BRUNEI-MUARA

THE Institute of Brunei Technical Education (IBTE) is the first post-secondary institution in Brunei to achieve the international standard ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management System (QMS) across all its seven campuses.

The ISO 9001:2008 QMS are standards aimed at enhancing the quality interaction process, such as students enrolment, curriculum design and development, teaching and learning and examination assessments.

At a presentation of the ISO 9001:2008 certificate yesterday held at the IBTE Sultan Saiful Rijal Campus, Minister of Education Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Hj Suyoi Hj Osman said IBTE’s management’s pursuit for quality has made IBTE stand out as one of the benchmarks for the rest of the education institutions in the country.

“This certification is timely as it is in line with Brunei Vision 2035 that aims to transform Brunei to a nation widely recognised for the accomplishment of its educated and highly skilled people,” the minister said.

The minister pointed out in his speech that being ISO certified is just a start. YB Pehin Dato Hj Suyoi said the certification has to be maintained over time, and this requires the collaboration from all parties involved, including industries and IBTE stakeholders.

The minister urged IBTE to uphold all aspects and systems required to ensure sustainability of the certification.

He added that in moving towards achieving the national and ministerial key performance indicators (KPIs), it is imperative that technical education remains an important pillar of Brunei’s education system, by staying abreast of change and delivering its promise to produce highly skilled and a professional workforce.

“I am confident that being ISO certified, IBTE will be in a more comfortable position to achieve these aims and by continuing along this path, IBTE can further contribute to the nation’s economic development through easier job mobility for its graduates as they have the competencies that meet the needs of the industries both in the country and the ASEAN region,” YB Pehin Dato Hj Suyoi said.

Meanwhile, IBTE Director and CEO Dr Chin Wei Keh said since the implementation of QMS, IBTE has started to meet the ISO requirements.

IBTE first embarked in accomplishing the international standard in April 2009, when the Marine Engineering Department of IBTE Jefri Bolkiah campus was awarded the ISO 9001:2000 QMS certification as required by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO).

In 2011, after the then Jefri Bolkiah College of Engineering decided to extend the scope of the certification to ISO 9001:2008 for entire courses offered in the college, IBTE took a strategic decision to introduce QMS to all campuses and other related divisions.

Dr Chin said ongoing monitoring and assessment need to be carried out to ensure that IBTE processes continue to comply with the required standards, and to ensure continuous improvement.

“In the future, building on this certification, IBTE hopes to gain more international recognition from other accrediting bodies to achieve its vision and become a leading national institution in post-secondary technical education and training by 2018,” he said.

To date, IBTE has been awarded provisional IMO certification for Brunei Maritime Academy (BMA) programmes, and TWI (The Welding Institute) for Welding and Fabrication programmes. Also present at the ceremony was Vice President for the Certification Business Line for Asia Pacific Bureau at Veritas Singapore, Arnaud Torcheux.

He said IBTE’s achievement of the ISO certificate is a clear sign to its customers on IBTE’s strong commitment to increase its customer satisfaction and continuous aim to achieve high standards. Torcheux added this certification is the beginning of a journey that will lead to IBTE providing a higher level of services.

The Brunei Times