EUROLAB started 2023 with a very successful webinar on “MICROPLASTICS: regulations, standards and the role of laboratories”, on 15-16 February 2023. More than 80 participants joined us to connect, learn and share knowledge and best practices with experts in the field of microplastics, on EU legislations, standardisation activities and other key issues.

Speakers included high-level representatives from the European Chemicals Agency, European Commission DG ENV, Plastics Europe, CENELEC, ISO and the laboratory sector. Many interesting views on the definition and analysis of microplastics, standardisation initiatives and much more were presented by the speakers, with the objective to share knowledge and best practices to solve the global issue of microplastics release.

More information is available on our website, and should you be interested in the webinar contents please contact us at info@eurolab.org

 

As a summary of our activities for 2022, we also recently published our Annual Report 2022, available here. The Annual Report 2022 includes an overview of EUROLAB’s most notable achievements and landmark events for last year, with details on the current and future activities, international collaborations, projects of interest to laboratories and the latest news from the Technical Committee on Quality Assurance. The document summarises EUROLAB’s involvement in the laboratory community and the cooperation with our members and stakeholders.

 

At the beginning of March, we also started our collaboration with two interesting projects: PlasticTrace and Metroracle.

PlasticTrace aims to address the urgent need for development and harmonisation of methods for the chemical identification, physical characterisation and quantification of released small micro/nanoplastics (SMPs/NPs) in drinking water, food and environmental matrices, as required by the EU’s Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP). EUROLAB is part of the PlasticTrace Stakeholder Avisory Board.

Metroracle presents a blockchain-based concept for the digital transformation of the traceability pyramid for electrical energy measurement. It offers an innovative technical solution to requirements imposed by the digital transformation of metrology. EUROLAB and Metrolacre are collaborating on the realisation of a survey on the digitalization level and needs among laboratories.

Furthermore, our General Assembly 2023 & Accompanying Events are fast approaching. This year, the events will take place on 27-28 April 2023 in Warsaw, Poland, at the University of Warsaw Biological and Chemical Research Centre (CNBCh UW), kindly hosted by POLLAB.

It will be an important occasion not only to discuss the latest key issues for EUROLAB and the world of laboratories, but also to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of our local Member in Poland.

 

Finally, EUROLAB would like to invite you to the following international events that we are supporting and joining with presentations:

• International Conference of Weighing, 24-26 April 2023 in Hamburg, Germany, with the theme “Digitalisation in a global digital world”. The conference aims at bringing together stakeholders in the weighing sector for a 3-day conference with presentations on state-of-the-art developments in the weighing industry. EUROLAB Secretary General, Laura Martin, will contribute to a session on the developments in the laboratory sector, focusing on our key topic “The Lab of the Future”. Info and registration.

• European Conference on Non-Destructive Testing 2023 (ECNDT 2023), 3–7 July 2023 in Lisbon, Portugal. EUROLAB is glad to be an institutional supporter to the event, which represents an opportunity for the NDT community (Academia, Inspection Companies, Accredited Laboratories, Industry, Works of Art and Suppliers of Equipment) to show the diversity of its activity and its competence to ensure safety. Info and registration.