Bureau Veritas

Bureau Veritas S.A. is a global company in testing, inspection and certification services. Bureau Veritas offer services and solutions to ensure that their clients' assets, products, infrastructure and processes meet standards and regulations in terms of quality, health and safety, environmental protection and social responsibility. At the end of 2014, the group has more than 66,500 employees in more than 1,400 offices and laboratories located in 140 countries.

Originally formed in Antwerp in 1828 as Bureau de Renseignements pour les Assurances Maritimes (Information Office for Maritime Insurance), the Bureau Veritas name was adopted in 1829.

The company has its headquarters in Neuilly-sur-Seine, near Paris La Défense in France.

History

Formed in June 1828 in Antwerp by underwriters Alexandre Delehaye and Louis van den Broek, and insurance broker, Auguste Morel. The Bureau Veritas name was adopted in 1829. This included the adoption of the figure of truth logo designed by Achille Deveria. The company was founded for the initial purpose of collecting, verifying and providing maritime insurance companies with precise and up-to-date information about the condition of ships and their equipment around the world. At the beginning of the 20th century, Bureau Veritas became involved in new activities: inspection of metallic parts and equipment for the rail industry and then for the whole industrial sector as well as construction. At the end of the 20th century, Bureau Veritas extended its scope to set up a merchandise inspection system for imported/exported goods before these are shipped and to set up certification of quality management. At the beginning of the 21st century, Bureau Veritas added 2 new business to its activity: consumer products testings and commodities testings.

Bureau

Bureau (/ˈbjʊəroʊ/ BEWR-roh) may refer to:

People

See also

Veritas

In Roman mythology, Veritas, meaning truth, was the goddess of truth, a daughter of Saturn and the mother of Virtue. It was believed that she hid in the bottom of a holy well because she was so elusive. Her image is shown as a young virgin dressed in white.

Veritas is also the name given to the Roman virtue of truthfulness, which was considered one of the main virtues any good Roman should possess. In Greek mythology, Veritas is known as Aletheia (Ancient Greek: ἀλήθεια) and is the daughter of Zeus, or a creation of Prometheus. Veritas was often depicted nude, holding a hand mirror.

Educational mottos

This Latin word "veritas" now appears in the mottos of many colleges and universities. It is typically capitalized in mottos (as "Veritas") for being an ideal (such as: Truth, Kindness and Beauty). Veritas is the motto of Harvard University, The University of Western Ontario, Drake University, Knox College (Illinois), Bilkent University, the University of California - Hastings College of the Law, as well as the Dominican Order of the Roman Catholic Church, and Providence College, which is run by the Dominicans. Additionally, the Buckley School of the City of New York employs the phrase Honor et Veritas as their school motto. University of Indonesia included Veritas in "Veritas, Probitas, Iustitia" as their motto. University of Cape Coast in Ghana also included Veritas in "Veritas Nobis Lumen". University of Hong Kong in Hong Kong also included Veritas in "sapientia et virtus".