Univar operations throughout the Nordic certified to new ISO 9001:2000 standard

Univar’s operations in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland have been certified in accordance with the new ISO 9001:2000 standard, which brings them into compliance with the latest standards in the field of quality management. Univar is one of the world’s leading independent suppliers of industrial chemicals and related specialty services.

Mike Cope, Managing Director of Univar’s Nordic operations is delighted with the (re)certification: “This brings all of Univar’s Nordic operations into compliance with the most recent standards in the field of quality assurance and monitoring. For us, this is a further affirmation of our ambition to continuously enhance the quality of our service provision to both to our customers across a broad range of industries, as well as the world-class chemicals producers we represent."

The ISO 9001:2000 standard is fundamentally different from the ‘old’ 1994 standard. It places more emphasis on customers and market focus. Certified companies, more so than in the past, are expected to adopt an active approach with respect to information streams - simple compliance with standard procedures is no longer adequate.

The audit, which was conducted late 2003, showed that the Univar operations in the Nordic countries are in full compliance with the quality requirements as laid down by the European Committee for Standardization (CEN). The auditor further specifically commented on Univar’s commitment and openness.

Apart from the recent recertification to the ISO 9001:2000 standard, Univar’s regional operating centres in Malmö, Göteborg and Oslo achieved ISO 14001 Environmental Management System certification in 2001, and Copenhagen was included in 2003. “As a distributor of chemicals we believe environmental compliance is as equally important as a quality management system,” says Mike Cope. “In addition to addressing the broad issues of environmental protection, Univar differentiates itself from other distributors by actively working to substitute harmful products with better ones, not just within its own portfolio but also among our customer group.“

The Univar audits were conducted by the local offices of Det Norske Veritas (DNV), an independent foundation with the objective of safeguarding life, property and the environment, and a leading international provider of services for risk management. Established in 1864, DNV is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, and has a global network of about 300 offices in 100 different countries across the globe.

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