Infosys Technologies, the Bangalore-based global IT major, on Tuesday announced that its telecom practice had been awarded the TL9000 certification by BVQI (Bureau Veritas Quality International).

The company's communication and product services practice, which provides services to corporations in the telecom industry, has been honoured with this certification.

The TL9000 certification, a telecom industry specific quality standard, is the culmination of a 12-month process of developing internal processes in conformity with the set standards.

Commenting on the certificiation, Infosys communications and product services head Y Parameswar  said the company believed that pursuit of excellence is one of the critical components for competitive success in the global market.

This certification, normally given to a telecom firm, is a testimony to the expertise a software company like Infosys can bring to global clients. It is an honour and encourages us to strive harder for excelling in quality standards and processes," Parameswar said in a statement in Bangalore on Tuesday.

The certification also assures Infosys' telecom clients of the quality processes and methodologies followed. For its clients, the rating means lower total cost of ownership through shared goals on schedule adherence, zero defects, on-time service and improved productivity.

According to BVQI senior lead assessor Jim Harrison, the company has demonstrated its commitment to maintaining uniformity in processes across the organisation.

"Infosys is one of the few software firms in the world to have standards which telecom companies aspire for, and TL9000 can be a strong differentiator for Infosys in the telecom field," Harrison affirmed.

The Rs 3,600 crore (Rs 36 billion) Infosys has been a pioneer in setting up quality processes compliant with global benchmarks. In the recent past, the compnay became the first Indian software firm to be certified at CMM Integrated Level 5, for its offshore and onsite operations.

The TL 9000, a registered trademark of the QUEST forum (Quality Excellence for Suppliers of Telecommunications Forum), aims at improving the telecom industry performance by promoting a harmonised global set of quality system standards and models.