IAS Newsletter December 2023 - Magazine - Page 6
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Product Certi昀椀cation Agency
Accreditation (PCA) Update
IAS has accredited Product Certi昀椀cation Agencies across
multiple International Accreditation Forum (IAF)-endorsed and
regulatory schemes. In July 2023, the PCA Technical Advisory
Council (TAC) meeting took place. Furthermore, updates to
the Accreditation Criteria for Product Certi昀椀cation Agencies
(AC370) were addressed during the October Accreditation
Committee Hearing.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is
currently working on updating ISO/IEC 17067, which focuses
on the fundamentals of product certi昀椀cation and guidelines
for product certi昀椀cation schemes. ISO will ballot members
to determine whether ISO/IEC 17065 requires revisions. A
decision is expected to be made by Fall 2024.
Personnel Certi昀椀cation Body
Program (PCB) Update
The client demand for accreditation under the
Personnel Certi昀椀cation Body Program (PCB) has signi昀椀cantly
increased, particularly in Asia and the Far East. A noticeable
trend reveals a growing emphasis on technical subjects such
as Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) and welder certi昀椀cations
within personnel certi昀椀cation.
A signi昀椀cant milestone was achieved with the commencement
of the revision process for the ISO/IEC 17024 standard.
Notably, IAS actively supports this process through Osman
Vural’s participation in the committee for conformity
assessment working group (ISO/CASCO WG) 30. Learn More.
The release of "IAF MD25:2023 Criteria for Evaluation of
Conformity Assessment Schemes" in 2023 is poised to
substantially impact both new and existing PCB accreditations.
This mandatory document is set to take effect in January
2024. Learn More.
Medical Laboratories
Accredited by IAS Recognized
Internationally
Pro昀椀ciency Testing Providers
Accreditation Updates
IAS is in the process of preparing its Pro昀椀ciency Testing Provider
Accreditation Program to undergo the peer review process
of APAC with the aim of becoming a Mutual Recognition
Arrangement partner of ILAC for pro昀椀ciency testing. The
accreditation program plays a crucial role in facilitating the
availability of performance tools, such as pro昀椀ciency testing
activities for accredited ISO/IEC 17025 testing and calibration
laboratories, ISO 15189 accredited medical laboratories, and
ISO/IEC 17020 accredited inspection bodies. These accredited
organizations can ful昀椀ll the requirements outlined in these
standards, and the pro昀椀ciency testing provides an ongoing
quality control check for these organizations.
To attain IAS accreditation, pro昀椀ciency testing providers must
adhere to the requirements speci昀椀ed in ISO/IEC 17043:2023:
Conformity Assessment: General Requirements for the
competence of pro昀椀ciency testing providers. In response
to the recent changes in the main accreditation criteria,
speci昀椀cally the new version of ISO/IEC 17043:2023, IAS
initiated the revision of Accreditation Criteria for Pro昀椀ciency
Testing Providers (AC 785) and relevant assessment
documents. Additionally, a transition policy has been issued
for both accredited and applicant pro昀椀ciency testing providers.
IAS is currently accepting applications for the 2023 edition of
ISO/IEC 17043:2023. Learn More.
Inspection Agency
Accreditation Program Update
The Inspection Agency Accreditation Program is steadily
expanding, encompassing new areas such as pre-shipment
inspections, sampling, and chemistry. An assessors’ technical
session held on October 17, 2023, allowed IAS assessors to
review pertinent technical matters related to inspections.
Additionally, IAS personnel actively participate in APAC and
ILAC inspection committees, offering valuable feedback on
revisions to ISO/IEC 17020. Learn More.
IAS successfully completed the Peer Evaluation by the Asia
Paci昀椀c Accreditation Cooperation (APAC) and became
a signatory member of the International Laboratory
Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) Mutual Recognition
Arrangement (MRA) for medical testing in 2023. As a result,
Medical Reports issued by the IAS-accredited medical
laboratories are recognized internationally.
The second edition of the main accreditation criteria, ISO
15189 was recently revised and published in 2022. This revision
requires IAS to initiate a transition policy for accredited and
applicant medical laboratories to ensure compliance with the
revised ISO 15189:2022 standard. IAS is now ready to accept
applications for ISO 15189:2022. Learn More.
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IAS External Newsletter
