IAS President's Corner

After a very successful first quarter, staff is gearing up for a very busy summer after which we will see a period of heightened (albeit stressful) activities as IAS is evaluated by the Pacific Accreditation Cooperation (PAC) as part of our signatory status to the PAC Multilateral Recognition Arrangement. PAC will evaluate IAS for continued recognition of our product certification agency accreditation program and expansion of our scope to recognize our personnel and management systems certification body accreditation programs. It is comforting to know that the IAS portfolio of accredited entities is continuing to grow—we will be crossing the 750 mark soon! A sincere "thank you" to our dedicated staff, contract assessors and our valued clients for your whole-hearted partnership. Continue reading message

The International Accreditation Service (IAS), along with our parent the International Code Council (ICC) and ICC Evaluation Service (ICC-ES), will be relocating to a modern facility in Brea, Calif. Consistent with IAS's commitment to efficiency and environmental responsibility, the new facility will meet or exceed the CALGreen standards adopted by the State of California. Located at 3060 Saturn Street, the facility will feature updated technology, on-site training facilities and modern furnishings. As a consideration for our visitors, the new office location is conveniently situated near hotels, restaurants and entertainment venues. We anticipate a smooth transition with no interruption of services for IAS clients. Updates about the transition will be posted periodically on the IAS website. The new office is expected to open this summer.

June 9th marked World Accreditation Day as a global initiative jointly established by the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) to raise awareness of the importance of accreditation-related activities. IAS is a signatory to both IAF and ILAC. This video, developed by ILAC and IAF, demonstrates how accreditation affects so many of the things people use and encounter in their everyday lives.

IAS held its annual management review January 15–17 in its Whittier office. An IAS management review meeting is held annually to ensure the resolution of internal audit findings and monitor our continuing adherence to International Standard ISO/IEC 17011 and IAS' stated policies and objectives. The outcome of the management review was a set of actions that will assist IAS in bolstering its management system and processes; maintaining compliance with relevant accreditation standards; enriching personnel; and redefining our policies, goals and objectives to meet current market and stakeholder needs.

AVU, Inc. is the first body to be accredited by IAS to provide Environmental Management System certifications to the ISO 14001 Standard. AVU became an IAS-accredited Management System Certification Body (MSCB) under accreditation listing MSCB–102, demonstrating compliance with ISO Standard 17021 (2011) in March 2014. As an IAS-accredited certification body, AVU has demonstrated its competence to provide audits and certifications of environmental management systems in accordance with the standards, disciplines and sectors listed in the approved scope of accreditation which includes rubber and plastic products, basic metals and fabricated metal products, and other transport equipment.

As Southern California was struck with multiple earthquake events in late March and early April, the IAS staff began thinking of the important role our work plays in earthquake safety. From the testing labs that conduct shake table testing, calibration labs that perform seismology equipment calibrations, and special inspection agencies that oversee seismic retrofits, IAS accreditation is one part of the code-enforcement system that helps ensure that construction in the U.S. withstands the jolts of earthquakes.

QUESTION: What is the difference between a laboratory being accredited and being certified?

ANSWER: These terms are sometimes used interchangeably, which can result in confusion. Certification (also known as "registration") has a very different meaning than accreditation when referring to a laboratory.

Congratulations to Mohan Sabaratnam, IAS Quality Manager, on his appointment as Quality Manager of the Pacific Accreditation Cooperation, which is a regional body of the International Accreditation Forum with responsibility for overseeing accreditation bodies involved in certification.

IAS welcomes Michael Beaton of Intertek to the IAS Technical Advisory Council for Laboratories; Drew Dysinger of AVU, Inc., to the IAS Technical Advisory Council for Product and Management Systems; and Jonathan Bahr of Clark County Department of Development Services—Building Division to the IAS Technical Advisory Council for Inspection Agency and Special Inspection Agency Accreditation. The IAS Technical Advisory Councils provide guidance on the development, implementation, and operation of accreditation programs.

Likewise, we are pleased to announce the appointment of Samuel Palmer, Clark County Department of Building and Fire Prevention Bureau Assistant Director, to the IAS Accreditation Committee which provides oversight of all IAS accreditation programs by approving new and revisions to existing accreditation criteria. Welcome, all.

IAS Contract Lead Assessor Hatem Seliem, Ph.D., was awarded the 2014 Chester Paul Siess Award for Excellence in Structural Research for his development of a relationship that characterizes the bond strength between high-strength steel reinforcement and concrete, and a technical paper (coauthored by three co-workers) which was published in the American Concrete Institute's Structural Journal in 2012.

IAS exhibited at the 2014 Food Safety Summit, held April 7–10 at the Baltimore Convention Center in Maryland. The Food Safety Summit is an educational expo and conference for the entire food industry, including regulators, processors, distributors, growers, retailers, food service operators and academia. IAS provided information on its food-related accreditation programs for testing laboratories, calibration laboratories, inspection agencies, management system certification bodies, product certification agencies and personnel certification bodies.

