Product responsibility
Quality Policy of the Company Norilsk Nickel’s quality policy is a part of the overall policy of the Company and as such is aimed at meeting current and future demands of base and precious metals customers to the fullest extent possible. The Company considers customers’ views and expectations in implementing its quality policy, and guarantees delivery of products conforming to established standards and specific customers’ demands. In the implementation of its quality policy, the Company is guided by the following principles:
The Company manages quality and safety of its products on the basis of the international quality management standards, European Union directives; guidelines and requirements of the EU, World Trade Organization (WTO), and the London Metal Exchange (LME), requirements of the global metal markets and other stakeholders (customers, shareholders, governments, the society and employees). Ultimately, the Company’s quality management activities are aimed at the strengthening of its market position and stable growth of its shareholder value and financial performance. The main objective of implementing and maintaining quality and environmental management systems on the basis of international standards is ensuring evidence and the required level of guarantees of operational safety, as well as maintaining customers’ confidence in the quality of products and reliability of supply. The quality policy and the environmental policy of Norilsk Nickel are aligned with the Company’s strategic objectives and provide the basis for setting environmental and quality objectives, and for review and improvement of the corporate integrated management system. The Company has implemented and maintains the requirements of ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 international standards on the basis of its Integrated Quality and Environmental Management System (IQEMS), which encompasses processes and activities of the Company’s Head Office (Moscow), the Polar Division (Norilsk), and the Polar Transportation Division (Dudinka). In the process of IQEMS development and implementation, processes and operational rules in the field of quality and environment, as well as relationships between these and other management areas were defined and described. The IQEMS processes and procedures cover production operations, infrastructure management, procurement, sales and product delivery, project management, identification and significance assessment of the Company’s environmental aspects, identification of legal and other applicable environmental and quality requirements, documentation management, audits, management review, as well as customer and other stakeholder relations. Performance indicators and targets are established for the Company’s business processes and IQEMS processes. Based on the audits’ results, the Company’s IQEMS has been certified in the area “Production, project management, sales and shipping of products” by an independent certification body, Bureau Veritas Certification, and accredited by international accreditation bodies, including United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS, UK), Deutschen Akkreditierungs Rat (DAR, Germany), and American National Accreditation Board (ANAB, USA). In 2009, the IQEMS successfully passed an audit based on the updated version of the ISO 9001, which was introduced in the late 2008. The system’s certification according to ISO 14001:2004 has also been confirmed. Effective functioning of the Company’s quality and environmental management system contributes to:
Entities of the Norilsk Nickel Group have a number of local certified and accredited quality, environmental, and OHS management systems. These systems make important contribution to the accomplishment of the Company’s strategic objectives1. The current objectives include support, maintenance, and development of all implemented and certified management systems on the basis of their integration. United under a common brand, Group entities coordinate their activities in the field of ensuring product quality, managing environmental impacts, and controlling health and safety risks, thus achieving synergy between their efforts. For this purpose, the Company has introduced the practice of internal (corporate) audits, aimed at the assessment of compliance and performance of end-to-end production processes and activities implemented in the Company’s divisions, units and SDCs.
Ensuring compliance with mandatory product/service safety requirements In order to ensure the level of health and environmental protection required by both Russian and international legislation, and to define mandatory product/service safety requirements, all stages of the product/service lifecycle are assessed for risks and potential negative impacts associated with them. The requirements for the safety of processes, including manufacturing, transportation and sale of products, and providing services, are formally defined by the Company in the relevant technical documentation, ranging from terms of reference for process design to operational procedures and parameters charts for specific processes and operations, including, in particular, various forms of permits (licenses, safety data sheets, expert conclusions, etc.). Information on the requisite product quality and properties, including safety requirements, is contained in technical standards and specifications, and contractual documentation for specific product types. Product compliance with the established requirements is assured by means of quality control; based on the results, necessary documents are produced. The Company manufactures its products in accordance with the established operational safety requirements for the respective processes. Compliance of the Company’s operations with the applicable safety requirements is confirmed by the state licenses held by the Company. Information on potential health impacts of products and applicable requirements concerning product labelling to inform the customer on potential hazards are contained in regulatory documents for specific product types (national standards, technical specifications). Monitoring of customer satisfaction The Company’s quality policy is aimed at meeting customer requirements and preferences to the maximum extent possible. According to the corporate policies, monitoring of customer preferences and satisfaction includes the following types of activities:
Monitoring of conformance to customer requirements related to packaging, delivery term, availability of accompanying documentation etc. is performed at various stages of product movement from the producer to the customer. Customers’ complaints and comments are analyzed and addressed in accordance with the corporate policies regulating customer relations and defining procedures of corrective and preventive actions within the framework of the Company’s IQEMS and local quality management systems of individual business units and SDCs. One of the Company’s approaches toward maintaining the customer focus of its activities involves soliciting feedback from the customers and monitoring their satisfaction with the Company’s products. The Company’s sales function on an annual basis conducts questionnaire surveys among its domestic and foreign customers in order to identify their preferences and solicit their suggestions regarding the quality of the Company’s products and services. Customers evaluate products based on a number of criteria such as chemical composition (including contaminants), geometric parameters, surface condition, packaging and labeling, shipping timing and information support. In 2009, the Company received three customer’s claims regarding the quality of its finished products, all of which were resolved. _________________ |
In 2009, the Company was granted the Russian Government’s Quality Award for its activities in 2008. The Awards Board noted Norilsk Nickel’s extensive experience of applying modern management approaches and improving its activities. 
