The results of the annual HKMA Quality Award, one of the most prestigious business awards in Hong Kong, were proudly announced by Mr Alfred Chan, Chairman of the Award Organizing Committee, during the press conference of the Award held yesterday (4 July 2003) at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong Hotel.

Eurasia International (China) Ltd Partnership and Urban Group were awarded the Overall Winners in recognition of their distinguished success and achievements in Total Quality Management. Four other outstanding companies, Jones Lang LaSalle Ltd � Property Management Division, Kai Shing Management Services Ltd, Manfield Coatings Co Ltd and The Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel, The Marco Polo Gateway, The Marco Polo Prince were awarded the Certificates of Merit simultaneously.

First launched in 1991 by The Hong Kong Management Association, the annual HKMA Quality Award aims to reward commitment in an age of change, and to bring public recognition to those organizations that have achieved outstanding standards of quality and made a lasting commitment to the process of quality management.

This year, around 100 companies have shown keen interest in the Award and 18 of them entered the competition. The applicants come from a wide variety of industries such as manufacturing, shipping management, internet service provider, hotel, property management, and so forth. More and more Hong Kong companies are aware that the desire for success must be accompanied by the quest for excellence irrespective of their sizes and nature.

The Panel of Judges and the Board of Examiners are deeply impressed with the finalist companies� dedication as demonstrated by their top management involvement and excellent teamwork. The comments of the Board of Examiners on each winning company can be summarized as follow:

Eurasia International (China) Ltd Partnership - Overall Winner

For Eurasia, the Examiners are impressed with its strong commitment to be the �Best in the Ship Management Industry� by aligning its people, business processes and top technology to comply with different international regulations. Eurasia has successfully built good customer relationships by having senior management keep in touch with customers to ensure a speedy response. The company is especially commended for adopting a �matrix management� system of self checks, cross checks, and external checks which ensures vessels are operated as required without any loss of life or damage to the environment.

Urban Group � Overall Winner

For Urban Group, the Examiners are impressed with its development of an environment of innovation, organizational agility and learning through a well-defined organizational structure and different effective communication channels. The company also embraces a management-by-fact culture by adopting a well-knitted process model centred on its internally developed Sm@rtUrban system and uses it to support daily operations and organizational decision-making. A �360 degree performance appraisal system� is in place to motivate and measure staff performance.

Jones Lang LaSalle Ltd � Property Management Division - Certificate of Merit

Jones Lang LaSalle has successfully fostered an environment to provide fully integrated services and solutions for real estate owners, occupiers and investors worldwide. The Examiners are impressed with its wide range of value for money services such as Electronic Patrol System, Office Technical Support Service and Laundry Service. To provide tailor made emergency support services and customer services, the 24-hour Central Customer Services Centre are designed and delivered to clients, which have effectively met and even exceeded customer requirements.

Kai Shing Management Services Ltd - Certificate of Merit

Kai Shing is commended for its determination in pursuing service excellence in a cost effective and environmental friendly way. Its �Modern Re-Seller Scheme� for recycling second hand products such as sofas, electrical appliances and computers helps promote a green habit in the communities. The company has also fully utilized modern technology in developing different systems to enhance its services. For example, the Super e-Management System enables management and its customers to check the complaints cases in real time and at all sites. In addition, the Mobile Building Management System assists patrolling staff members to file incident reports in real time using PDAs.

Manfield Coatings Co LTd - Certificate of Merit

For Manfield Coatings, the Examiners are impressed with the commitment of its top management who has successfully created an environment of empowerment and innovation throughout the company. In order to better serve customer needs, the company organizes frequent visits to its trading partners and customers. Customer Service Technicians are strategically located near key customers to provide timely response to customer requests. Furthermore, the company encourages creative thinking and continuous improvement through a great variety of initiatives. Other systems have been implemented successfully to create a motivated and efficient workforce.

The Marco Hongkong Hotel, The Marco Polo Gateway, The Marco Polo Prince - Certificate of Merit

The Marco Polo Hotel has demonstrated to the Examiners a strong determination in creating a secure living and working environment. The Hotel has good understanding of the competitive environment and its strengths relative to other competitors by capturing customer and market knowledge through extensive feedback methods and channels. In-depth surveys and regular data analyses also help the Hotel in identifying and reducing failure or error. In 2003, five key messages were launched through the Service Excellence Programme to help reinforce the service mindset of its associates.

The Award`s Panel of Judges this year include Dr The Hon David K P Li GBS JP, Chairman and Chief Executive, The Bank of East Asia Ltd (Chairman); Mr Giovanni Angelini, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts; Mr Alfred Chan, Managing Director, The Hong Kong and China Gas Co Ltd; Mr John Chan GBS JP, Managing Director, The Kowloon Motor Bus Co (1933) Ltd; Mr Ramagopal Rao, Managing Director, Fuji Xerox (Hong Kong) Ltd and Dr Lawrence Wong, Chief Executive, The Hong Kong Jockey Club.

The Board of Examiners this year include Dr T Y Lee, Director, Technology Support Centre, The University of Hong Kong(Chairman); Mr Billy Chen, Executive Director, Membership Services, The Hong Kong Jockey Club; Mr Cliff Cheung, Senior Quality Assurance Manager, Hang Seng Bank Ltd; Professor Sam Ho, Founder Chair, Hong Kong 5-S Association; Mr Victor Hui, Quality Manager, China / Hong Kong, Philips Electronics HK Ltd; Mr Ray Lau, Deputy Administration Director, Glorious Sun Enterprises Ltd; Mr Leung Ping Him, Manager � Quality Management & Technical Training, The Hong Kong and China Gas Co Ltd; and Mr John Yeung, Manager � Quality Programmes Implementation, Quality & Efficiency Directorate, PCCW Limited.

Members of Organizing Committee this year include Mr Alfred Chan, Managing Director, The Hong Kong and China Gas Co Ltd (Chairman); Mr T C Chu, Director and Managing Partner, McKinsey & Co Inc; Mr Howard Ho, Vice President � Business Operations, Asia Television Ltd; Ms Susanna Hui, Director, Public Affairs & Communications, East Asia, American Express International Inc; Mr Liu Guo Yuan, Executive Vice Chairman and President, COSCO (Hong Kong) Group Ltd; and Mr Perry Mak, Publisher and Group Managing Director, Hong Kong Economic Times (Holding) Ltd.

The 2003 Award is sponsored by Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd; COSCO (HK) Shipping Co Ltd; Fuji Xerox (Hong Kong) Ltd; Glorious Sun Enterprises Ltd; Guoco Group; The Hong Kong and China Gas Co Ltd; Hong Kong LP Gas (Holdings) Ltd; Hong Yip Service Co Ltd; Hsin Chong Real Estate Management Ltd; The Kowloon Motor Bus Co (1933) Ltd; Manfield Coatings Co Ltd; McDonald`s Restaurants (Hong Kong) Ltd; and Ricoh Office Solutions. Asia Television Ltd and Hong Kong Economic Times (Holding) Ltd are the Media Sponsors of the Award.

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Issued by The Hong Kong Management Association on 4 July 2003

For press enquiries, please contact Ms Titania Woo (Tel: 2774 8580/ Email: titaniawoo@hkma.org.hk) or Ms Sunnie Ma (Tel: 2774 8581/ Email: sunniema@hkma.org.hk)