The Association And Its Objectives
SIGNIFICANT FACTS
The Czech Republic Recycling Association (CRRA) was established in December of 2003. Its main goal is to promote the best companies in the field of toner recycling thereby increasing the quality of services offered to customers. At present time the CRRA is the only association of toner recycling companies in the Czech Republic. Its offices are located in the building of the Czech Chamber of Commerce.
ASSOCIATION MEMBERSHIP
A relatively small membership base can be explained by the rigorous selection criteria that the association employs. A potential candidate for membership has to meet and sustain very high quality requirements. The current members of the association are also under careful scrutiny as their economic stability and professional conduct of their employees are being frequently monitored. The association includes members whose professional and technological backgrounds ensure high quality of the product, warranty and non-warranty service while maintaining the delivery dates and terms of service.
The expansion of the membership base is carried out in accordance with the rigorous entrance criteria while trying to accomplish a well-proportioned distribution of its members throughout the Czech Republic.
In addition to a regular membership the CRRA offers an affiliated membership to companies and individuals who trade or retail recycled toner/ink cartridges, but who are not directly involved in the production of these products. Another prerequisite to becoming an affiliated member is a company's willingness to help fulfill the association's objectives and goals while following the associations rules and policies.
From its inception in 2003, the key objective of the CRRA has been to promote the best companies in the field of recycled toner/ink cartridge production. Being a member of the association ensures that each individual member
- is capable of satisfying high quality requirements for the product and service;
- uses the latest technology in the production process;
- has excellent personnel at all levels in the organization;
- conducts their business ethically.
It is therefore reasonable to assume that the membership in the CRRA offers companies a competitive advantage over their competitors as it represents a certain level of quality of product and service.
MAIN OBJECTIVES
- to maintain its exclusive status as the only professional association of recycled toner/ink cartridge producers in the Czech Republic;
- to collect and spread information regarding the new business conditions as the Czech Republic becomes a member of the EU so that the companies are able to profit from this bigger market;
- to lobby for the improvement of the entrepreneurial environment in the Czech Republic by talking to the members of the parliament, governmental offices and various interests groups (in particular, to help improve the IT segment of the market in that it becomes more transparent with regard to assignment and evaluation of business tenders);
- to inform its members about the changes in the legislation which might have significant impact on their core businesses.
TENDERS
The association announces and evaluates various tenders to select the best suppliers of material components and technologies. The winners of these tenders become official CRRA suppliers, and their products are preferred among the CRRA group and are also recommended to third parties. The tenders are being evaluated by the members of CRRA who have long term hands-on experience with these components and technologies, but who also value the sound business practices, attention to detail and high level of customer service. Another objective of these tenders is to motivate the suppliers to attain the highest possible quality of supplied products and services.
MAIN BUSINESS COURSE
The fundamental concept behind the CRRA business policy is that the companies which sell print supplies must be able to quickly react to ever changing demands. That is why satisfying the customer is the single most important aspect in this market. The critical goal of the CRRA is therefore to provide each customer segment with product that is custom built to their unique requirements.
One of the main courses of business of CRRA is to provide assistance to its members to effectively manage their business, face the new competitive challenges from abroad as the Czech Republic becomes a member of the EU and use the new market for their growth.
One of the requirements to successfully competing in the EU market is to quickly adapt to the European standards in terms of quality of product and service, qualification of employees, financial management, marketing and environmental management, and the new European legislation. The CRRA closely cooperates with organizations in the USA, Switzerland, and Slovak Republic and profits from applying this experience in the common European market. The CRRA also informs its members about the changes in the legislation as it approximates the legislation of the EU, and investigates the possibilities of funding of new or existing businesses from the structural funds of the European Union.