ENG-1992 — Page 102

INDUSTRY AND TRADE

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Since Hong Kong's economy is heavily dependent on exports, higher quality in production will increase its competitiveness in the market place. The campaign is part of a wider quality improvement programme aimed at encouraging more manufacturers to adopt quality assurance in their companies. The other components of the programme include strengthening the department's existing range of quality services and developing a quality management certification scheme.

Under the certification scheme, government recognition is conferred on companies which adopt quality management systems conforming to the international standard ISO 9000. An independent subvented organisation, the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency, was established in 1990 to audit factories for the award of certificates. Response to the scheme has been very enthusiastic, involving both manufacturing and service sector companies.

The Governor's Award for Industry, established in 1989, rewards and recognises outstanding achievements in industrial competitiveness. In 1992, the number of award categories was increased from four to six. Different organisations are responsible for arranging annual competitions in each of these categories. The Federation of Hong Kong Industries is responsible for the consumer product design category; the Chinese Manufac- turers' Association of Hong Kong for machinery and equipment design; the Hong Kong Productivity Council for productivity; the Industry Department for quality; the Private Sector Committee on the Environment for environmental performance; and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council for export marketing.

Hong Kong Productivity Council

The Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC) was established by statute in 1967 to promote increased productivity of industry in Hong Kong. It is financed by an annual government subvention and by fees earned from its services. The council consists of a chairman and 21 members appointed by the Governor. Its membership is drawn from the management, labour, academic and professional fields and from appropriate government branches and departments.

The HKPC has about 500 staff members with expertise in a wide range of disciplines. It provides a variety of training programmes, industrial and management consultancies and technical support services, using resources available in its 16 operational divisions: Computer Services, Electronics Services, Engineering Services, Systems and Organisation, Computer-Aided Design Services, Chemical and Metallurgy, Manufacturing Engineering, Textiles and Apparel, Industrial Consultancy, Training, Environmental Management, Information Services, Development and Administration, Public Relations, Marketing and Accounting.

The HKPC moved to its new building in Kowloon Tong in February 1991. The new HKPC building places all the council's operations under a single roof and contains a display area, an auditorium, a technical reference library, electronics data processing facilities, a computer-aided design service centre, a surface mount technology laboratory, a radio frequency and digital communication laboratory, photo-chemical machining, metal finishing and industrial chemistry laboratories, an environmental management laboratory, sheet metal processing, precision machining and die casting laboratories.

There was a growing demand during the year for HKPC's consultancy and technical support services. The council undertook 1 120 consultancy projects, including feasibility studies, production management, new plant projects, environmental management, quality