ISO Certification Case Study: The Furnishing Service (TFS) | SQMC

When East Kilbride-based social housing service provider, The Furnishing Service (TFS), identified a real need to achieve ISO certifications to get the most from business expansion, they entrusted staff training and Quality Systems assessment to the Scottish Quality Management Centre (SQMC).

The specialised furnishing, flooring and cleaning Service Company was formed in 1995 and has operated from its current head office, showroom and 17,000 square foot warehouse in East Kilbride since 1998.

After significant nationwide contract wins in recent years, the firm now has premises in Manchester, London, and Newcastle – with plans to open a new branch in Birmingham following a recent contract win. In Scotland offices are in Edinburgh and Aberdeen, following the award of the prestigious Scotland Excel contract.

TFS Managing Director Randle Wilson explains: “As a busy, expanding business, we simply didn’t have staff knowledgeable enough and who could dedicate the time to achieving the internationally certified quality standards necessary to take our business forward. Our Financial Director had previously attended a training course run by SQMC associate Karen Mackenzie, and so the solution presented itself after further discussions with SQMC.

“Through SQMC’s consultancy services we have identified key areas that require improvement, especially in terms of recognising areas of business over expenditure and, importantly, we streamlined our systems and processes and implemented some new ones to increase efficiency and to ensure our business is operating to its full potential.

“SQMC has shown us how to detect good practice in our branches and how to ensure we implement these examples across our whole business.”

SQMC associate, Karen MacKenzie, who initially provided training for TFS’s Financial Director, has gone on to develop a strong relationship with TFS, providing an outsourced Quality Assurance Manager support role, working alongside Raymond Forrester, formerly TFS Operations Director now Consultant to the business.

Mr Wilson continues: “We’ve now been working together for three years and I find Karen a real pleasure to work with. She is very knowledgeable, highly organised and has great communication skills. I have always been very impressed with Karen’s approach to her work, and based on our experience I would highly recommend Karen and SQMC to any company looking to achieve ISO 9001:2008 accreditation.”

Whilst being entirely dedicated to the social housing sector, TFS has been providing a comprehensive delivery and insulation service to local authorities for 19 years. Services include: comprehensive furnishing and floor covering supply and fit service, full property cleaning service, full PAT service, needle sweep and sharp disposal service, furniture removal storage and disposal service and stock management.

SQMC provides internationally-accredited quality training and qualifications to a diverse client base of SMEs and large multinationals across a broad range of industrial and service sectors and public and private industries across the UK and internationally.

For further information on The Furnishing Service visit www.the-furnishing-service.co.uk