The Quality Council of India (QCI) aims to certify minimum 22,000 MSMEs with the bronze level in 2017 under the ‘ZED scheme’ initiated by the Prime Minister of India and the process of assessment will begin in the next 15 days, stated Adil Zainulbhai, Chairman, QCI, here on January 20 at FICCI’s conference on ‘Sustainable Industry Growth through Quality Systems’ on the theme ‘Quality Systems to Achieve Goal of Make in India’. He also felicitated the winners of the ‘5th FICCI Quality Systems Excellence Awards for Industry’.
Zainulbhai said that the ambitious ZED program hopes to certify one million MSMEs in the next three years. To meet this target, he urged the industry giants to acquire products and services only from certified merchants and mandate MSMEs to secure at least the bronze standards for their products and services.
Speaking on improving the quality of life, Zainulbhai said that consumers need to demand quality goods and services and reject substandard products. This will force the manufacturers and service providers to deliver quality goods and services which would advance the overall quality. He added that the quality of products and services at the ground level in India did not even meet the minimum standards. This can be changed only by measuring quality and enforcing quality standards in all spheres of life.
Alluding to the changing face of products, in his Special Address, Som Mittal, Former President, NASSCOM, said that the product lifecycle had shortened over the years and innovation was taking place at a fast pace. All products are software embedded and rate of adoption of technology has risen dramatically; thus it has become essential to measure quality of products to meet the customer’s expectations and enhance his/her experience.
Mittal said that it was considered that providing quality meant escalation in cost which is not true in all circumstances. He added that customer feedback can play a big role in improving quality and experience and the need was to empower people through technology to share their opinions openly.
Speaking on the relevance and importance of FICCI Quality Systems Excellence Awards for Industry, Shyam Bang, Executive Director, Jubilant Life Sciences Limited, said that the awards are a way to motivate and recognize the efforts of the companies that have augmented the quality of their products to reach the global markets.
In his vote of thanks Chetan Bijesure, Director, FICCI, said that FICCI was working relentlessly with QCI to improve the quality of products and services. He assured that FICCI will expand its activities and work closely with QCI and support its initiatives.
On the occasion, ‘FICCI Quality Systems Excellence Awards for Industry: 2017’ Handbook was released by the dignitaries.
