EXPERTS in quality management will address participants at a seminar organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council on April 11. The seminar, called ''Experiences of Hong Kong Companies in Achieving ISO 9000'', will be the TDC's contribution to marking Quality Week. The topics include benefits and applications of ISO 9000 and case studies to demonstrate its value. Chan Hon-piu, certification manager of the local SGS International Certification Services, will speak on ISO 9000 certification and auditing. Ivan Lai, the MTRC's quality improvement and reliability manager, will spell out the benefits derived from using the ISO 9000 quality management system. One of the main benefits of the system was the discipline it instilled in a company. ''ISO brings discipline to the work force of a company, especially a manufacturing company,'' said Mr Lai. ''For managers it is in terms of support; for the work force it is in terms of procedures.'' ISO can also provide continuity, and the retained experience and expertise enhanced a company's competitive edge. The quality of the work force in China was a problem which ISO can help solve. ''What is written down forces you to carry out what you are doing in the most economic way,'' said Mr Lai. ''Skills and discipline come together. ISO certification is a mind-focusing target so the work force tends to concentrate more on what is expected of them.'' Mr Lai cited the example of a company which manufactured paper products using German machinery maintained by an intelligent work force. Eighteen months ago, the company moved to China and lost many of its skilled Hong Kong workers. The mainland work force was indisciplined and the skills of the local workers needed to be upgraded to improve the company's operations. The ''father'' of ISO 9000 was Allied Quality Assurance Publications (AQAP-1), a system originally used by the British Ministry of Defence as a method of certifying all suppliers of hi-tech products. To ensure that a supplier had complied with AQAP standards, it needed to satisfy a design control requirement.
