Green ethics earn HK first international award (01/05/2006)

Fook Tin Group of Companies is first in the world to be awarded an internationally recognised “green manufacturing” certification from IECQ. Its Managing Director, Dr John Chai, says HK companies are well informed on green directives A Hong Kong electronics manufacturer has become the first in the world to be awarded an internationally recognised hazardous substance process management certificate, adding to the nine product awards the firm received in 2005. Fook Tin Group of Companies, which specialises in the design, manufacturing, marketing and distribution of electronic products, was recently awarded the world’s first IECQ QC 080000 Hazardous Substance Process Management (HSPM) certificate on Green Process Supplier and Manufacturing Certification. With global attention focused on green directives such as those on waste electrical and electrical equipment (WEEE), and the restriction on the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment (RoHS), it is imperative for Hong Kong companies – almost all of them exporting to Europe, US and the rest of the world - to be exemplary in environmental performance. Dr John Chai, Managing Director of Fook Tin, with offices in France, Germany, UK and Spain, said it was challenging to establish the system and processes to fulfill requirements of the certification. “We’ve already had the system and processes to control restricted substances in our products since WEEE and RoHS were announced, a couple of years ago. The main benefit to us obtaining this certification is to validate the effectiveness of our system by an internationally recognised third party,” explained Dr Chai. Voluntary compliance Swiss firm SGS, one of the world’s leading companies in testing, certification, inspection and verification services, was engaged to validate Fook Tin’s process and system.  It was SGS which proposed to Dr Chai to test whether its system was compliant with the global certification standard IECQ QC 080000 which was rather new at that time.  “Participation in certification is entirely voluntary. It provides the evidence of compliance through third party validation. Although certification in itself is not a legal requirement, we’re driven by three forces, namely, customer requirements, existing and emerging legal requirements, and management expectation to establish a certified hazardous substance process management system,” added Dr Chai. Dr Chai, who is qualified both as a doctor in the health care profession and a doctor of law, said that Hong Kong companies have moved as deftly and quickly as any in the world to comply with “green” standards. “Hong Kong companies are very well informed in green directives. We have moved progressively and quickly to get ready for compliance. We, as an industry, are doing very well compared to many manufacturers I know of in the region and globally.” Fook Tin has manufacturing facilities in Shenzhen, southern China, of over 600,000 sq ft, uses over 600 suppliers for the manufacture of its electronic products. The company started the systematic management of its “green manufacturing process” two years ago. Complex process “It is certainly a complex process as we have to make sure that the entire supply chain components are compliant. It involved at least communicating and co-ordinating with over 600 of our component suppliers in sourcing, testing and approving hundreds of components within a product. Over 1,000 individual hazardous substance tests are conducted for each product and we have hundreds of products on our active list,” explained Dr Chai. The cost impact of establishing and implementing a comprehensive hazardous substance process management system is 5-10 per cent more. “We as a company embrace sustainable development. I believe that our environmental performance, together with our achievements in quality, technology and innovation and corporate social responsibility will earn ourselves a wider customer base to balance such cost,” he said. HK Company With World First "Green" Award Related links    Fook Tin Group of Companies  IECQ