FICCI, ASQ pact for improving standard

The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), one of the major industry bodies in the country, has formed a joint venture with American Society of Quality (ASQ), a leading international organisation for quality and organisational excellence.

This joint venture would facilitate the adoption of global best practices in quality, which would enhance competitiveness of Indian industries and make them world class, said Amit Mitra, secretary general, FICCI.

"The FICCI-ASQ joint venture would provide a new dimension to the quality movement in India and help counter the challenge to India from China and other companies," added Mitra.

The timing of JV assumes greater significance in today's context for countering global recession because by deploying ASQ technologies would take organisations to focus on operational excellence by reducing operating costs through more effective inventory management, cycle time reduction, supply chain management, improving customer interface processes and retention etc.

These approaches provide more sustainable and viable options while diverting the need to slash costs by reducing manpower through job cuts and retrenchment strategies, said Mitra.

About 200 companies have already attended 10 courses of ASQ.