ISO Management Systems – A Relevance to Ready Mix Concrete Business

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ISO systems especially ISO 9001, ISO 14001 & BS 18001 have gained great importance in today' business with the purpose of offering higher value to the stakeholders. Ready Mix Concrete Business is more of Product and Service centric. The QMS, EMS & OHSAS play vital role in product quality, product development, pollution control, resources utilization, health and safe working practices along with products standards & services. The ISO series are considered as a tool for achieving excellence and not as a goal. They can give maximum efficiency and effectiveness.

Authors, pioneers in RMC Industry, having over two decades of direct involvement at all levels of RMC functions, tried to highlight, how various ISO systems enable RMC Business to achieve customer satisfaction and to meet the regulatory requirements by overcoming issues associated with product quality, product delivery, raw material conservation, environment, health and safety.

Introduction

In India, the RMC Business has grown to the extent that, every city (over 100 cities) witnessed the Ready Mix Concrete plants and spread almost every 50SqKms/plant either for Infrastructure, Highway, Irrigation, Power, Railways, Airport, Seaport or Housing projects.

In last two decades, RMC Industry underwent many changes from Telephone – Pagers – Walki-talkies – Mobile technology then to VTS (vehicle tracking system) etc., on communication front. The Concrete products also have witnessed huge change and created new avenues to designers, other stake holders to use more & more new products on day to day applications.

In 1995, RMC Industry has sold only M15 grade concrete with tax regime of 20% central excise along with Sales Tax by struggling to replace SMC, and then went on to supply M20, M30, M40, M50 M60 M70 grade of concretes in general, along with specialty concretes like SCC, SDC, HPC, HVFC, PQC, Fibers Concrete, Foam Concrete, Colour Concrete etc., to meet the requirement of Global Designers/Consultants by re-defining the Quality Standards. The Volume of Concrete produced & serviced successfully has gone up-to 700 to 1000 cum per day per plant (from 90 to 120cum/hr capacity). The pumping of concrete to the height over 150mtr – 200mtr witnessed in these days.