By Agatha Emeadi
For due diligence, continuous progress and attention paid to detail, Agiville Industries Limited has officially received the Mandatory Conformity Assessment programme (MANCAP) certificate award from Standards Organization of Nigeria (SON).
During the ceremony, director-general of SON, Mallam Farouk Salim and Mrs. Talatu Ehan, Lagos operations, who were represented by Mrs. R.A. Kabir, state coordinator, Lagos State office 3, said: “Conformity to standard specification is mandatory for all locally manufactured products in Nigeria, while ensuring that manufactured products comply with Nigeria Industrial Standards prior to being introduced to the consumer/market and preventing the production and sale of substandard products.”
Kabir, therefore, specified how pertinent it was that Agiville Industries, manufacturers of waste bins with wheels and standard multipurpose plastic chairs, was being inspected every quarter, samples drawn and tested in SON’s laboratory and announced by SON to conform with the relevant NIS. With this qualification, SON, therefore, approved and awarded Agiville Industries the Mandatory Conformity Assessment MCP-00003856, with MANCAP NIS Logo No. CT-13224, and Certificate No. MCP 0000 3858 with MANCAP NIS Logo number CT-13225 and declared it should be labelled on their certified products accordingly and instructed that only the products from Agiville Industries have the authority of SON to affix these numbers on their products. SON also assured that it is only their industry that will ever have the number in Nigeria.
The state coordinator also sounded a note of warning that the certificate logo numbers are only on loan as the products continue to conform to the relevant Nigeria industrial standards. “However, when your products quality falls outside the specification of the standard, it would be withdrawn by SON because the journey to quality has no end and therefore encouraged the industry to continually improve on their quality.”
In the same vein, SON also warned other companies operating in Lagos State to come under this mandatory scheme, as non-compliance would lead to the closure of their factories and seizure of their products from the market.
While receiving the certification, Managing Director of Agiville industries, Victor Agidi, said the product has been in constant production with attention paid to details in the last seven years.
He said: “It was for continuous progress, daily improvement on quality and standard that SON gave the pass mark of what we have witnessed today and promised to keep the flag flying.”
In his response, Curtis Adekunle, head, corporate and PR, Agiville Industries, expressed gratitude over SON’s satisfactory need, hence the certification.