NOSA, the largest provider of occupational health and safety services in Africa, recently launched an upgraded version of its supplier vetting software. To manage suppliers within a multiple-site and sub-contracting environment, clients are required to do all that is reasonable and practicable to protect the health and safety of the collective workforce.
According to Duncan Carlisle, CEO of NOSA, NOSA’s SVS is a third party, independent accreditation programme that assesses suppliers’ conformance to international best practices and responsible supply chain management. The supplier vetting system is a leading health, safety, environment, quality, and social accountability assessment tool, providing an integrated solution to organisation-wide risk management.
Carlisle stated further that, “one of the main benefits of outsourcing the vetting of contractors or suppliers to NOSA, is that the range of services allows NOSA to include development plans and provide support products so that non-compliant suppliers are assisted through a clearly defined process of compliance.” SVS is compatible with various industry standards and can be extended on a modular basis beyond the realms of health and safety legal compliance. Clients are able to customise audit protocols to suit company operations and to manage organisation-wide risk management and supply chain policies, including ISO 9001, ISO 14001, OHSAS 18001, SA 8000, all NOSA system standards, and FSSC22000.
According to Reinhardt Grobler, Project Manager at NOSA, the system is assisting a number of multi-national companies, specifically those in high-risk environments, in managing their contractor base, and streamlining the process of compliance.