AGQM Quality Assurance Concept Attracts International Interest
On the occasion of the 1st International Conference for Biodiesel Producers on the premises of the Land- und Ernährungswirtschaft (Agricultural and Nutritional Sciences) in Berlin from 24 to 25 November 2006, the Chairman of the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Qualitätsmanangement Biodiesel e.V. (Working Committee Quality Management Biodiesel), Dr Jürgen Fischer, welcomed 60 participants from 17 countries. In his speech, the AGQM Chairman presented the reasons and the findings gleaned to date with regard to the quality assurance concept for biodiesel as drawn up by the AGQM. This included the entire procedure, starting with the buying-in of the raw materials, the processing phases and obligations as regards documentation in the production facility, right though to sales to the end consumer via traders and filling stations. The Chairman stressed that even the biodiesel industry could basically only enjoy long-term prospects if the sector adapted itself from the very outset to the fuel quality trends that were necessary due to the increasing demands made by motor vehicles these days.
Quality production and quality assurance, he claimed, were the key to sustainable market access. The AGQM was facing up to these demands with the aim of not just standing by its members but also by users and authorities. At the same time, intensive cooperation between the vehicle and mineral oil industries had also developed from these activities. In the meantime, he said, the AGQM had gained an increased as well as internationally acknowledged status by, for example, carrying out round robin experiments for the further development of test methods and with regard to the qualification of test laboratories in coordination with the Normenausschuss für Mineralöle im DIN (Standardisation Committee for Mineral Oils in the DIN). Unlike bioethanol that was chemically identical all around the world, the origins of the raw materials played a decisive role as regards the requisite biodiesel quality. Dr Fischer clarified that this was why the conference served also to make it clear that the high demands made by the vehicle and mineral oil industries as concerned quality did not depend on excluding certain raw materials from having access to the market but rather on ensuring that product and thus user safety in terms of customer satisfaction had top priority.
The lectures of the conference are now available on CD. Please click here.