By Elvin Carl Croker
PS Shipping and Customs Brokerage (PSSCB) Inc has become the first local company to acquire the ISO 45001:2018 Health and Safety Certification in Logistics, Customs Brokerage and Transportation Services in Guyana.

The company has also simultaneously acquired ISO 9001:2015 for quality in those services.

At a simple ceremony and cocktail event held in observance of the achievement, PSSCB Chief Executive Officer Phil Surooj said while other companies have been ISO certified in quality management, his company is proud to be the first in Guyana to receive ISO certification in health and safety.

The CEO explained that with the two ISO certifications and his company being 100 per cent Guyanese-owned with a 100 per cent Guyanese workforce.

Surooj is encouraging other local companies to ‘step up’ and join in the journey to get certified, noting that the industry is large and no single company can handle the logistics needs of the oil and gas sector.

Surooj said he was inspired to ‘step up’ the performance of his company because of encouraging words he heard from President Dr Irfaan Ali.

“It was at a recent Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association (GMSA) awards, when he said ‘businesses must remodel and build capacity and stop being small-minded,” he recalled.

The former customs officer said with knowledge of the customs laws, brokerage and logistics experience, he started his company in 2019 with 39 clients. These, he said, rapidly grew to 300 clients per month. Surooj also garnered experience in the field after serving as a part-time lecturer at the University of Guyana teaching management science.

The health and safety certificates mean the company must observe all the protocols of health and safety.

President of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Timothy Tucker, said the chamber is continuing to push heavily for local content, noting that companies have to face the reality of the new sector.

“We as Guyanese must know our limitations but must not be limited in our thinking. This is why the GCCI created joint ventures to allow Guyanese businesses to partner with companies around the world to do work in the oil industry at any level,” Tucker said.

Tucker further noted that with almost 207 areas of demand in the oil and gas industry, only 40 Guyanese are currently capable of doing. This, he said, is a clear indication of a need for businesses to rise to the call of capacity building and certification.

“We have a company here that is capable and ready to provide service to any industry,” he said, as he congratulated the PSSCB for reaching this important milestone.

The company noted that achieving the two ISO certifications shows that local companies can offer world- class services to the sector.