NATA played a prominent and active role at the Asia Pacific Accreditation Cooperation (APAC) 2025 Annual Meetings, held in Bengaluru, India, in June. The meetings brought together accreditation leaders and technical specialists from across the Asia-Pacific to collaborate on shared challenges and drive improvements in quality infrastructure and conformity assessment.
NATA’s CEO, Jennifer Evans, chaired the General Assembly and was confirmed to continue in her role as APAC Chair for a new term following completion of the meetings. Her leadership, also being a member of the Executive Committee, ensures continued Australian influence on regional priorities, international mutual recognition arrangements, and the ongoing evolution of APAC’s strategic direction.
Alongside Evans, a strong NATA delegation contributed across the week-long program. This included Tony Vandenberg (Head of Governance and Compliance), Brendon Moo (Head of Strategic Engagement and Communications), Neil Shepherd (Sector Manager, Life Sciences), Diane Hobday (Sector Manager, Materials, Assets and Products), Paul McMullen (Sector Manager, Calibration), Gillian Treloar (Deputy Sector Manager, Legal and Clinical), and Nick Di Cresce (Deputy Sector Manager, Materials, Assets and Products).
NATA team members were also prominent contributors in the APAC technical working group streams:
- Paul McMullen led discussions at the joint Proficiency Testing Providers (PTP) and Reference Material Producers (RMP) Working Group workshop, presenting a final draft of APAC’s guide on the accreditation of Reference Materials Producers and an update on the activities of ISO Technical Committee on Reference Materials, ISOTC334;
- Gillian Treloar chaired the Biobanking Working Group including discussions helping shape best practice and harmonising approaches for accreditation in this emerging area;
- Nick Di Cresce co-chaired the joint TC1/TC2 Artificial Intelligence Working Group – reflecting NATA’s commitment to preparing accreditation frameworks for rapidly evolving technologies; and
- Brendon Moo shared insights into NATA’s approach to promote accreditation and the value or storytelling for APAC colleagues as a member of the Communications and Promotion Committee (CPC) Working Group.
The APAC meeting also saw the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between APAC and the Asia Pacific Metrology Program (APMP) who work together to promote awareness, especially to government officials and regulators, of the importance of accreditation and metrology, and of the APAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA), ILAC (International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation ) Arrangement and CIPM (Comité International des Poids et Mesures) MRA.
NATA’s participation in APAC reflects our ongoing commitment to international recognition, knowledge exchange, and collaboration with our regional partners. These contributions reinforce the confidence that Australia’s testing, inspection and calibration services are underpinned by world-class accreditation practices.
Finally, the APAC 2025 meetings also confirmed NATA as host of the APAC Annual Meetings in 2027 in Sydney – a milestone opportunity to showcase Australia’s accreditation system and strengthen regional partnerships which will also coincide with NATA’s 80th anniversary.