IAS exhibited information about its accreditation programs for calibration laboratories, testing laboratories, inspection agencies and related disciplines at the 2014 Measurement Science Conference, March 10–14, at the Long Beach Convention Center in California. The Measurement Science Conference is a full week of activities focused on education and training through the offering of seminars and tutorials that cover a myriad of technical topics. The event also features an exhibit area where approximately 120 companies provide exhibit booths that display the latest in technology. The Measurement Science Conference typically has about 1,200 attendees where over 200 companies, government activities and academia participate each year.

A two-day IAS training program was delivered April 22–23 by Larry O'Connor and Craig Joss in New York City, which provided an overview of the IAS Accreditation Criteria for Special Inspection Agencies (SIA) AC291, ISO/IEC Standard 17020 and New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) requirements and rules that govern the accreditation of SIAs. The program offered participants insight into effectively implementing a management system that meets the IAS special inspection requirements and guidance on how to comply with the requirements of New York City DOB. The course reviewed the steps necessary in the preparation of documents to satisfy AC291 and drew upon IAS staff assessment experiences and insights from field visits and system reviews. The training was aimed at quality managers, technical supervisors, inspection personnel and code enforcement personnel involved in implementing special inspection agency requirements under the NYC Building Code.

IAS President Chuck Ramani conducted a two-day training course on ISO Standard 17020 May 5-6 in La Habra, Calif. The course was aimed at quality managers, assessors, inspection personnel, product certification professionals, regulators in the product approval processes and field inspection professionals. The course offered insights into inspection equipment management, management of inspection personnel and processes, inspection sample management, internal audits and management review, contract management, and complaint handling. The course also highlighted application of the standard.

IAS instructor Steve Lerman offered ISO 17025 training for testing and calibration laboratories May 7-9 in La Habra. The training program was designed to provide a complete overview of the ISO/IEC Standard 17025:2005 requirements. Valuable insights and tools were provided to help attendees implement the requirements of the standard. Special emphasis was placed on topics such as internal audits, management review, proficiency testing, complaint handling processes, corrective actions, preventive actions, training, measurement uncertainty and traceability.

IAS Assessor Hershal Brewer conducted a surveillance assessment of the Bell-Southcn Testing Laboratory March 23–24 in Guangdong, China. This laboratory boasts modern testing for ENERGY STAR and for electrical safety.

Midal Cables Limited Bahrain was visited by IAS staff March 26–27 where an initial assessment was carried out to assess their quality assurance and quality control laboratory. Midal Cables is the largest aluminum products manufacturer in Bahrain. Their products are exported around the world.

An initial assessment of Al Souhub Wimpey Laboratory was conducted by IAS on March 18–20 in Kuwait City, Kuwait. The lab is a joint partnership between Al Souhub International General Trading & Contracting Co. (a Kuwaiti Company) and Wimpey Laboratories (based in Dubai). Al Souhub International has a contract to inspect all chemicals that arrive by ship and Al Souhub Wimpey carries out the testing. They boast a dedicated laboratory information management system covering the initial request for testing. Using bar codes and hand-held scanners, it tracks the process from testing until the final report is released and the client has immediate access to this tracking information. This is the first organization to use this technology in Kuwait.

An initial laboratory assessment was conducted March 19–22 in Shanghai by an assessment team led by IAS Staff Metrologist Hershall Brewer. Hermes Hansecontrol Technical Testing Services maintains an incredible 65,000-sq ft (6,000 m2), five-story facility where they run tests for approximately 200 standards.

IAS conducted a reassessment of HAKS-Engineers, Architects & Land Surveyors P.C. in late February. One of the first to be accredited as a Special Inspection Agency (SIA) in New York City, HAKS has been very receptive to the strong increase of measurable, audited and accredited quality controls as mandated by the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) for both the performance of special inspections and the systems of which the SIA operates to ensure conformance. HAKS is accredited in all available special inspection categories with IAS and is registered with DOB for the same.

Adhering to its internal motto that "Quality doesn't cost, it pays," HAKS has been successful in becoming the largest and most referenced SIA in the New York market, not only with all public agencies and authorities, but in major private developments with owners as New York City continues to build and evolve itself even further as an international real estate leader for business, education and housing. IAS-accredited and employing nearly 200 full-time certified, licensed field special inspectors, HAKS is proud to carry out the life and safety quality standards of IAS and the DOB.

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EDITOR'S NOTE — We are dedicated to providing informative insight into the world of accreditation. IAS would like to encourage all of our participants in all of our programs to submit relevant articles for future publications. Your unique perspective will prove extremely valuable to our readership. Please forward your articles and photographs to Pat McCullen at pmccullen@iasonline.org.
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