What ISO 9001 Actually Means for Activ8 Customers and Solar Panel Installations
We spoke recently at our delight in attaining ISO 9001 accreditation, something that most people recognise. When people see the ISO stamp, they know they are dealing with a well-oiled organisation rather than a one-man band. The ISO 9001 is an accolade that directly reflects our commitment to our “Quality Management Systems”. When we set out with our blog, we wanted it to become a source of information rather than a sales tool. With over 10 years’ worth of experience in the solar industry, we feel that we can bring that experience to the public and we can help educate those who are interested in the renewable power of solar. In this regard, we wanted to share the journey towards ISO accreditation, what it really means to get it and help you understand what it means for our customers and those of you interested in what we offer.
As I’ve already alluded to, ISO 9001 was a direct reflection of our “Quality Management Systems”. This means that every single process within the company was scrutinised for best practice; from how we process orders, contact customers, our reporting, right down to how we file everything! But it was a process that allowed us to really focus on one of our strengths; customer service. With stringent processes, it meant we became even more confident that we could strengthen what we call “Our Promise”.
Testament to this, was a recent customer review we received regarding our service. This isn’t so much about the review itself, but it reflects the work that went into securing our ISO 9001 accreditation and definitely makes it worth it…..
A few weeks ago, my wife called to me from the kitchen. She was alarmed at the sight of a steady drip of water splashing on the tiled floor. Directly above the spot there is a Velux skylight and we immediately assumed that this must be the source of the leak. We threw down some cloths to soften the impact of the drips and contain the splashes. By next morning, when the rain had stopped during the night, the leak had stopped and the floor was dry.
A period of dry weather followed and we put the matter out of our minds. Inevitably, when rain returned the leak came with it. What should we do? Let’s have a word with Dave, the man who fitted the Velux nearly ten years ago.
The rain stopped again and we forgot about contacting Dave. Then the penny dropped! It was only five weeks since we had our brand new solar panels fitted by Activ8 Solar Energies of Carrickmacross, Co. Monaghan. They had been all over our roof installing the panels and it was too much of a coincidence, we thought, for the leak to be unconnected with that work, even though it was falling from the opposite side of the roof.
On the Monday, I phoned Tara at Activ8 and she arranged for Eugene to get back to me. Eugene phoned that afternoon and by Wednesday his men were on the roof looking for the leak. They found a cracked tile near the Velux, which clearly was in that condition long before the solar panels were fitted; there was moss growing in the crack. Before they reported their find to me they had replaced the offending tile with one left over from the installation of the panels.
I was so impressed that I sent this e-mail to Activ8:
“Many thanks for following up on my request for inspection of my roof for possible damage arising from your installation work.
As the lads discovered the leak was caused by an old break in a tile not affected by your work; but they were good enough to replace it with one of the redundant tiles.
Please let me know if there is any payment required,
Once again, thank you all.”
Next day I received the following e-mail from Activ8:
“Thanks for your email, we appreciate the offer for payment but this is part of our service we promised to you. Thanks again and if you have any questions in relation to your system in the future please feel free to email me back or give us a call.
Kind regards
Aidan”
Now that’s what I call customer service!
“Customer service”. It should be pretty obvious what it entails when you read those two words. Unfortunately, it isn’t guaranteed everywhere you go. Be careful what you read, and be wary of what you’re offered. We base our customer service on ‘Our Promise’ and we back it up with our awards. Now when you see our ISO mark, you know what it means and how we got it.