ISO/IEC 17025 Testing & Calibration

Accreditation to ISO/IEC 17025 plays an important role in supporting the validity and reliability of results from testing and calibration laboratories across many industry sectors.

ISO/IEC 17025 facilitates international cooperation by establishing wider acceptance of laboratory test results between countries and organisations. This not only provides global confidence in the work of an organisation but also promotes national and international trade through the acceptance of test and calibration data between countries, without the need for additional testing.

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What is ISO/IEC 17025? ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation Accreditation benefits Accreditation areas FAQs Accreditation documents

What is ISO/IEC 17025?

In many countries, ISO/IEC 17025 is the standard for which most laboratories must hold accreditation to be deemed technically competent. In many cases, suppliers and regulatory authorities will not accept test or calibration results from a laboratory that is not accredited.

ISO/IEC 17025 facilitates international cooperation by establishing wider acceptance of laboratory test results between countries and organisations. This not only provides global confidence in the work of an organisation but also promotes national and international trade through the acceptance of test and calibration data between countries, without the need for additional testing.

ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation

Accreditation to ISO/IEC 17025 plays an important role in supporting the creation of accurate and reliable results from laboratory testing, calibration, sampling, and measurement services across many industry sectors.

It provides a widely recognised framework for the acceptance of test and calibration data, promoting confidence in technical decision-making as well as enabling meaningful comparison of outputs from multiple sources.

This is a key feature of accreditation and it underpins the scientific/technical infrastructure of the world.

Overall, ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation supports laboratories in maintaining complex processes of testing and calibration to the highest standards and demonstrates to external clients that the laboratory outputs are valid and reliable.

Accreditation benefits

ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation benefits organisations by allowing them to demonstrate their competence by satisfying the high level criteria defined in the Standard and hence, the results they generate can be relied upon by end users of their services.

Accreditation also provides a competitive advantage by providing access to contracts that require or specify accredited organisations.

Importantly, NATA accreditation to ISO/IEC 17025 is recognised and accepted globally, creating international opportunities.

Accreditation areas

ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation is suitable for almost any organisation performing testing, sampling or calibration and seeking independent assurance as to the reliability of their outputs.

Accredited facilities can be found performing testing in almost every industry sector – for example, building products, environmental testing, animal health, food analysis, electrical safety, textiles and the research sector to name a few.

The technical disciplines involved are equally varied, with examples including chemical, biological, non-destructive testing, electrical, forensic, mechanical, metrological, structural, acoustic and optics.

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FAQs

Accreditation may be mandated by state or federal regulators, industry bodies, local government requirements, or individual customers.

Refer to “How to Become Accredited?” Key technical elements covered by the Standard include

  • Validity and appropriateness of methods
  • Technical competency of staff
  • Traceability of measurements to national and international standards
  • Suitability, calibration and maintenance of equipment
  • Handling of test / calibration items
  • Quality control and assurance processes
  • Reporting of results

The NATA Accreditation Criteria (NAC) packages are made up of numerous documents which are available for download.

General NATA Documents cover informative documents and do not serve as accreditation criteria.

There are General Accreditation Criteria which apply to all facilities, and Specific Accreditation Criteria tailored for industry sectors and activities. These documents present mandatory accreditation criteria which must be satisfied.

  1. General Accreditation Criteria
  2. Specific Accreditation Criteria

General Accreditation Guidance and Specific Accreditation Guidance documents present non-mandatory recommendations.

  1. General Accreditation Guidance
  2. Specific Accreditation Guidance

The last version of ISO/IEC 17025 was published in 2005 and, since then, market conditions and technology have changed. The new version – ISO/IEC 17025-2017, covers technical changes, vocabulary and developments in IT techniques. It also takes into consideration the latest version of ISO 9001.

ISO/IEC 17025 NATA Accreditation Criteria (NAC) Package

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The Index document below serves as a reference to help identify which publications are relevant to Services covered by the Scope of Accreditation
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The Index document serves as a reference to help identify which publications are relevant to Services covered by the Scope of Accreditation
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The Index document serves as a reference to help identify which publications are relevant to Services covered by the Scope of Accreditation.

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Benefits of being a NATA accredited organisation

NATA accredits organisations to perform testing and inspection activities for their products and services. This gives consumers the assurance they need to make safe, healthy and reliable choices. When you choose to become NATA accredited, you can be sure of a number of competitive advantages for your business.
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Assurance
NATA members receive a globally-recognised, peer-reviewed and government endorsed accreditation that provides a unique level of assurance to members, their clients and the community.
Competence
Our accreditation provides an independent benchmark for technical competence. Receiving NATA accreditation demonstrates to customers your organisation’s commitment to quality, safety and reliability of products and services.
Recognition
NATA accreditation is both nationally and internationally recognised. This provides a competitive advantage when compared to non-accredited organisations and ensures you are market-ready to capitalise on trade opportunities.
Training
NATA has been training individuals and teams both nationally and internationally for over 20 years and enjoys a global reputation for the quality of its courses and programs. Our active role in international accreditation education has seen us conduct training in over 20 countries.
International
NATA’s long standing and active involvement with international groups enables our members to gain international recognition for their accreditation and minimises the need for multiple assessments from different suppliers.
Innovation
NATA provides innovative and timely business solutions that meet the needs of our members and fulfil the expectations of the community. We have the experience and resources to ensure your accreditation provides you and your organisation with unique advantages.