Our questions are answered by Uğur Gedik, General Manager of CPC Certification…
Could you inform us about CPC which has 25 years experience in the field? When was your company established and what services are you offering?
Having 25 years experience, CPC is established in Ankara in 2012. It is authorized by Ministry of Republic of Turkey. Pursuing a corporate governance understanding, our firm is accredited by TURKAK under the standards TS EN ISO/IEC 17065, TS EN ISO/IEC 17021 and TS EN ISO 14065.
Also, we are authorized by Ministry of Environment and Urbanization of Republic of Turkey, European Union Commission and European Organization for Technical Assessment (EOTA) under the 2011/305/EU Building Materials Directive.
Under these authorizations, we carry out certification, validation, inspection and testing services in compliance with the requirements of the standards.
In addition to the Product Certification, we also offer GOLD, SILVER, PLATINUM Integrated Management System Certifications such as ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001 and ISO 50001, which were provided by us for the first time in Turkey.
As a member to AVEBIOM authorized by European Union, Certification of Solid Biofuels under ISO 17225 standards is a service offered by us for the first time in Turkey.
Also, Certification of Gold as a Jewelry Item program is developed by us. Further, as accredited by TURKAK, Certification of Gold via Qr Code and encryption method is brought by us into life for the first time in the world and Turkey. Again a first in Turkey, certification activities under ASTM Standards, as accredited by TURKAK, are carried out by us.
Especially in the recent years, as our construction industry has been focusing increasingly on the America continent, we have also been continuing certifications for the standards applied in this continent removing the barriers against our industries. The services in Turkey leg as required under the bilateral trade protocols with Conformity Assessment Bodies of Canada, Russia, Israel, USA, Germany etc. are also offered by us.
To what industries do you offer certification service?
As CPC Certification Body, we offer services in many fields such as Management Systems Certification, Greenhouse Gas Validation Services, CE Certificate, G Marking Certificate, Conformity to European Norms Standards, Conformity to ASTM (American) Standards, Solid Biofuel Certification (Authorized under Biomasud Project), Gold Certification, European Technical Assessments, National Technical Approval, Training and testing services. We offer services to many fields of industries, mainly, Cement, Concrete, Lime, Thermal Power Plant, Steel, Brick, Building Chemicals.
What are your quality goals and what roadmaps are you using to achieve these goals?
CPC Certification Body carries out its activities under many quality goals such as ensuring professional and personal developments of our colleagues, keeping satisfaction of our customers at the highest levels possible, and entering the new fields. We pay attention sustainability of these goals and create our activity plan in line with these purposes. Via internal or external trainings, seminaries and meetings, we exchange ideas with the top influencers of the industries and accordingly keep alive the dynamic structure of our technical team. We are constantly broadening our Assessor pool, consisting of competent colleagues, trying to capture different perspectives and passing the professional experiences down young colleagues.
The main target of CPC is to accomplish the plans and programs supporting our building industrialists to eliminate the technical barriers of foreign countries in the certification, testing and sampling areas so opening the doors to them as extremely needed by the industry.
What makes you different from other certification firms?
Thanks to our innovative perspective, we are the sole accredited certification body in the specific areas such as Conformity to ASTM Standards, Solid Biofuel Certification under BIOMASUD project, Chromium VI Level Validation, Clinker Certification, Gold Certification and European Technical Assessment (ETA). In addition, we have been ensuring reliable competitive edge thanks to our broad authorization scope, unchanging quality for years, and consistent quality.
CPC Family internalizes the problems and grievances of the building industry as its own, providing services as a Certification Body which produces solutions in an intimate collaboration with industrialists. We have never adopted a exclusive approach. We support R&D activities for innovative products facilitating the certification processes.
What difficulties do you face during certification processes?
We are not affiliated to any industrialists. We are not a representative, member or supplier to any industrialists. Our services are provided under the policy of “Impartiality and Independency”. We can say that the most difficulty is to fight with companies who disregard Impartiality and Independency. We believe that everyone must fight impartially and independently under equal conditions. We consider this is the fundamental principle of accreditation and EU Authorizations Therefore, we are constantly renewing ourselves. We provide our services as a solution finding certification body to all our industrials.
Another difficulty is the resistance we face especially in the certification areas not enforced by an official authority, so-called “a voluntary field”, and application by middle/small enterprises of the relevant expectations from standards. In this respect, important to overcome this difficulty is that management staff and personnel must have a high level of awareness, and be aware of the added-value that certification will contribute in them and their enterprises.
What follow-up process do you have in place, after having provided a certification service?
In 12 months following the certification service, we stay in a constant communication with industrialist and inform them about new developments.
In this period, we maintain constant communication with them by organizing technical seminars, trainings, meetings as well as providing information about developments in the standards, regulations and applications.
