Assessing The Level Of Compliance With Iso 9001:2008 Quality Management Systems At Eskom Distribution Project Execution And Plant

Abstract

The literature reviewed for this study indicates that the ISO Quality Management System (QMS) standards can benefit any organisation that complies with them regardless of size. Benefits to complying organisations can be internal or external. Internal benefits include, but are not limited to, improved documentation management, planning of activities and the management of employees. Some external benefits include, but are not limited to, increased competitiveness of the business and customer satisfaction. Research has revealed five ISO QMS versions since its inception in 1987. However, the focus of this research was based on the fourth one, ISO 9001:2008 which has six mandatory procedures, namely: control of documents; control of records; internal audit; control of non-conformity; corrective action; and preventative action. The main objective of this study was to assess the level of compliance with these procedures of QMS to improve Eskom’s QMS. The study was conducted in two departments, namely Project Execution and Plant at Eskom, Bloemfontein only. The following were investigated: level of awareness of QMS requirements; compliance with the six mandatory procedures; which requirements are challenging to employees; the involvement of management; and, lastly, what Eskom should do with non-compliance. The main finding was that despite it being management’s main function to maintain required levels of QMS maturity, reviews were not conducted as mandated by the organisation. As a result, a recommendation was that management involvement in issues of QMS not only be top management’s ordinance, but line managers, as well as the latter, should maintain QMS in their respective departments by monitoring maturity through procedures in place at Eskom.