In mid-2016, Infinity Commercial Furniture opened a small office on Princes Hwy, Sydenham, with only the owner, Darren Mifsud, a couple of team members and a small offering of display products.
Fast forward to 2022: ICF now resides in 750m2 showroom in Waterloo; the team has grown to 26 employees; offers over 300 product ranges; a 1500m2 warehouse in Sydney’s south-west; a fleet of vehicles; and the construction of a new showroom in Brisbane has commenced. ICF services architects, designers and builders in the commercial office furniture markets in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and ACT.
Operating in the highly competitive industry, as well as rapidly growing, comes with its challenges. For the business to be consistent in serving its clients – quoting, procurement, warehousing, delivery and installation – requires continuous improvement and adherence to systems and procedures. Since its inception, the ICF team have developed policies and procedures, along with the investment in supporting technology and equipment required.
In 2021, ICF began the process of working towards ISO 9001 (Quality Management) and 14001 (Environmental Management) certifications through Global-Mark. For the business to continue to expand, ICF needs to compete within the government, education and health sectors, which require ISO certifications for the tender process.
Coinciding with ISO certification is the implementation of a new job management software program which will improve quoting, inventory management, scheduling of deliveries and installations.
With the assistance of Quality.com.au online system and project management services, ICF began to review, update, and add to, its policies and procedures.
Covid added extra complexities with government enforced lockdowns, restrictions and work-at-home requirements. In fact, the ISO audit with Global-Mark occurred during the height of restrictions, with the process having to be conducted via video-conferencing and a follow up on-site visit penciled in for early March 2022. A sign of the times we live in and how Global-Mark was agile in adapting to it.
The ISO certification process has been extremely beneficial for ICF. It requires self-examination on the company’s structure, employee job roles and responsibilities, management processes, and the policies for day-to-day operations. The ISO process not only highlights areas of opportunity for the business, but also incorporates company-wide habits of continuous improvement.
For more information on Infinity Commercial Furniture, click here.
