CESI experience in the accreditation of testing and metrological laboratories

Laboratory testing is widely used within all stages of product life cycles. Indeed, in most occasions it helps: - to validate and compare the different solutions adopted in the design stage - to assess the compliance of products and systems with the applicable requirements (Technical Norms and Regulations) - to assess the permanent conformity of series production to the original prototype - to confirm the adequacy of the proposed modifications to the new requirements - to investigate possible extensions of the product application beyond the original specifications it was designed for. In this regard laboratory testing is to be considered as the most important tool to be used in conjunction with all the other applicable engineering techniques. Among others, it plays a major role in providing evidence to support certification, in particular for regulatory, purposes, or acceptance of products by the Customers. The requirements for testing and metrological laboratories are related essentially to the assurance of adequate competence and proper management capabilities: the relevant Standards requirements are defined internationally in ISO/IEC Guide 25, while the European equivalent is EN Standard 45001. Nowadays, it cannot be stated that compliance of a laboratory to these Standards is yet a mandatory condition for the acceptance of tests and certificates by the market, but the situation is evolving quickly. Major Utilities and Government Bodies have been recently including the requirement of laboratory accreditation by an independent, internationally recognized body in their supplier qualification programs. The importance of this accreditation is evident in terms of credibility of the test results, both for the domestic needs and for the international market. The present paper reports CESIexperiences in this field, first of all in the international accreditation of its own testine/calibration laboratories and then in the assistance supplied to other international organizations to reach the same goal.