Download - Gelita

Interview
“Audits are our
day-to-day business”
The quality of foodstuffs has never been so much in the spotlight as today. For GELITA, this is not a
problem as the company has always placed top priority on the quality of its products. Peter Fischer,
Global Vice President Operations, explains in this interview just how customers, cost pressures and
the environment play their various roles.
Mr. Fischer, you have been
with GELITA since January 1 this year
so you will have an impartial view of
the production processes at GELITA.
What were your first impressions?
Anybody coming in from the outside must
be impressed with the quite excellent
management system, the high standards
of the production equipment and the topquality
produced. In addition, the entire
staff are so enthused about the production
and the products. Just how close-knit
and loyal they are is demonstrated by the
unusually long lengths of service of many.
Furthermore, it soon becomes clear that
our employees throughout the world are
very well trained.
What is GELITA doing to maintain this
high quality standard?
GELITA is continuously improving its production
processes and monitors these with
what are called key performance indicators.
One central topic is the complete
traceability of our products – being able to
follow and confirm every single step in the
pathway of the product’s components
from the raw material to the finished
product. GELITA also guarantees that the
same high hygienic standards apply to
all its plants.
How does GELITA guarantee the quality
of its raw materials?
We purchase our raw materials exclusively
from suppliers who have been officially
certificated by the relevant authorities
and whose products have been officially
designated as “fit for human consumption”.
How closely do you work with suppliers?
This type of cooperation is very intensive.
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GELITA agrees stringent quality measures
with suppliers and these are regularly
checked and confirmed by audits.
“GELITA will be paying
even more attention
to consumer protection
in the future.”
How do you cooperate with your customers
and what sort of influence do
they have on quality assurance?
We liaise regularly with our customers
and exchange views on many topics.
GELITA produces according to the specifications
set by the customers and integrates
their requirements into its policies
on quality. Customer audits are practically
our day-to-day business. However,
we are not just there to discuss and take
up wishes; we work together to develop
innovations and new products that we can
then make available to our customers.
Quality assurance on the one hand,
cost-effectiveness on the other – how
does GELITA ensure that quality does
not suffer under the pressures being
placed on costs?
Quite simple really: quality assurance and
cost-effectiveness are not contradictory
in my view. On the contrary, high quality
reduces the overall number of complaints
and the consequent need to make improvements.
A high level of quality helps the
implementation of total cost measures;
the continuous improvement process in
fact is helped by keeping a close watch
on both quality and costs.
What changes can we expect in the
future regarding quality and quality
assurance?
Quality and quality assurance never actually
end. As a manufacturer of natural
products we have a special responsibility
in this respect. We will therefore be paying
even more attention to consumer protection
in future and we will be introducing,
on a worldwide basis, the internationally
recognized standards of the Food Safety
System Certification (FSSC). In this way
we will be taking another step towards
“Our doors are
always wide open for
our customers.”
ensuring that in future our customers
all over the world will continue to obtain
products that correspond to the high
GELITA Corporate Quality Standard.
Is GELITA planning any further changes?
As a manufacturer of collagenous natural
products, the protection of nature and
the careful management of resources are
core aspects of our company philosophy.
We have in fact been doing this very
successfully for many years. However, also
here we can say that the goal is never
achieved. For this reason we are currently
looking at a number of highly promising
measures in the areas of water conser vation
and energy generation and, of course,
a further reduction in CO2 emission. If the
results of our studies prove positive and
are approved by the company we plan to
implement these over the next few years.
This could well result in new jobs.