Accreditation test laboratory

Effective specification control often can be estabUshed other than through requirements placed on the end use material, ie, the specification may beat on the taw materials, the process used to produce the material, or ancillary materials used in its processing. Related but supplementary techniques ate approved vendor Hsts, accredited testing laboratories, and pteptoduction acceptance tests. 

One of the remaining questions concerns the QA of chemical reference materials and the competence of RM producers. Whilst laboratory accreditation normally requires the use of physical measurement standards that have been produced in accredited calibration laboratories, the situation regarding chemical measurement standards is, so far, much less formal. General Requirements for the Competence of Reference Material Producers (3,4) have been available since 1996, but the implementation of accreditation based on these requirements is still in its infancy. There is a need for a more balanced approach to accreditation practice related to measurement standards. For example, should only reference materials produced by accredited producers be used as measurement standards in accredited test laboratories Or, does the whole system of the QA of measurement standards need to be re-examined ... 

However, no measurement is exact, and there is always some uncertainty. Calibration laboratories are required to make uncertainty estimates for all their measurements, and in the future it may be that all accredited testing laboratories will also have to do so. This involves estimating the uncertainty introduced by each factor in the measurement and is not at all easy to do. At the very least, it is essential to be conscious of the order of magnitude of the range within which the true result lies. 

These data tables are based on published and unpublished results of permeation testing completed by accredited test laboratories, manufacturers test laboratories, and researchers using ASTM,... 

The first approach - quality through NDT laboratory accreditation - is widely used both in Western and Eastern Europe and is realized on rules and procedures specified in the EN 45000 series and EAL -G15 Accreditation for Non-Destructive Testing Laboratories . 

The System of accreditation is a mechanism that ensures official recognition that calibration or testing laboratory has right to perform testing of measuring devices, specific testing or specific types of testing. 

Requirements stated in the System of accreditation to the competence of calibration and testing laboratories are formulated in CTB 941.3-93. 

CTB 941.0-93 System of Accreditation for Verification and Testing Laboratory of Belarus. Basic Statements. 

Part evaluation by accredited contractors or test laboratory provides independent verification which can substitute for your own receiving inspection, providing you maintain control over the contractor. 

The accreditation and assessment of testing laboratories referred to in this article may relate to individual tests or groups of tests. Any appropriate deviation in the way in which the standards referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 are applied shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 8. 

In addition, the bodies assessing the laboratories should comply with the general criteria for laboratory accreditation, such as those laid down in the ISO/IEC Guide 58 1993 Calibration and testing laboratory accreditation systems -General requirements for operation and recognition .13... 

INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR STANDARDIZATION, Calibration and Testing Laboratory Accreditation Systems — General Requirements for Operation and Recognition — ISO/IEC Guide 58, Geneva, ISO, 1993. 

Addresses the technical competence of laboratories to carry out specific tests and Is used worldwide by laboratory accreditation bodies as the core requirement for the accreditation of laboratories... 

QA principles. The golden standard ISO/IEC 17025 [17], which is the revised version of ISO Guide 25 [70], describes the general requirements for the competence of calibration and testing laboratories. In Europe, the accreditation criteria have been formalized in European standard EN45001 [109]. Participation in PT schemes forms the basis for accreditation, because PT is a powerful tool for a laboratory to demonstrate its competency. Accreditation guides use the information obtained by PT schemes [6,17,60,64]. 

European Cooperation for Accreditation of Laboratories (EAL) (1996), The Expression of Uncertainty in Quantitative Testing, EAL-G23, The Netherlands. 

Accreditation is the procedure by which the competence of a laboratory to perform a specified range of tests or measurements is assessed against a national or international standard. The accreditation covers the kinds of materials tested or measured, the procedures or methods used, the equipment and personnel used in those procedures, and all relevant systems that the laboratory has in place. Once accredited, the laboratory is entitled to endorse test results with their accreditation status which, if it has any validity, is an imprimatur of some degree of quality and gives the client added confidence in the results. Accreditation therefore benefits the laboratory, by allowing the laboratory to demonstrate competence in particular tests, and the client, by providing a choice of accredited laboratories that are deemed competent. 

The ILAC recommends that the logo of the accreditation body not appear on the test report, lest it be taken as a direct endorsement of the test results. However, the marketing value for the accreditation body is as significant as it is to the testing laboratory, and the practice of including the logo is widespread. 

Calibration is based on the principle of traceability from a primary standard through intermediate standards to the test equipment, with estimates of the uncertainty which increases at each step in the chain. Wherever possible, bought in calibrations should be carried out by an accredited laboratory. It is perfectly acceptable for the test laboratory to do its own calibration but then they must maintain appropriate calibration standards and operate a measurement management system in accordance with IS01001213. One factor which has hindered full appreciation of the detailed needs of... 

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