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Mzantsi Truck and Bus achieves international Quality Management certification
| Date: 20 Feb 2009 |
Author Type: Press Release |
| Author: Volkswagen |
| Source: Volkswagen |
Volkswagen of South Africa’s preferred business partner in Heavy Commercial Vehicle production, Mzantsi Truck and Bus, has been awarded VDA 6.1 and ISO 9001:2000 certification by the international Quality Management body TüV Nord.
The certification is a requirement for all Volkswagen Group companies and their subsidiaries.
Volkswagen of South Africa Truck and Bus Unit Head Chris Glover said the receipt of the certificates of compliance was evidence that Mzantsi met the high standards set by ISO and VDA. “The awarding of the ISO and VDA certificates means that Mzantsi fulfils the requirements of their contract with Volkswagen of SA and can secure future business. This further demonstrates to Volkswagen and our Heavy Commercial Vehicle customers that Mzantsi has adopted world class practices with well-defined business and production processes,” he said.
Mzantsi is a 100% Black-owned company, whose shareholders consist of a group of 43 Volkswagen employees, mainly from the shop-floor.
The shareholders’ passion for pursuing innovative cash savings schemes dates back to 1989. In 2003, the group took a step forward and participated in the Telkom empowerment public share offer - a short-to-medium term savings endeavour.
In 2005, when Volkswagen of SA announced its plans to enter into heavy vehicle production with an empowerment partner, Mzantsi saw this as a strategic investment opportunity and sold their shares raised from the Telkom investment to pursue this venture. Its six directors launched a successful bid for the business with Volkswagen, ultimately beating nine other local and international contenders.
At the Volkswagen Truck and Bus plant (adjacent to the passenger car plant in Uitenhage), Mzantsi is responsible for vehicle assembly, maintenance and warehouse management whilst Volkswagen of SA is responsible for Quality Assurance, Logistics and Information Systems, Product and Process Engineering.
The Truck and Bus facility is headed up by Vusi Mancapa, a former Volkswagen Manager who resigned from his post in the Logistics Division early in 2006 to head up the Mzantsi Group.
Approximately 30 on-site employees assemble trucks and buses on an SKD (semi-knocked down) platform. Components are sourced mostly from Brazil (95%) and local suppliers. The production output last year was 571 units.
After a mere two years of operation, Mzantsi felt confident that it could undergo the strict international TüV audit process that Volkswagen of SA participates in annually. Judged against criteria relating to compliance to the VDA 6.1 and ISO 9001:2000 Quality Management process and systems standards, respectively, Mzantsi achieved a remarkable 95.6% compliance score.
Mr Mancapa said: “It was our first attempt to get certification in those two standards and we managed to achieve a good result. There were 11 items identified as areas for improvement and once we satisfied the auditors that corrective actions had been implemented, they issued the certification.”
He called the audit “a highly fulfilling experience”. “The auditors looked at our processes with a highly critical eye but that made the hard work we had put in very worthwhile. They critically reviewed items that we had also been reviewing and improving upon, which means that we are focussed on the right matters.
“I want to thank the whole team for our achievement because everyone had a role to play in different ways and for a common purpose,” Mr Mancapa concluded.