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What is ISO IEC 17025 accreditation and why is it important for metrology laboratories?
The accreditation of testing and calibration within a metrology laboratory is a vital component when customers, stakeholders, retailers, manufacturers, and authorities are looking to include competence as part of their quality management system. It is important to understand that compliance does not equal accreditation. ISO/IEC 17025 is the internationally accepted standard for which most labs must hold accreditation in order to be deemed technically competent. Accreditation is not mandatory for labs. It is voluntary, but there are many industries which require it when seeking out engineering and metrology services. ISO accredited labs go through a rigorous audit that ensures customer confidence in the deliverables and measurement results. ISO 17025 standards are the benchmark when it comes to generating valid data.
Unbiased experts will review the technical competence of staff, impartiality, consistent operation of the lab through adequate procedures and policies, quality of environment, measurement uncertainty analysis, calibration standards, and traceability. The metrology lab will have a scope of accreditation on file that their customers can access. The scope and certificate is an official document from the accreditation body that lists in detail the dimensional inspection actions the lab is accredited to execute. To see an example of what this might look like, click the link at the bottom of this article for Nel PreTech's scope and certificate from A2LA.
One of the most important elements of an ISO 17025 accredited metrology lab is the establishment, publication, and monitoring of measurement uncertainty. Measurement uncertainty requires extensive and ongoing testing of equipment using calibrated standards.
Nel Pretech goes beyond what the standard requires. We test the limits of equipment with real part studies and cross correlation measurements between different equipment types. For industrial CT scanning in particular, we perform studies to look at how increasing the number of pieces in a single scan reduces the accuracy of measurements due to material effects and reduced resolutions.
The knowledge gained from these tests allows us to make informed decisions for customer scans and needs for efficiencies.
Nel PreTech Corporation is the first measurement laboratory in the U.S. accredited to ISO/IEC 17025 for industrial computed tomography. We are accredited by A2LA, the largest and most recognized accreditor of ISO 17025 metrology labs in the United States.
These 3P's are combined to provide customers the exceptional quality they should expect from metrology labs. We have years of accredited experience serving more than 3,000 clients in a diverse mix of industries. These clients return to us knowing the level of quality they are getting each and every time.
Looking for an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited metrology lab? Work with the best to be the best! Contact us for a free, no-obligation quote.
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