DUBAL becomes first company in MENA region to win Gold in US-based quality and team excellence awards

Commitment to continuous improvement contributes to top honours    

The corporate culture of employee-driven innovation at Dubai Aluminium PJSC (“DUBAL”) has earned the UAE-based primary aluminium producer Gold in the 2013-2014 American Society for Quality (“ASQ”) International Team Excellence Awards (“ITEA”). The award, presented during the ASQ’s World Conference on Quality and Improvement in early-May 2014, is a singular honour, as this is the first time that any company from the UAE and the greater MENA region has been selected as a finalist in the ASQ ITEA competition – never mind winning the Gold level award.

The winning DUBAL entry – entitled “Stub Repair Reduction” – was submitted by the Reduction Materials team. A second DUBAL entry – entitled “Reduction of PFC emissions”, submitted by the Potrooms team – also progressed through the preliminary phases to become a finalist in the competition. Ranked by many as best-in-class, the process for the ASQ ITEA competition is highly competitive, with participating teams having to satisfy stringent and exhaustive criteria prior to selection. The DUBAL entries competed in a set of 38 finalists from 32 organisations and 14 countries. 

DUBAL’s achievement in the 2013-2014 ASQ ITEA competition reflects the emphasis placed on excellence through continuous innovation by Emirates Global Aluminium PJSC (“EGA”) – the jointly-owned, UAE-based aluminium conglomerate formed by Mubadala Development Corporation and Investment Corporation of Dubai through the combination of their respective aluminium industry interests. DUBAL is an operating subsidiary of EGA, alongside Emirates Aluminium PJSC (“EMAL”). It also attests to the performance-based work culture encouraged across EGA, whereby individual employees are empowered through ownership, accountability and team support.

Evidently delighted at the news, Abdulla Kalban (EGA’s MD & CEO) said: “Having two entries among the finalists and then winning ASQ ITEA Gold is an excellent achievement. It not only highlights the spirit of innovation within our organisation, but also confirms the value-add of strong teamwork as an enabler of corporate goals and objectives.”