Press Release

Ref: PRCSH82 Date: 30th June 2015

ISO accreditations set Cooper Handling apart

Cooper Handling has become one of only a handful of specialist suppliers and engineering support providers of port and heavy handling equipment in the UK to achieve three prestigious internationally recognised quality standards.

The business has attained ISO9001, ISO14001 and OHSAS18001 across its entire sales and aftersales operations based at sites in Manchester and Honiley, Warwickshire. They apply to all business activities relating to small and heavy lift trucks and laden and unladen container handling.

Many companies will be familiar with ISO9001, which is based on a number of quality management principles including a strong customer focus, the motivation and implication of top management, the process approach and an integral policy of continual improvement. ISO14001sets out the criteria and maps out a framework that an organisation can use to set up an effective management system to measure and improve environmental impact.

OHSAS18000 is an international management system specification that helps organisations control occupational health and safety risks and represents a recognised standard against which they can be certified and assessed. It helps businesses minimise risk and to put in place the policies, procedures and controls needed to achieve the best possible working conditions in accordance with international recognised best practice.

Cooper Handling is keen to reassure customers that they can expect consistent, good quality products and services on an ongoing basis and considers its achievement of all three standards as a statement of intent regarding the future development of the business. To reinforce this commitment, the company has adopted an Integrated Management System to maximise business functionality without compromising the needs of the ISO standards.

Some companies operating in the heavy lifting equipment sector rely on the manufacturer's accreditations. By attaining the accredited standards itself, Cooper Handling believes it can offer customers extra peace of mind which, in turn, will translate into a tangible competitive advantage.

David Cooper, Managing Director of Cooper Handling, explained: "OHSAS18001 will be a differentiator, underlining the fact that Cooper Handling recognises the risks inherent in the environments in which heavy lifting and container handling equipment operates and that we take health and safety very seriously indeed.

"For instance, we now carry out detailed safety checks on subcontractors to demonstrate to our customers that everyone representing Cooper Handling can work safely on their sites and demonstrate a minimum level of competence."

ISO and OHSAS accredited businesses must have robust written procedures in place. They are also required to implement them in full and to submit to regular internal review and external audits. To ensure compliance, Cooper Handling is committed to certifying/calibrating all tools, while its staff will benefit from a specific skills-based personal training programme.

The company has always worked to a programme of risk assessments and method statements. Now, it will introduce dynamic risk assessments, enabling it to identify potential risk factors and take action to mitigate the risks in a particular environment on a given day. Risks may include climatic conditions, overhead restrictions or traffic hazards that are prevalent at point of need.

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Editor's Notes

Cooper Handling Group is the exclusive UK distributor of Sany heavy handling equipment, sole importer and distributor for Mantsinen cranes and Maximal forklifts and specialises in Konecranes Lift trucks. Cooper operates in all sectors of lifting and materials handling across the UK and Ireland.  Independently owned, Cooper offers total solutions for forklifts from 6 to 60 metric tonnes and a complete range of hydraulic cranes for solid and bulk handling. It provides high quality, high value products and reliable service to customers who operate in the toughest sectors across freight, ports, inter-modal terminals and other heavy lifting industries together with a broad range of industrial materials handling applications from manufacturing to distribution.

Media contact:

Martine Layland

CHANGEWORKS Communications Limited
t: + 44 (0) 1785 247588
e: mlayland@changeworkscom.co.uk

Company contact:

Natasha Barnes

Business Development Manager

Cooper SH Limited
Holly Farm Business Park
Honiley
Kenilworth
Warwickshire
CV8 1NP
United Kingdom

Tel: 01926 658900
email:natasha@cooperhandling.com

W:www.cooperhandling.com