Suppliers of agri-fisheries machinery are encouraged to apply for permit to operate (PTO) through ARREMIS, an online management information system developed by DA-BAFE. To facilitate the application process, DA-BAFE has been conducting a series of hands-on training on the use of ARREMIS (Accreditation Registration Regulations Enforcement Management Information System) in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.
The application fee amounting to P17,500 has been waived until October 14, 2022 to entice more agri-fisheries machinery suppliers to comply with the government regulation of obtaining PTO. PTO is a privilege granted to registered agri-fisheries machinery suppliers who passed the review, inspection and evaluation by DA-BAFE-SRED and DA-RFO-RAED-SRES and are allowed to engage in manufacturing, fabricating, assembling, distributing, dealing, importing, or exporting agri-fisheries machinery.
For the Visayas cluster, agri-fisheries machinery suppliers in Iloilo and Capiz and Regional Agricultural Engineering Divisions (RAEDs) of DA-RFO VI and DA-RFO VIII participated in the Hands-on Training on the use of ARREMIS held in Iloilo City from August 24 to 26, 2022.
Agri-fisheries machinery suppliers in Iloilo and Capiz and Regional Agricultural Engineering Divisions (RAEDs) of DA-RFO VI and DA-RFO VIII participated in the Hands-on Training on the use of ARREMIS held in Iloilo City from August 24 to 26, 2022.
In his welcome remarks, DA-RFO RAED-VI Chief Engr. Moises Mana-ay highlighted the importance of ARREMIS in making transactions, planning, and database systems more efficient and effective.
DA-BAFE is mandated under Section 24 of AFMech Law or RA 10601 to implement an accreditation and registration system for all agricultural and fishery machinery and equipment in the country. In connection with this mandate, BAFE has developed ARREMIS, an information system that increases the efficiency and facilitates the accreditation and registration process, explained Engr. Mana-ay.
Moreover, BAFE and RAED are working hand-in-hand to ensure the workmanship and quality of agri-fishery machinery in the market as well as to regulate and minimize fly-by-night dealers and suppliers. Agricultural and biosystems engineers (ABEs) play a very crucial role in the implementation of DA’s farm mechanization program. Hence ABEs are working to procure quality farm machinery to minimize complaints of farmers and after-sales service concerns on the durability of equipment, Engr. Mana-ay added.
ARREMIS will fast-track the accreditation and registration process as the system will digitize all transactions which are currently done manually. Engr. Mana-ay is hoping that the hands-on training will provide the participants with the working knowledge on ARREMIS to improve the timeliness of approval of transactions and applications.
An overview of BAFE regulations on agri-fisheries mechanization was presented by Engr. Mary Ann Evasco, Engineer III at BAFE-SRED. Engr. Evasco said that there is a need for regulation due to limited information of agri-fishery machinery suppliers in the market in terms of their profile; classification and capability; products and other services; and service centers. Furthermore, there is no established mechanism to record performance of suppliers across regions which leads to issues on government procurement of agri-fisheries machinery and the proliferation of fly-by-night suppliers.
A brief introduction to ARREMIS including definition of terms, application forms used and the process flow chart was provided by Engr. Djaya Astilla, Engineer II at BAFE-SRED.
Manufacturers, fabricators, assemblers, distributors, dealers, importers and exporters (MFADDIEs) of agricultural and fisheries machinery are trained by staff of BAFE-SRED and RAED-SRES on the use of the Accreditation Registration Regulations Enforcement Management Information System (ARREMIS) in applying for Permit to Operate (PTO).
Meanwhile, Mr. Julius Abe Peralta, Computer Programmer at BAFE-PKMDD who spearheaded the development of ARREMIS, underscored that the ARREMIS is an online system that caters not only to PTO but also to Certificate of Conformity (CC), Accreditation of Testing Centers, and other services. Mr. Peralta discussed the ARREMIS registration process and data profiling of MFADDIEs and RAED users, followed by actual demonstration on the use of ARREMIS.
Through the hands-on training, the participants have acquired knowledge of the ARREMIS implementation procedures and have become familiarized with the interfaces of ARREMIS. At the end of the three-day training, the eight training participants have successfully submitted their PTO application using ARREMIS and are expecting to obtain their PTO after the on-site inspection and evaluation as well as the IER (Inspection and Evaluation Report) have been completed. ###Marshall Louie Asis