Does your Organization Need ISO 17025 Accreditation?

Which organizations can be benefitted by gaining ISO 17025 Standard? Don’t have any idea? Go through this article to understand which laboratories must consider this ISO Standard.

We all know that ISO certification is important for modern enterprises. How many of us know which standard is required for which business? Well, most of the entrepreneurs are still in dark! They have the least idea about which ISO standards would be suitable for their business. Perhaps, it is the main reason why many companies fail to gain all the benefits of ISO accreditation. We have talked a lot about ISO 9001 and ISO 14001. This is high time we should focus on other important ISO accreditation, such as ISO 17025 accreditation.

ISO 17025 Standard provides a framework to help the calibration laboratories maintain standard sampling and testing methods and the accuracy of the test reports.

According to the International Organization for Standardization, in many countries, around the world, one or two organizations are responsible for the accreditation of their country’s laboratories. Interestingly, most of these accreditation bodies have embraced ISO 17025 for standardizing their country’s labs. This way, they are employing a uniformed approach. This approach enables the laboratories to gain the competence. It also motivates the laboratories to achieve global recognition. Since it’s an internationally acknowledged standard, an ISO 17025-accredited lab can easily gain recognition on the international platform.

Though ISO 17025 shares a number of management requirements with ISO 9001, labs should not confuse it with the standards belonging to the ISO 9000 series. The present standard contains two types of requirements- management and technical. Hence, a lab must fulfill both of these two types of requirements for gaining the accreditation. We know that R2 Responsible Recycling Standard insists on technical capability of the recyclers. Similarly, ISO 17025 reinforces the technical requirement to determine the competence of a laboratory.

Why does this accreditation matter a lot? Simply because any organization can embrace the International Standard! Interestingly, these organizations include all the calibration and testing laboratories where the testing method and devices are certified. It implies that if an organization, named “A”, outsources to a calibration lab that sends to another, so far it is accredited to ISO 17025 Standard, “A” will be covered.

First, a laboratory should identify their goals, as ISO 17025 wants an organization to align their goals with the requirements of the standards. In this context, it is important to determine three primary goals- safety, customer service, and quality data. The laboratory should address customer issues in a safe and effective manner so that the documentation can be properly maintained. The ultimate goal is to ensure a safe work environment for all the employees while offering the highest quality services. To the consumers who are looking for accurate and safe calibration.

Protocols are made for ensuring that the calibration meets and excels the customer expectations. These protocols make sure that the used vendors and devices are dependable. Now, let’s come to the main point. Which organizations should attempt at gaining ISO 17025 accreditation?

• Increase of reliability in calibrating/testing data

• Increase in employees’ competence

• Improved customer satisfaction

• Increase in sales

• National and international recognition

• Greater access to a wide range of products

• Savings of time and money

• Continuous improvement of sample or data collection, analyzing methods, and quality of the used devices

• Improved and safe workplace for the employees

• Stakeholders’ confidence

• A better brand image and reputation

• Compliance with legal and other relevant regulations

From the above discussion, it becomes easier to understand which laboratories require this standard. Most of the calibration laboratories are looking for the benefits discussed above. Therefore, when it comes to the calibration industry, all the laboratories should compliant with ISO 17025 for availing all of these benefits. These benefits contribute to the performance, profit, and reputation of an organization.

Damon Anderson is not only a famed ISO consultant but also a blessed writer having expertise in ISO 17025 accreditation, ISO 13485, ISO 27000 standard etc. He is familiar with comparatively new standards as well, such as r2 responsible recycling. His signature writing style makes his informative ISO blogs interesting to the readers.

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