Coca-Cola Beverages Sri Lanka wins prestigious National Quality Award 2013

The Coke Team at the Awards

Coca-Cola Beverages Sri Lanka Limited (CCBSL) has been honored with the prestigious National Quality Awards 2013, in the ‘Large’ scale manufacturing category. The Awards Ceremony was held at the BMICH was graced by Honorable Minister of Technology, Research and Atomic Energy - Champika Ranawaka and Minister of Trade and Industries - Rishard Badurdeen and Dhara S. Wijayatilake - Secretary to the Ministry of Technology and Research. Kapila Welmillage, Country Manager, Indika Perera, Country Supply Chain Manager and Ruwan Kumara, SHEQ Scientific and Regulatory Affairs Manager from Coca-Cola were present at the event to receive the award.

The Country Manager for Coca-Cola Beverages
Sri Lanka receiving the award

Kapila Welmillage, Country Manager, Coca-Cola Beverages Sri Lanka said, “ We are very humbled to have received this prestigious award. The Coca-Cola Company takes quality control very seriously and we are committed to manufacturing all our beverages with world class technology and quality standards. This award is a testament to our commitment and we are very grateful to the Sri Lankan Standards Institution and the National Quality Awards team. I also want to take this opportunity to congratulate my team at CCBSL, who have worked very hard to maintain our top-quality standards and win us this award.”

The Sri Lanka National Quality Award is an annual award to recognize Sri Lankan organizations that excel in quality management and quality achievement. The National Quality Award is valid for a period of 5 years and recognizes quality excellence based on the world renowned Malcolm Baldrige model. It is judged by a panel of industry experts/business leaders against an in-depth scoring criteria covering seven key areas such as ‘Leadership,’ ‘Strategic Planning,’ ‘Customer Focus,’ ‘Measurement/Analysis/Knowledge Management,’ ‘Workforce Engagement,’ ‘Operational Focus’ and ‘Results.’

Coca-Cola Sri Lanka has been certified with FSSC 22000:2010 (Food Safety System), ISO 9001:2008 (Quality Management System), ISO 14001:2004 (Environment Management System), BS OHSAS 18001:2007 (Occupational Health & Safety System), PAS 220, and E3 quality standards. The Company’s’ production facility in Biyagama has been awarded by the Coca-Cola India & South West Asia Business Unit (INSWABU) as being amongst the top 60 plants in The Coca-Cola System worldwide.

“The Coca-Cola Company places a high emphasis on quality control and efficiency; and the Coca-Cola plant in Sri Lanka uses world-class technology to manufacture all its products. We are very happy to receive this prestigious award and thank the National Quality Awards team for recognizing our efforts towards maintaining high quality standards. This award reinforces our commitment to high quality as we continue to build a world-class, sustainable business in Sri Lanka.” said Abhishek Jugran, Country Manager - Sri Lanka & Maldives, Coca-Cola Far East Ltd.

The Coca-Cola plant in Sri Lanka has a state of the art Electronic Empty Bottle Inspectors, and Bottle Washer equipment to ensure that no foreign substances enter Coca-Cola’s products during the bottling and packaging processes, inside the plant. The plant also ensures high quality checks and robust processes including undergoing Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) processes and adhering to processes by the Japan Institute of Plant Maintenance (JIPM) to ensure consistent performance.

The plant also uses a fully equipped Water Treatment Plant using multi barrier technology producing water at highest standards which is then used for manufacturing the beverages. The plant also has stringent process to treat the waste water. The water goes through several cycles of treatment, such that it meets the company’s norm of effluent discharge, which in evidenced by sustenance of aquatic life as well as local government norms for discharge. Further to this, the plant uses ultra-filtration technology followed by scale removal through Nano technology to use treated waste water for non-production purposes

The Coca-Cola Company has ensured great taste and quality in each of its products. The company has contributed significantly to improving the beverage landscape in Sri Lanka and has been refreshing millions of Sri-Lankans with a wide variety of sparkling and still beverages to suite local tastes. As a 127 year old Company, with a presence in more than 200 countries and catering to consumers worldwide, The Coca-Cola Company is continually focused on consumer safety and product quality and we understand that we need to operate sustainably and responsibly.

The sole Coca-Cola plant in Tekkawatte, Biyagama, manufactures all of Coca-Cola’s products for the Sri-Lankan market, from trademark Coca-Cola, Fanta and Sprite to Lion, Schweppes and Minute Maid. The plant operates both hot and cold lines, employing over 745 people directly and about 1500 indirectly.

Sustainability is a crucial component of Coca-Cola’s global business strategy, and a crucial component of the Company’s Vision 2020. In Sri Lanka as well, the Company places a strong emphasis on sustainability and being a responsible corporate citizen. The Company has designed various programs and initiatives under the global sustainability framework of ‘Me We World’, with a focus on Water Stewardship, Climate Protection and promoting Healthy Active Living.

Coca-Cola in Sri Lanka 

Coca-Cola in Sri Lanka refreshes thousands of consumers throughout the country with an exciting range of beverages including Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Light, Sprite, Fanta Orange, Fanta Portello, Fanta Cream Soda, Lion Soda, Lion Tonic Water, Lion Gingerale, Lion Ginger Beer, Schweppes Tonic Water, Minute Maid Orange, Minute Maid Mango, Minute Maid Apple and Minute Maid Mixed Fruit. The Coca-Cola System in Sri Lanka employs more than 400 people. Coca-Cola undertakes a number of community development and sustainability projects like the Coca-Cola Cricket Pathways to promote healthy active living, water and sanitation projects in partnership with organizations like United Nations Development Programme and Habitat for Humanity and PET collection and recycling with the Central Environmental Authority.