The follow-up processes of the certificates issued to building material products according to conformity confirmation systems differ from one to another. For the products under the scope of System 1+ (cement, concrete, fly-ash, etc.) regular sampling is carried out during the year depending on the applicable standards and conformity assessment requirements (6 times for cement and fly-ash, 3 times for concrete) and surveillance audit is made in the plant during one year, ensuring the validity of the certificate. For System 2+ (aggregate, chemical admixture, lime, etc.) the annual surveillance audit is carried out, and customer is expected to conduct routine analyses.
How do you describe position of your company in the industry? Would you inform us about your industry?
With 25 years experience, CPC Certification Body is one of the pioneering bodies in the certification industry. Serving in many fields, our body is actively pursuing its activities as a solution partner to building material producers. Under the rules of Building Materials Regulation, it is the sole body in Turkey that can meet entire host of quality needs of building material producers. Particularly, we execute the certification processes such as ETA, NTA which allows building materials not subject to the standards to be sold in Turkish market as well as European market and even some markets in the world without facing any problem. We are not a Certification Body which works with every industries. With a boutique certification body understanding, we do not work with every industries. We plan to upkeep our boutique understanding especially in the building industry with a qualified workforce who has deep insights about the tests and processes of the industry. Therefore, thanks to this understanding, we are the sole address to the Building Industry.
What kinds of problem do certification bodies have in Turkey and the World?
To survive the economic conditions and market shrinkage, industry is compelled to grow business with Europe and non-Europe countries facing technical barriers such as Certification and testing. While eliminating these barriers, it can take time for people to recognize, accept and certify the innovative products. It is necessary to open the certification fields in order to inspect and maintain continuity of the innovative products including those which R&D is in progress. Unfortunately, since we do not have bodies such as Building Institute in Turkey, official authorities and industry representatives are having difficulties to keep up with us in recognizing the innovative and R&D products. We hope that official authorities will carry out joint studies with universities.
We do not face any barrier and problem in making our certificates and applications accepted throughout the World. But these may cause problems in our own country. Something accepted by European Union countries may not be accepted by our official authority or industry representatives. Throughout the world, there is a rich inventory, standards and applications for building materials. But, there are difficulties in our country against acceptance of these applications. Everybody shows a solid faith when these are done by a foreigner. But once we do it, we face with barriers almost every time. We have to complete our integration with European Union and the World in this industry in the soonest time.
Could you image that thousands of products are put into market as a result of non-standard R&D. These products must be subject to a standard and then marketed. But, the only solution is ETA. The number of ETA issued in Turkey is 10, at most. Bodies which can issue ETA is just 2. The number of ETA issued in Germany is around 1500-2000. The same is also valid for other EU countries. There are many ETAs. It is also similar for NTA (National Technical Approval). When we look, we see there is a standard published. Since this standard is published, it is very easy to receive NTA. There is a constant skepticism against innovative products or those deviating from the standards.
Why is there no such and necessary system in Turkey?
This is an issue that everyone in the industry must think about. There is no regulation in the Ministry in this respect. While a producer is introducing a product into the market, he does not know if it is in the scope of NTA/ETA. When they come to us and we say that “yes, it is included”, then our country’s Ministry or industrialists may say that “no, it is not possible”. As long as we face with barriers set against our studies under NTA, we can include such products in the scope of ETA. While NTA is published with the opinion of industrial representative and Ministry in Turkey, ETA is published with the opinion of 56 representatives of 27 countries and EU Commission. We should think about on the fact that how an ETA is issued by EU, for the same product for which NTA is not published in Turkey. In Turkey, there are many barriers set against domestic firms but almost no barriers against a foreign firm. IMPARTIALITY and INDEPENDENCE must exist in every fields.
Lastly, could you talk about yourself?
From 1998 to 2012, I served as Member of Quality and Environment Board of Turkish Cement Producers’ Association. Meanwhile, Building Materials Regulation was revised in 2011. However, it was published significantly late, and because of the excessive sanctions brought by this new regulation, I left in 2012. In that period, building industry, particularly exporters, would have faced many problems. And therefore, I developed a solution to provide an alternative to the building industry. But, the regulation was considerably lagging behind. No-one competent remained. Therefore, no-one could issue certificate. Then, Ministry laid down a rule. Those who went through audits and made testing would have certificates which validity extended for a further one year. But, Turkish competent bodies could not catch up with the audits, so companies could not receive the certificates. Especially, exporters faced difficulties.
Nevertheless, I solved the missing certificate problem of the industry through foreign agency, and accordingly met their needs. With the same mindset, I adopted as a principle to meet the needs of building industry and have been providing support as a solution partner to them since then.