Ing. Francis Farrugia

Ing. Farrugia has been employed with the Malta Standards Authority (MSA) since 1998 and has been one of the founders of    the Standardization

Directorate in Malta.

Ing. Farrugia is responsible for standardization activities in Malta which include development of Maltese standards, adoption of European and international standards as Maltese standards, training programs on quality, environmental, food hygiene, safety standards (ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 22000, OHSA 18000), certification of Quality Management Systems, certification of organically produced products, etc.

Ing. Farrugia is a permanent delegate in CEN and CENELEC Technical Boards and participates in various European and international fora, representing Malta in the area of standardization. He has received extensive training in standardization activities, in particular to carry out standardization activities in conformity with the WTO agreement and the requirements of CEN, CENELEC and ETSI.

In 1996, Ing. Farrugia had been appointed as a lead tutor on Managing Performance and Business Transformation & Change Modules in the Henley Management College’s Master of Business Administration (MBA) programme. He is responsible for the presentation of MBA course material on operations management and change management within the modern business context. He also acts as a local supervisor appointed by the College, guiding students in their assignments, research projects and dissertation. Topics vary across various industries including telecommunications, banking, tourism and

manufacturing.

During 1996, Francis was accepted by the Staff Development Organisation (of the Office of the Prime Minister) and the EU Commission to be seconded with the EU Commission in Brussels for a three month work experience with DGXIII - “Telecommunications, Information Market and Exploitation of Research”. His assignment within the Commission was to obtain a general overview on the workings of the Commission as well as participating in the activities of this Unit. During this experience he identified and provided information on a number of opportunities for Maltese organisations to participate in research projects such as those under the ACTS, COST, Telematics and Trans European Networks programmes.

His professional career had commenced as an Electrical Engineer at the Standards Laboratory of the Department of Industry in 1982, whereby he was responsible for the setting up of the Electrical Division and for the testing and certifying of electrical goods according to international standards. Heading the Division, he was also responsible for the planning, budgeting, scheduling and implementation of work practices.

During this time he was also involved in preparing technical specifications and local standards on electrical items. For this aim, he was a member on various sub-committees of the previous Malta Board of Standards such as when drafting local safety regulations on domestic appliances, electric cables, electric accessories and toys.

Francis was engaged on a number of projects and assignments within the public service. These included evaluating public tenders, setting-up technical specifications and evaluating Fiscal Cash Registers, Taximeters and Electronic Point of Sales systems for the VAT/CET Department, vetting of patents for the Comptroller of Industrial Property, and performing as an expert in court cases and in the consumer tribunal.

Ing.Francis Farrugia is a regular contributor to The Executive.