ISO 17025 CERTIFICATION
WHAT IS
ISO 17025?
ISO 17025 is a certification standard that tells testing and calibration labs what they need to do to be good at what they do. This standard lays out the general rules for how laboratories should be run so that they are competent, fair, and consistent. The new version of ISO 17025 came out on November 30, 2017.
The second edition of ISO IEC 17025 came out in 2005. Since then, the market has changed and the shared parts of ISO international standards have caused the need for more organization among other current international documents. This led to the creation of the third edition of the standard.
It was made by ISO, IEC, and the committee on conformity assessment all at the same time (CASCO). The way the document looks at processes now matches that of many standards like ISO 9001, ISO 15189, and ISO IEC 17021-1. Key changes have been made to a number of terms in 17025. For example:
- The word “laboratory” now has a definition.
- There are now instructions for processes and steps.
- Company information and organizational responsibilities are now more flexible.
A new chapter has been added on risk-based thinking, which led to less strict rules in the standards. These rules have been replaced by performance-based rules in test report.
The date of issue and the process approach now matches that of many standards such as ISO 9001 Quality Management System, ISO 15189 Quality of Medical Laboratories and ISO IEC 17021-1 requirements for certification bodies.
Now, the scope includes all the things that happen in the lab, like calibration, testing and the sampling that goes along with calibration and testing. The results of a process are now more important than a detailed description of its tasks and steps. The term “outsourcing” has been replaced by “external provision” and “certification body” has been replaced by “laboratory”.
The new standard allows the use of computer systems, electronic records and the production of electronic results and reports, which has made the document more modern. This standard now has the same structure as the other ISO IEC conformity assessment standards that are already in place, such as the ISO IEC 17000 series.
BENEFITS OF
ISO 17025
ISO 17025 is a quality management system standard that covers the requirements for a quality management system where the focus is on providing confidence that the product or service will consistently meet customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements.
The benefits of ISO 17025 certification are very clear. It will provide more credibility to your company and your products. And it will greatly increase your chances of success in the international market.
- Improve the lab's reputation.
- Recognition on a national and international level.
- Acceptance by the public and business.
- Provide global equivalence.
- Test results can help people make decisions.
- Employee motivation and employee engagement
Interested in ISO 17025 Certification?
Feel free to send us a message today.