IAS December 2021 - Newspaper - Page 1
INTERNATIONAL ACCREDITATION SERVICE, INC.
NEWSLETTER
DECEMBER 2021
Content
Letter from the President
From the President’s Desk
Since the last newsletter, the
world of IAS continues to turn
towards more face-to-face
interaction with our staff as
well as the world outside.
The IAS office opened for
us to move back and work
together in person rather than
through the “electronic box.”
It’s been wonderful to see colleagues in person and
share a cup of coffee with them. Meanwhile, we
have participated in various forums and industry
shows in the United States (U.S.). Sandi McCracken,
Walter Mershon and David Musselwhite attended
Metalcon 2021 in Tampa, Florida. Sandi presented a
technical paper with Dr. Lee Shoemaker from Metal
Building Manufacturer’s Association (MBMA). Helga
Alexander, Harry Makam, and Greg West were at
the National Conference of Standards Laboratories
International (NCSLI) conference in Orlando,
Florida. Duncan Millar, Harry Makam, and I attended
the Cannabis Science Conference East 2021 in
Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. George Anastasopoulos
and I also met with the executives of several
U.S. accreditation bodies in Washington DC to
discuss conformity assessment activities. Arunan
Kattilaparambil attended the Big 5 trade show in
Dubai this year as well. As you can see, the IAS team
has been quite active globally.
I am sure many of you are receiving frequent
eblasts to your inbox from our training team led
by the very-able Ned Gravel. Since Ned joined IAS,
our training program has grown from a few dozen
classes to over 100 courses and webinars being
offered globally. Ned has brought his considerable
conformity assessment knowledge and skills, and
with able assistance from Jouliana Tchiloyans, has
kept the operational process running smoothly.
Pierre Cloutier has also assisted in transferring
the online training material to the teachable
environment. Laura Uraine and Greg West from our
customer success team, manage the social media
and eblasts. Please encourage your staff to partake
in both the paid and free offerings on the IAS training
page.
Many of our customers have much interaction with
our administration and accounting/financial team.
Amy Gensicke, business process and administration
manager, leads a dynamic team to ensure our
service and internal process are customer focused.
I am sure many of you may have noted emails from
Carrie Bivens and Monique Moody on accounting
matters. In addition, the accounting and financial
support team from the Chicago office including
Gosia Furman, Marisa Clemons, Charity Postell,
and others who assist us in innumerable ways. I
encourage you to reach out to Amy and her team if
you have any questions or comments.
I also want to send a shout-out to the technical
certificate processing team which consists of Nancy
Libby, Anna Carson, and Emily Pao, who are involved
in the ‘last mile’ of processing and sending out the
certificates. It is one of the most time-intensive
activities that we undertake at IAS as our customers
are anxious to get their certificates and they need
to ensure that “all the i’s are dotted, and t’s are
crossed.” I have noted many a time when Nancy,
Anna, and the team would be working late evenings
or weekends to rush the certificate out. Keep up the
good work!
Our Customer Success Group led by Greg West
has been on a roller-coaster ride for the past few
months now. You may have noticed a series of
webinars to support the California ELAP program
and Dr. Tony Francis’ presentations. There is also
a series of US Food and Drug Administration /
Accreditation Scheme for Conformity Assessment
(FDA/ASCA) webinars being conducted online with
the assistance of the US Dept of Commerce (a big
thank you to Jasmine Braswell, U.S Department of
Commerce, International Trade Administration).
These webinars have been given to assist in
the FDA’s approval program for medical device
manufacturers and the laboratory accreditation
scheme. Greg West and Laura Uraine, assisted by
the technical leadership of Dimitrios Katsieris, have
done a splendid job of coordinating these events in
Germany and Japan. The level of participation by
some of the largest conformity assessment bodies
around the world is inspiring. IAS continues to
actively stay connected with the FDA on a number of
areas under the direction of Dimitrios Katsieris.
Under the leadership of Alberto Herrera, the IAS
team has also been able to actively assist our
customers in the Spanish-speaking countries of
the Americas. The continued need for services in all
these regions as the global conformity assessment
customers serve markets around the world has
necessitated us to step-up our commitment too.
Further, as our marketplace in United States also
expands to Hispanic communities, Alberto and his
Spanish-speaking colleagues’ expertise is being
utilized effectively.
Continued on page 2
IAS Gains Recognition by
GS Scheme
The first Korean
Certificate of 'Compliance
Management System' in
the Virtual Asset Industry
is obtained by Bithumb
IAS Board Director
Rocco Davis receives
ICC Meritorious Service
Award
IAS Family Loses Dear
Colleague and Technical
Leader - Arunan
Kattilaparambil
Publication of ISO Survey
Results for 2020
Using Existing Tools
Differently
New Free Training Page
January 2022 IAS Online
Training Classes
Accreditation of
Certification Bodies
Providing Certification
for Business Continuity
Management Systems
Webinar Training Course
US FDA ASCA Pilot
Program and Webinars
Senior Management
Meeting
IAS Participates in
International Meetings
IAS at the Cannabis
Science Conference East
NCSLI Workshop and
Symposium
QEERI achieves ISO
accreditation for
calibration and testing
labs
METALCON
Accreditation,
Standardization, and
Conformity Assessment
Online
Assessor Spotlight –
Chin Keung “CK” Cheung
IAS Customer Spotlight –
ACT Lab LLC
St. Port Lucie –
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Accreditation
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