Editorial

Dear Readers,

Welcome to the winter edition FOCUS.  Ergon’s Systems and Performance Improvement Department (SPID) manages this publication for Ergon’s employees, and we hope you enjoy this update about our company.  We want to extend a special welcome to the new FOCUS readers – especially those from two newly acquired facilities.
These companies are:

• Ergon Asphalt & Emulsions, Inc. – Bartow, Florida –
A manufacturer of asphalt emulsions.
• Ergon Asphalt & Emulsions, Inc. – Garden City, Georgia –
A manufacturer of asphalt emulsions and polymer-modified asphalt, previously a joint venture now wholly-owned by Ergon Asphalt & Emulsions.

In this issue we look at Ergon – Asia, Inc., Ergon Europe MEA, Inc., and how Ergon complies with the European Union regulation concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH), among other topics.  This issue also features the Ergon, Inc., Procurement Department and the important role they perform.

Many companies in our industry have implemented a strategy for quality management called business excellence.  This approach goes beyond the traditional quality functions—those having a narrower connotation associated with the quality of products and services the company delivers to its customers.  Businesses that have implemented business excellence have made quality an integral part of the way business is designed.  It goes beyond the quality of products and services and takes on a broader meaning of maximizing the effectiveness of the business by meeting or exceeding customer value expectations and using continual improvement to drive business results.  It is the total quality of how the business operates as a system.

Quality is not something that can be delegated to the quality group of an organization.  It must be an essential part of the way business is managed and requires very strong, cross-functional leadership within the company.  Quality is a way of life at Ergon.  We will continue to set high standards and build continual improvement into the way our family of companies operate.

We always welcome contributors to this publication.  Please let us know if you would like to contribute an update about your organization.  Let us hear from you–we appreciate feedback from our readers about the articles they find worthwhile and interesting.

Have a good winter!

Tom Isonhood