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STMicroelectronics Awarded ISO/TS16949 Certification |
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Geneva, February 5, 2004 - STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM), one of the world's leading semiconductor manufacturers, today announced that it has been granted ISO/TS16949:2002 certification for all of its sites, including non-manufacturing sites. The certification covers both the ISO9001:2000 standard and the TS16949:2002 standard, which applies the much more demanding quality criteria of the automotive industry. The new certification is the result of three-year company-wide project led by ST's Corporate Quality Team to incorporate the most advanced quality management concepts and practices into its quality management system. To replace its existing ISO9000:1994 certification, which was due to expire in December 2003, ST decided not only to move to the latest ISO9001:2000 standard but also that the Company would adopt the 'automobile version', ISO/TS16949:2002, which is even more demanding as automotive components must operate reliably over a wider temperature range than is normally required in commercial products. Furthermore, ST decided to aim for worldwide qualification, rather than the more common and less challenging practice of seeking certification for individual sites. "We are very proud of having set ourselves this highly challenging goal and achieving it," said Robert Sangy, TQEM Group Vice President and Corporate Quality Director. "By applying the rigorous quality requirements of the automotive industry to all of our sites, we are demonstrating in the clearest possible way our commitment to quality management and allowing all of our customers to benefit from the quality standards that have made us one of the world leaders in automotive semiconductors." ISO9001:2000 is a generic quality management standard designed to replace the older ISO9000:1994 standard. The most significant difference is a change from an approach based on management procedures to one based on organizational processes, enabling organizations to link more directly the objectives and effectiveness of their business. Among the improvements over the earlier standard is a greater emphasis on continual improvement and customer satisfaction. ISO/TS16949 is designed to replace the existing QS9000 in defining quality system requirements for use in the automotive supply chain. ISO/TS16949 certification is necessary for automotive customers but not required for most other customers. "Our decision to seek worldwide qualification to the most rigorous quality standard parallels our environmental policy, whereby the most stringent regulations applying at any of our sites are applied to all of our sites worldwide, reflecting our vision and implementation of Total Quality and Environmental Management," said Sangy. "As we have consistently demonstrated with our environmental programs, applying the solutions you have found for the hardest example of a problem to all other cases of the problem is the best strategy in the long run." After a seven-month audit of ST sites, the ISO/TS 16949 certification was granted by ANFIA/Italy (Associazione Nazionale Fra Industrie Automobilistiche) on behalf of the International Automotive Task Force (IATF) composed of the International Automotive Oversight Bureau (IAOB/USA), Comittee des Constructeurs Francais d'Automobiles (CCFA/France), Federation des Industries des Equipements pour Vehicules (FIEV/France), Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT/UK), Verband der Automobilindustrie - Qualitatsmanagement Center (VDA - QMC/Germany) and ANFIA/Italy. Notes for Editors The automotive environment is an especially hostile one for semiconductor devices, both in terms of electrical noise and operating temperatures, which, depending on proximity to the engine, can range from -40ºC in a Scandinavian winter to +55ºC in the desert. Moreover, the consequences of a component or system failure in an automobile are potentially much more severe than a similar failure in most other applications. For this reason, the automotive industry developed quality standards such as QS9000 that were much more stringent than the standards widely used in most other applications. About STMicroelectronics STMicroelectronics is a global leader in developing and delivering semiconductor solutions across the spectrum of microelectronics applications. An unrivalled combination of silicon and system expertise, manufacturing strength, Intellectual Property (IP) portfolio and strategic partners positions the Company at the forefront of System-on-Chip (SoC) technology and its products play a key role in enabling today's convergence markets. The Company's shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange, on Euronext Paris and on the Milan Stock Exchange. Further information on ST can be found at www.st.com. |
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