July 2018 – RISQ: Assurance for the Rail Industry

Published on: 06/07/2018

Discover the importance of the RISQ qualification scheme 

The Railway Industry Supplier Qualification Scheme (also known as RISQ) assures over 110 buyers within the industry with greater confidence in doing business with over 4,300 suppliers. RISQ provides a greater insight in to the supply base they are engaging with to deliver the relevant goods and services.

RISQ Accreditation

RISQ has recently transformed from being a concession provided by a third party to being brought in-house by RSSB, providing supplier assurance that is truly is “for the industry, by the industry.”

The RISQ audit assesses a supplier’s management system and processes to provide assurance to the buyer that the supplier has the adequate systems and resources in place to deliver the products and services they have identified.

Buyers in the Railway industry are able to search for published information on the RISQ platform to confirm that suppliers meet their specific requirements, this benefits buyers by the scheme undertaking capability assessments on their behalf. Buyers using RSSB RISQS to look for suppliers can search for companies based on their products, services, skills, size and location and their credentials in delivering safety and quality.

Once qualified, suppliers can register an ‘expression of interest’ in supplying particular products or services through RSSB RISQS. By doing this, buyers such as train operating companies or infrastructure managers benefit from a list of suppliers from which a tender selection process can begin.

Graeme Cox, RSSB Head of Supplier Assurance, said of the recent transition:

“RISQ is critical to the functioning of the rail market and we knew there was no room for failure. The challenges of migrating almost 5,000 members’ data , including hundreds of thousands of individual supplier updates, to a brand-new, bespoke platform which handles thousands of searched every month, was enormous. But working together, we were determined to provide the high-quality, enhanced services we’d promised from the day we went live.”

GD Rectifiers have extensive experience of servicing the railway industry for over 50 years and are proud to be RISQ accredited.

Our focus on the railway supply industry allows you access to the widest selection of standard and customised rectifiers, IGBTs, MOSFETs, thyristors, diodes, heatsinks, high voltage semiconductor components, converters, liquid cooling systems, power electronic building blocks and capacitors.

GD Rectifiers are proud to be RISQ accredited, we support Great Britain’s leading railway providers such as Network Rail, Transport for London, passenger and freight operating companies, rolling stock organisations, main infrastructure contractors and many other buying organisations in the management of supply chain risk.

Our extensive team of engineers are ready to help you on your next project, tailoring your needs to your business.

For further information on GD Rectifiers’ railway components and systems, please call: 01444 243 452 or email: enquiries@gdrectifiers.co.uk.