Bergen : Documented quality is an important competitive factor

We have demanding customers who expect a focus on quality, says Quality and HSE Manager Rune Torgersen (pictured above) in Bergen Group Services.

Torgersen himself is an example that Bergen Group Services has intensified the company's focus on both quality and security. The experienced QHSE advisor was brought in last autumn in order to strengthen the company's focus on further quality development and increased HSE focus.

-Bergen Group Services has a strong position towards customers who set high requirements both for competence and the quality of our service and maintenance projects. Our good collaboration with, among others, the Norwegian Armed Forces and Redningsselskapet for many years have contributed to Bergen Group Services developing extensive special competence connected to demanding projects within maritime service and ship-technical maintenance, CEO Frode Johansson of Bergen Group Services points out.

However, Frode Johansson and Rune Torgersen are concerned that quality and competence should be documented - not just delivered. That is why the company has made targeted efforts to further developing various systems that secure the best possible documentation of the delivery of goods and services within the company's three market segments, Maritime, Defence and Energy & Industry.

Dedicated focus
-An important part of this work is to have a dedicated focus on the management systems and ensure that these are quality assured through ISO certifications, Rune Torgersen points out. Last year re-certification according to NS-EN 1090, which is a standard for producing steel and aluminium constructions, was put in place. This time ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 3834-2 were renewed and extended with regards to the company's activities connected to the business areas Energy & Industry and Defence.

ISO 9001 confirms that the quality system is certified according to the standard for good quality assurance, and ISO 14001 documents the company's environmental management system.

-The ISO 3834-2 certification has been important to Bergen Group Services for a long time when it comes to documenting the company's extensive welding-technical competence, Frode Johansson points out, and points out that this certification defines extensive quality requirements for fusion welding of metallic materials both in workshops and at construction sites.

A strong market position
-Bergen Group Services has a strong market position within several areas with strict requirements for advanced welding-technical competence. This does not just apply to projects carried out at our own locations, but also to a greater degree the increasing amount of assignments carried out with customers all over the country. Our ambitions to grow further requires that we increase our own focus on being able to document the quality we are known for delivering, CEO Frode Johansson says.

Bergen Group Services AS is a fully owned subsidiary of the stock exchange listed group Bergen Group ASA. The company focuses mainly on the market segments Maritime Service, Defence and Energy & Industry. The operative activities are carried out at the company's main base at Laksevåg in Bergen and Straume at Sotra. In addition, Bergen Group Services has extensive activities at customer locations in Hordaland, as well as designated travel teams covering the Norwegian Coast, offshore installations in the North Sea and international assignments.