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Corporate - 04/02/09
SGS Certifies Merck as the First Chemical and Pharmaceutical Company to Achieve Triple ISO Certification for Information Security, IT Service and Quality Management
Merck is the first chemical and pharmaceutical company in the world that has management systems within its IT organisation globally compliant with the internationally-recognised standards for Quality Management (ISO 9001), Information Security (ISO 27001) and IT Service Management (ISO/IEC 20000). The compliance has been established through successful certification audits carried out by SGS.
"We are extremely proud of having achieved the mammoth task of a triple ISO certification throughout 130 IT locations worldwide within only a year and a half of preparation and roll-out”, says Merck CIO Dr. Kai Beckmann. "I consider this a major achievement for the company since our IT department has now achieved common best practice IT processes around the globe, which are a pre-condition to further improve quality, security and service levels. I’m very positive that the entire Merck Group will benefit from a systematical improvement of IT standards through annual recertification.”
First in Class
According to itSMF website, Merck is the first chemical and pharmaceutical company in the world having achieved certification against the ISO/IEC 20000 standard, IT Service Management, on a global level. This adds up to the best practice guidance for a number of service-related processes such as incident, problem, or availability management. “With ISO 20000 certification our business partners at Merck now have a consistent view of the services we provide and of our service levels through agreements and reporting of Key Performance Indicators”, explains Gary Price, Corporate Director, IT Governance at Merck. “Another positive effect is that Merck’s global IT organization has been substantially harmonised and brought together during the course of the program.”
It was All Team Work
Some 200 employees were involved in identifying best practices for IT core processes, providing trainings over six regional hubs, and finally facilitating the external audits covering all continents. Rolf Frieden, Lead Auditor from SGS: "Merck’s worldwide IT management and all employees involved in the audits worked very closely and openly with SGS on getting the tight audit schedule implemented. This is a remarkable achievement and a good show of strength by the entire team.”
About SGS
SGS is the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognised as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 55,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 1,000 offices and laboratories around the world.
For further information, please contact:
Outi Helena Maatta
Global Marketing & Business Development
Systems & Services Certification
SGS SA, 1 place des Alpes, CH-1211 Geneva, Switzerland
t: +41 (0)22 739 9161
Email
www.sgs.com
Frank Buchholz
Communication Manager, Corporate Information Services
Merck Serono SA, Chemin des Mines 9, CH-1202 Geneva, Switzerland
t: +41 (0)22 414 4171
Email
www.merck.de
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