The IAS Technical Advisory Councils (TACs) for Laboratories and Inspection/Special Inspection Agencies convened on July 27-28 at IAS Headquarters in Brea, Calif. These TACs are two of seven IAS TACs that have been formed to act in an advisory capacity on matters regarding accreditation protocol, conformity assessment, testing, calibration, inspection, certification and other subjects relating to IAS accreditation activities. The in-person meetings were chaired by Craig Joss, Ph.D., P.E. (Inspection/Special Inspection) and Patrick V. McCullen, IAS VP/Chief Technical Officer (Laboratories). Members of IAS TACs comprise individuals from senior management positions within testing and calibration laboratories, inspection agencies, product certification agencies, management system certification bodies, building departments, fire prevention departments, governmental or regulatory organizations or recognized technical experts.
Highlights of the inspection/special inspection TAC meeting included discussion on specific requirements or clauses of the standards and criteria that apply to accreditation of inspection bodies such as ISO/IEC Standard 17020, IAS Accreditation Criteria AC98, International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) Policies and Guidelines and the Rules of the City of New York as it pertains to special inspection agencies. The laboratory TAC (testing and calibration) agenda addressed ISO/IEC Standard 17025, IAS Accreditation Criteria for Laboratories and several ILAC and APLAC policies and requirements. The meetings of the TACs give IAS a chance to hold in-depth discussions on areas of accreditation such as proficiency testing, measurement uncertainty, off-site testing and other current topics of focus. Of particular interest in this year's meeting were the several regulatory programs in which both IAS-accredited laboratories and inspection bodies are currently involved. Discussion of federal and state programs included ENERGY STAR, Food Safety, California Air Resources Board, OSHA NRTL and others. The TAC meetings were held during the week of the IAS Assessor Forum, which enabled IAS accredited constituents, regulators and technical experts to meet with core IAS staff and contract assessors. |
