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December 2014  
 
 
IAS Accreditation Committee Hearing to Take Place in February in Los Angeles

The meeting of the IAS Accreditation Committee will take place on Feb. 9, at the Sheraton Gateway Hotel in Los Angeles, Calif. Please watch our website for information regarding proposed new accreditation criteria, changes to existing criteria, hotel guest rooms and venue, and more.


Questions & Answers Forum

QUESTION: What is the most frequent Corrective Action Request (CAR) stemming from a fabricator assessment to AC472?

ANSWER: Roughly 85 percent of CARs written during fabricator assessments are related to internal audits and management reviews. More specifically, most CARs are related directly to Section 8.1.10 of AC472. This section of the criteria requires "...Audits [to] include a summary that compares the most recent audit to the previous audit, and [to] include the elements of AC472." Fabricators will usually perform internal audits but a few stop short of comparing the findings of the most recent audit with the last audit. It is important to compare audit-to-audit findings to "close the loop" in the audit cycle. This is necessary in order to identify trends and ensure that the corrective actions which were taken in response to the previous audit findings were effective in resolving the issues at hand.


Newly Accredited Jurisdictions Honored at ICC Annual Conference

During the ICC Annual Conference in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., IAS recognized two building departments for achieving accreditation. IAS awarded commemorative plaques to representatives from the Charleston County, S.C., Department of Building Inspection Services; and the city of Kelowna, British Columbia, Development Service Department Building and Permitting Branch. Kelowna is the first Canadian municipality to earn IAS Building Department Accreditation.


IAS Showcases Accreditation Suite for Building Departments at ICC Annual Conference

IAS staff highlighted for code officials the programs of the ICC-endorsed IAS Accreditation Suite for Building Departments during a two-day Expo at the 2014 ICC Annual Conference in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. This suite of six accreditation programs directly supports building departments in their work to achieve code compliance by making it simpler to approve special inspection agencies, fabricator inspections, metal building manufacturer inspections, testing laboratories, field evaluation bodies and building department service providers. These indispensible programs help a code official verify that companies are code compliant and qualified to work in a particular jurisdiction — all available at no cost to the department.


John Cawthon Wins Apple iPad Door Prize

John Cawthon with the Alaska State Division of Fire and Life Safety in Anchorage, Alaska, was the winner of an Apple iPad Air 2 door prize given away by IAS at the 2014 ICC Annual Conference in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The iPad giveaway was part of a program created to bring awareness to building departments about the IAS Accreditation Suite.


IAS Accreditation Presentation Delivered at OSHA NRTL Meeting

IAS Vice President Raj Nathan delivered a presentation on how IAS accreditation could be used to recognize testing laboratories under OSHA's Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL) Program at the October Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) meeting, in Washington, D.C. The stakeholder meeting was convened by OSHA for all interested parties and covered several NRTL Program topics, including use of the private sector to increase the efficiency of the NRTL Program, certification marks, factory and field inspections, fees, and other topics raised by participants and OSHA staff. OSHA plans to use the information to explore potential updates to NRTL Program policies and regulations.

In 2012, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) performed a study of OSHA's NRTL Program to examine the program's recognition process. GAO published its findings and recommendations from that study in December 2012, in a report entitled, Product Safety Laboratories: OSHA's Accreditation Process Needs Reexamination (Exhibit 14-1 — GAO Report GAO-13-88). In the report, GAO recommended that OSHA review its current structure and procedures for recognizing NRTLs and implement alternatives that would maintain effectiveness while improving timeliness. Specifically, GAO suggested that OSHA explore various structural approaches for making decisions regarding recognition, including use of private accreditation bodies and/or contractors. GAO also recommended that OSHA review its current regulations and procedures to identify changes to existing regulations and program modifications, including increased alignment with international standards on accreditation. For more information about the OSHA meeting and background, click here.


Measurement Uncertainty Training in ICC Western Regional Office

A two-day class entitled, "Calibration of Dimensional Measuring Equipment & Evaluation of Uncertainty in Measurements" was held in October at the new ICC Western Regional Office in Brea, Calif. This IAS training program — aimed at laboratory, metrology and quality managers; process, product, design and test engineers; and calibration and test personnel — offered participants an initial understanding of the accreditation requirements of ISO/IEC 17025 as applicable to Measurement Uncertainty (MU) calculations, with hands-on application.

The training covered measurement processes and the concepts for effectively estimating and controlling MU. The program material, though largely derivative of case studies and examples, emphasized the statistical component through practical examples and included numerous discussions and exercises. Those who attended the course and completed all course work received a certificate of attendance and credit for 12 IAS Professional Development Hours. Those who completed and passed the optional written exam received a certificate of completion referencing the standard.


IAS President's Corner
As 2014 comes to a close, I want to recognize all those who helped make 2014 a banner year for IAS. First and foremost, I would like to thank the employees, contract assessors and experts who toiled across several continents to serve the needs of our ever enlarging overseas and domestic customer base. This year, the volunteer members of the IAS Board of Directors have been working overtime to guide the organization as it evolves from a mid-size accreditation body to a major player in the global accreditation community. Continue reading

IAS ON THE MOVE | Highlights from IAS Activities around the Globe

PANAMA CITY, PANAMA | Fall Line Testing and Inspection

LAGOS, NIGERIA | Midwal Engineering
SHARJAH, UAE | IFFCO Research Development and Analytical Centre
MANAMA, KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN | Gulf Petrochemicals Industries Co.
HOUGHTON, MICHIGAN | Michigan Tech University—Wood Protection Group Laboratory
RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA | Soil & Foundation Company Limited
DAMMAM, SAUDI ARABIA | Specialized Kingdom Laboratories

  A complete list of companies and organizations that became accredited or renewed their accreditation with IAS between July 2, 2014, and November 1, 2014, is now available.     IAS is seeking contract technical assessors and experts with experience in assessing the management and technical processes of laboratories, inspection agencies, building departments and product certification agencies.

  When you see the IAS Accreditation mark associated with a company or organization, you know IAS has evaluated it for competence and quality.     Share your comments about accreditation with IAS using our new online feedback form. See the Feedback link on the Contact Us page of the IAS website.

  IAS is a Mutual Recognition Arrangement signatory of APLAC and ILAC for the accreditation of testing and calibration laboratories and inspection bodies, and a Multilateral Recognition Arrangement signatory of PAC and IAF for the accreditation of Product Certification Bodies.        

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