Curtin Sarawak announces ISO 9001:2008 certification

Miri – 16 January 2013 – Demonstrating a commitment to consistent delivery of quality education and services, Curtin University, Sarawak Malaysia (Curtin Sarawak) has announced that it has achieved ISO 9001:2008 certification.

The certification was delivered by certifying agency SIRIM QAS Sdn. Bhd. following a year-long certification process involving review and enhancement of the university’s documentation and quality systems, organisation-wide training, internal quality audits, management review and final assessment. It brings Curtin Sarawak in line with Curtin University’s campuses in Perth and Singapore, which have also achieved ISO 9001:2008 certification.

ISO 9001:2008 certification implies that an institution has well structured policies and procedures which are effective, in line with the overall institutional objectives that are supportive of growth and development as an organisation and based on world class standards.

At the heart of ISO 9001:2008 is a close analysis of current documentation and quality systems. “In the education sector, documented processes that demonstrate continual improvement of teaching and learning and business practices are critical to ensuring consistent delivery,” remarked Doris Lian, Curtin Sarawak’s Planning, Quality and Accreditation Manager, who coordinated the certification process.

She added that ISO 9001:2008 certification is about commitment to delivering the best, high-quality products and service to customers, and delivering what the university says it delivers, and having the processes in place to prove it. 

The certification also provides Curtin Sarawak with an opportunity to benchmark its services with other world class learning institutions, establish best practice for its processes, evaluate the quality of its services and identify areas for improvement.

According to Doris, the certification process has meant that new quality management systems have been put in place, which will benefit Curtin Sarawak’s students, staff and its academic programmes. To maintain its certified status, the university will need to continuously monitor and evaluate progress.

Curtin Sarawak Pro Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive Professor Ian Kerr said that the certification will ensure that Curtin Sarawak delivers high quality academic programmes with the right facilities for learning and research, for both staff and students.

“Our focus is on contributing to the technological development of our society in the context of globalisation,” he explained.

“In working to become a world class university, Curtin Sarawak continues to obtain national and international accreditations for its academic programmes and undergo institutional audits to ensure continual enhancement of its processes and standards. This helps to continuously improve standards and encourage international employment mobility for our graduates,” he concluded.

Meanwhile, Deputy Pro Vice-Chancellor Professor Yudi Samyudia, who is responsible for the university’s quality management and enhancement, thanked all staff members of the university, included about 50 who were appointed as internal auditors, for their efforts towards achieving the certification.

“We are proud to join our sister campuses and the ranks of institutions of higher learning afforded ISO 9001:2008 certification worldwide. We have already benefitted greatly from this certification, including a refined quality policy and quality manual, and improved procedures and processes that will help us perform more efficiently and effectively, continually improve quality, and increase customer satisfaction,’” said Professor Samyudia.

ISO 9001:2008 is a series of five major standards for quality management and quality assurance established in 1987 by the International Organisation of Standardisation. It is by far the world’s most established quality framework, currently being used by around 897,000 organisations in 170 countries worldwide, and sets the standard not only for quality management systems, but management systems in general. It helps all kinds of organisations to succeed through improved customer satisfaction, staff motivation and continual improvement.

(L-R)Chief Operating Officer Nicholas Ching, Doris Lian, Professor Ian Kerr and Deputy Pro Vice-Chancellor Professor Yudi Samyudia.