Al-Futtaim's flagship company in Pakistan among global stalwarts
Dubai, December 29, 2010: Al Ghazi Tractors Ltd, an Al-Futtaim group company and Pakistan's leading agricultural tractor manufacturers, was named winners of the 2010 B.I.D. International Quality Crown Award during the awards ceremony held in London recently.
AGTL was honoured for their noteworthy commitment to quality, excellence and innovation at the International Quality Crown Convention in front of an august gathering of leading companies from 43 countries. The B.I.D. International Quality trophy is presented to those companies from around the world that best adhere to excellence and innovation in their practices, putting quality first.
Parvez Ali, Chief Executive Officer, AGTL received the award from Jose E. Prieto, President of Business Initiative Directions, who applauded Al Ghazi Tractors strict adherence to quality practices and innovation.
Robert Willett, Group CEO, Al-Futtaim, said the prestigious award is a true reflection of the company's sustained benchmarking qualities for excellence and innovation, and congratulated Mr. Ali for keeping the Al-Futtaim group standards high.
"The award is a rare distinction and speaks well of Pervez's leadership and how the global business community views AGTL. Pervez has put strong values of quality and customer satisfaction which has helped reap him rich rewards. This award is truly deserved and will serve as a role model for other companies in the Al-Futtaim enterprise. On behalf of everyone in the Group, I congratulate Pervez and his team for this great achievement and wish him more successes," Mr Willett said.
B.I.D.'s International Quality Crown Hall of Fame has Fortune 500 list companies including India's Reliance Industries & Reliance Energy (ranked 206); Indian Oil Corporation Limited (116); Korea Electric Power (245) and Beijing COFCO Plaza Development (398). Other firms worthy of mention include Turner Construction (USA); Plamex-Plantronics (USA); and giant from USA-Mexico, Franklin Electric, Viking Line (Finland); Alcoa Howmet (France); Haki (Sweden); Ansaldo Energy (Italy); Zepter (Austria); RAO-Unified Energy Systems (Russia); Als & Cachou-TBWA (France) and Tata Group (India).
Len Hunt, President, Al-Futtaim Automotive and Chairman AGTL, commented: "AGTL led by Pervez serves as an example for other companies that wish to progress in the constantly changing and challenging economic and business environment. His leadership inspires the rest of Al-Futtaim's automotive division to abide by the same high standards of quality. Kudos to Pervez and his team!"
The Quality Crown award is among a slew of top notch awards won by AGTL this year (2010) including the Top Companies Award of the Karachi Stock Exchange, Corporate Excellence Award of the Management Association of Pakistan, Best Annual Reports Award of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Best Presented Accounts Award of SAFA-South Asian Federation of Accountants and the Best Calendar Award of the National Council Of Culture and Arts.
Mr Ali said: "I'm indeed excited that AGTL today stands among global stalwarts in the business world. I wish to thank our business partners and Al-Futtaim for giving us the support and commitment. Our attitude - striving for constant change instead of just accepting the status quo - continues to win us global accolades and this major feather in our cap will spur us to greater glory."
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About Al-Ghazi Tractors Ltd
Incorporated in June 1983, privatised in December 1991 and listed on the Karachi Stock Exchange, Al-Ghazi Tractors Limited is part of the Al-Futtaim group with over 94% foreign shareholding. With its head office in Karachi, the AGTL plant at Dera Ghazi Khan manufactures New Holland (Fiat) tractors in technical collaboration with CNH - Case New Holland, the Number One manufacturer of agricultural tractors in the world. AGTL was the first automobile company in Pakistan to earn the ISO-9000 certification. With yearly audits the company is now registered for ISO-9001:2008 up to December 30, 2012. AGTL was also the first automobile company in Pakistan to introduce a high profile ERP solution to put the IT process in full circle. Commissioned in January 2002, this complete ERP thus inter-links all processes and supports company's wider strategic objectives. With mechanisation of farming and water conservation high on the Pakistan government agenda, AGTL now offers smart irrigation solutions in technical collaboration with world renowned companies.
About Al-Futtaim
Established in the 1930s as a trading business, Al-Futtaim is one of the most progressive regional business houses headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Al-Futtaim operates through more than 65 companies across sectors as diverse as commerce, industry and services, employing in excess of 20,000 people across the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Syria, Singapore, Malaysia and Europe. Entrepreneurship and rigorous customer focus has enabled Al-Futtaim to grow its business by responding to the changing needs of the customers and societies in which it operates. Al-Futtaim is committed to offering customers an unrivalled choice of the world's best brands with exceptional standards of customer service and after sales support.
Structured into five operational divisions; automotive, retail, electronics, engineering and technologies, real estate and construction, and financial services, Al-Futtaim maintains a decentralised approach, giving individual businesses flexibility and versatility to maintain a competitive stance. This benefits employees, providing a clearly defined work culture where individuals are empowered with authority and responsibility for their work.
For More Information Please Contact:
David D'Souza
Director - Public Relations
GMASCO Marketing Communications
Tel: +971 4 228 2101
Fax: +971 4 227 9801
Email: David.DSouza@gmasco.com
© Press Release 2010
