup in the industry by becoming the first ever Zimbabwean company to the ISO 9001:2008 certification.Petrotrade received the certification at a glittering event held in Harare recently.

Officiating at the certification ceremony, Standard Association of Zimbabwe executive director Dr Eve Gadzikwa paid tribute to management and staff at Petrotrade for meeting the requirements for certification.

“It is truly a commendable achievement by Petrotrade. I am also pleased to note that Petrotrade is the first Zimbabwean company to be certified with the ISO 9001:2008 certification in our petroleum industry.

“I think in Zimbabwe, you will agree, that this is the time for us to restore confidence in our country and this can be achieved through a commitment to excellence culture,” she said.

Dr Gadzikwa said Petrotrade’s ISO certification was a not only a testimony of the commitment but an indication of what Zimbabwe is capable of doing.

“The certification underlines the determination and commitment of your staff in providing high quality services,” she said.

Petrotrade acting chief executive Mr Godfrey Ncube said the ISO certification affirmed that his organisation was on the market not as pretenders but real contenders.

“The certification will no doubt energise us, now that we know we have the necessary capabilities and competences to deliver quality services to our customers,” he said.

Mr Ncube said their desire was to grow and become one of the best oil companies, not only in Zimbabwe but the Southern African region.

“Attaining the ISO certification is one of the projects we embarked on to strengthen our brand,” he said.

The increasing number of clients, he said, had motivated management at Petrotrade to assess its activities for an improved service provision.

ISO 9001:2008 specifies requirements for a quality management system where an organisation has to demonstrate its ability to consistently provide product that meets customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements.

It also aims to enhance customer satisfaction through the effective application of the system, including processes for continual improvement of the system and the assurance of conformity to customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements.

All requirements of ISO 9001:2008 are generic and are intended to be applicable to all organisations, regardless of type, size and product provided.

Where any requirement(s) of ISO 9001:2008 cannot be applied due to the nature of an organisation and its product, this can be considered for exclusion.

Where exclusions are made, claims of conformity to ISO 9001:2008 are not acceptable unless these exclusions are limited to requirements within Clause 7, and such exclusions do not affect the organisation’s ability, or responsibility, to provide product that meets customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements.

The International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) is an independent, non-Governmental international organisation with a membership of 163 national standards bodies.

Through its members, it brings together experts to share knowledge and develop voluntary, consensus-based, market relevant International Standards that support innovation and provide solutions to global challenges.