Just two years old, the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC) has achieved four quality certifications.

The Centre’s Food Safety, Quality, Environmental, Safety and Health (FOQESH) Management System has been successfully audited by the world’s leading certifier, Lloyds Register Quality Assurance of London and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health’s (NIOSH) Certification arm,  NIOSH Certification Sdn Bhd (NCSB).

As a result of this, the Centre is now certified to ISO 9001, ISO 22000 and OHSAS 18001 and has achieved benchmarked status to the Green Globe Company Standard which places the Centre ahead of every other similar facility in Asia.

At a ceremony held at the Centre recently, Datuk Mirza Mohammad Taiyab, director-general, Tourism Malaysia and representing the Minister of Tourism, Malaysia Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, presented the FOQESH certificates to Datuk Ishak Imam Abas, chairman, Convex Malaysia Sdn Bhd, the joint-venture company that manages and operates the Centre.

According to Datuk Ishak, the FOQESH certification process began even before the Centre started operations as each quality certification addresses key concerns in the hospitality and service industry: quality management, food safety, staff training and safety, as well as environmental sustainability.

“The FOQESH certification are not mere marks of achievement, it demonstrates our commitment. The Centre’s theme, ‘Towards Better, Sustainable Business Practices’ supports this commitment as we endeavour to not only uphold global standards, but to surpass them.”

Datuk Ishak said that the certifications helped equip the Centre to consistently meet the increasing expectations and changing needs of its clients over the long term.

“With the FOQESH management system in place, the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre’s clients are assured of a more efficient and effective business partner who will work with them to ensure their event at the Centre is a resounding success, every time.”

Datuk Ishak also gave credit to the Centre’s strategic partners Tourism Malaysia, Malaysia Airlines (MAS), Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) and Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) “who have worked with us tirelessly to actively promote the country, Malaysia; the City, Kuala Lumpur and its support infrastructure; and in turn, our venue, the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre.”

To achieve all four FOQESH certifications, the Centre’s team developed well-defined processes, systems and procedures to meet certificate requirements and standards; documented them completely; and then demonstrated their consistent implementation across all functions and team members to external auditors. Not only were staff specially trained and formally accredited to recognise safety risks and methods of control, vendors too had to undergo vigilant awareness courses, particularly relating to food safety.