Chilean ship agency Somarco became one of the few national maritime companies to obtain simultaneously, certification in the international standards ISO 9001:2008, ISO 14001:2004 and OHSAS 18001:2007.
Bureau Veritas international standard certifying company handed to Christian Blanc, Somarco's general manager, the certificates that prove the company's certification in the Quality System, Environment System and Safety and Security System for its operations and facilities.
The certificates were handed to the company officials in an intimate and exclusive ceremony with the top representatives of the local maritime industry, such as Asian shipping lines STX Pan Ocean and COSCO Group, Suez Group and Transfigura, among other important attendants.
The feat of achieving certification
ISO and OHSAS certifications are international standards that prove a company complies with a certain way to develop processes within an organization. But, obtaining a certification is not an easy task, because not only does the company applying for certification have to comply with specific requisites, but also it must be able to prove that it has the capacity -projected in time- to keep the certification.
That is why for Somarco it is very relevant having obtained two ISO certifications and one from the OHSAS area, because these certifications are proof of the company's exceptional performance in three key areas for its business: quality, environment and safety and security.
Gabriel Cárdenas, general manager of CR Ingenieros & Consultores, company that lead the certification process, noted that "a certification process takes about a year; however, with Somarco we were able to obtain three certifications in just six months. This was possible thanks to the 100% commitment and dedication from the company's staff".
Satisfied clients, auspicious future
It is always a good sign for a company when its clients are satisfied with the services provided, and even more so when concrete facts prove that the quality will continue to increase.
Somarco's clients and associates showed great satisfaction with the certifications won by the company. Hugo Toro, general manager of Inversiones Hornito, E-CL subsidiary, the fact that the ship agency managed to achieve the certifications means that "the company is concerned with permanently improving its quality, safety, security and commitment to the environment and that speaks very highly of them. They are our suppliers in Tocopilla and handle our coal downloads and other products, so these certifications will be very helpful in those operations".
A great business partner of Somarco's is the Chinese shipping line Cosco, with whom it has a long history of collaboration. "This year Cosco opened a container service between Asia and Southwest South America and Somarco has been very helpful with us so we may reach our goals. We have been working for many decades with them and hope to have a long future of business together ahead of us", said Ke Bingxiong, Cosco Chile general manager.
The Corean shipper STX Pan Ocean is another important business partner of Somarco's. Handerson Jeong, general manager for the shipper in Chile also noted that the many years of business relationship with the Chilean company and the importance Somasrco's services have for them. "Our main business in Chile is the transport of ore concentrate, forest products and grains, among others. Somarco has been our ship agency since we began operations in 1987. We are very satisfied with the business relationship we have with Somarco and we are very happy with them assisting in the operation of our vessels".
About Somarco
Somarco's main business lines are ship agency, port operations and warehousing, freight brokerage and project logistics, with emphasis in handling ore concentrate in northern Chilean ports.
The company was founded in 1953 in the port of San Antonio. Its headquarters are in Santiago but the company has presence in Arica, Iquique, Tocopilla, Quintero, Valparaíso, San Antonio, Talcahuano, Valdivia and Punta Arenas.
By MundoMaritimo
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