- Welcome Guest
-
ILAC Meetings
The IAF/ILAC Mid-term meetings were held virtually during April 2024.
The IAF/ILAC annual meetings were held as an in-person event in Berlin, Germany from 1 to 10 October 2024. The ILAC General Assembly Adopted Resolutions are available here.
In addition to the in-person meetings noted above all ILAC Committees, Working Groups and Task Forces continue to progress the items on their work plans, via a combination of email and remote meetings.
Information on future meetings and events, including major regional meetings, can also be found in the ILAC Calendar.
Decision to Establish a Single International Organisation for Accreditation
In 2019, the members of IAF and ILAC made the decision to establish a single international organisation for accreditation, to replace IAF and ILAC.
Following extensive work and discussions within IAF and ILAC in 2024 the IAF and ILAC membership agreed the Constitution and General Rules for a new organization, the Global Accreditation Cooperation to take over the existing roles of both IAF and ILAC. Following the annual meetings of IAF and ILAC in October 2024, they commenced the formal process to incorporate the Global Accreditation Cooperation in New Zealand.
The target date (known as the Transition Date) for the Global Accreditation Cooperation to become operational and to take over the roles of IAF and ILAC, is provisionally January 2026. Further information on the transition and exact date will be issued by the end of April 2025.
The ILAC MRA
The scope of recognition of the recognised regions to the ILAC MRA is available from Recognised Regional Cooperation Bodies International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ilac.org)
Information on the acceptance of calibration, testing and inspection results programs provided by PTPs and reference materials produced by RMPs via the ILAC MRA is available from ILAC MRA and Signatories International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation.
There are currently 116 signatories to the ILAC MRA representing 118 economies. The ILAC MRA covers recognition for accreditation in the areas of calibration (ISO/IEC 17025), testing (ISO/IEC 17025), medical testing (ISO 15189), inspection (ISO/IEC 17020), proficiency testing providers (ISO/IEC 17043) and reference material producers (ISO 17034). The list of signatories to the ILAC MRA is available from the ILAC MRA Signatory Search.
The ILAC MRA Annual Report 2023 and associated infographic was published in June 2024 and is available from ILAC Promotional Brochures International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation.
Work to extend the ILAC MRA to include the accreditation of biobanks has now reached the stage where applications for recognition can be accepted. This follows the publication of the revised supporting documents as outlined in the resolution adopted during the 25th ILAC General Assembly in 2022: ILAC Resolution GA 25.09 The General Assembly endorses the recommendation of the ARC to extend the ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) to include accreditation of biobanking as a Level 2 activity, to the criteria specified in the Level 3 normative document, ISO 20387. ILAC will therefore accept applications for recognition as soon as the documents within ILAC applicable to the MRA are updated to cover this new scope.
Case studies and research on the recognition of the ILAC MRA by governments and regulators are available from the Public Sector Assurance website. The website is a collaborative initiative of the INetQI members and there are over 330 case studies, 90 research papers and 60 supporting materials available to view.
The Business Benefits website is a reference website designed to demonstrate the monetary value of standards, conformity assessment and accreditation for businesses. The website represents another successful collaboration of the INetQI partners with over 95 case studies categorised into 6 areas of value. All of the case studies identify a clear financial benefit. The site also includes more than 75 research papers.
Both the Public Sector Assurance and the Business Benefits websites contain a dedicated search function for each of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The case studies on these sites are now all linked to applicable goals.
ILAC Membership
The ILAC membership as of 20 November 2024 is:
The ILAC membership consists of 158 organisations from 133 different economies worldwide. Over 93,279 laboratories, 14,549 inspection bodies, 746 PTP and 308 RMP are accredited by the ILAC Full Members (signatories to the ILAC MRA). The latest statistics and graphs on the number of accreditation bodies, accredited laboratories, inspection bodies, PTPs and RMPs are available from the ILAC Facts & Figures page.
ILAC Executive Committee
In 2024 the Executive met virtually and held in-person meetings.
Meetings of the IAF and ILAC Joint Executive Committees (JEC) were held in February, June, September and October 2024.
ILAC Liaisons and other International Activities
The current list of ILAC liaison activities includes:
ILAC Liaisons with ISO and ISO/CASCO Policy Committees
ILAC Liaisons with ISO/CASCO Working Groups/Task Forces
ILAC Liaisons with Other Organisations
The International Telecommunications Union (ITU), the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and ILAC have reviewed and re-signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in August this year. The re-signing of the ITU-IAF-ILAC MoU continues to support and strengthen the three organisations’ commitment to cooperation and collaboration and the ongoing development of ITU-T’s Conformity and Interoperability (C&I) programme.
On 8 February 2024 IAF, ILAC and OIML renewed the tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which was first signed on 28 October 2007. The latest version marks over 16 years of formalised cooperation between the three organisations, and re-confirms the commitment to closely collaborate. Details of the MoU can be found here.
On 9 July 2024 ILAC and the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities formalised their longstanding collaboration by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (Mou). Details of the MoU can be found here.
Information on ILAC’s partnerships, including copies of communiqués, joint procedures, press releases and MoUs, is available from the ILAC Partnerships Page.
ILAC Secretariat
Ms Nyaki Halimana will return to Secretariat duties on 2 December. Ms Stephanie Sun will finish her temporary engagement on that date. We welcome Nyaki back to the Secretariat, and thank Stephanie for her work in the interim.
Documents and Brochures
Publications finalised and released during 2023 and 2024 include:
ILAC Factsheet 05/2023 Specifying Accreditation in Regulation
ILAC-P5:11/2023 ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement: Scope and Obligations
ILAC-P8:11/2023 ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement (Arrangement): Supplementary Requirements for the Use of Accreditation Symbols and for Claims of Accreditation Status by Accredited Conformity Assessment Bodies
ILAC-P9:01/2024 ILAC Policy for Proficiency Testing and/or Interlaboratory comparisons other than Proficiency Testing
ILAC-R6:11/2023 Structure of the ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement and Procedure for Expansion of the Scope of the ILAC Arrangement
IAF/ILAC A1:06/2023 IAF/ILAC Multi-Lateral Mutual Recognition Arrangements
IAF/ILAC A2:06/2023 IAF/ILAC Multi-Lateral Mutual Recognition Arrangements (Arrangements): Requirements and Procedures for Evaluation of a Single Accreditation Body
IAF/ILAC A3:06/2023 IAF/ILAC Multi-Lateral Mutual Recognition Arrangements (Arrangements): Template report for the peer evaluation of an Accreditation Body based on ISO/IEC 17011:2017
IAF/ILAC B3:09/2023 Accreditation: Supporting safe food and clean drinking water
IAF/ILAC B5:09/2023 Accreditation: Facilitating world trade
IAF/ILAC B6:09/2023 Accreditation: Delivering confidence in the provision of energy
IAF/ILAC B8:09/2023 Accreditation: Delivering confidence in construction and the built environment
IAF/ILAC B9:09/2023 Accreditation: A global tool to support Public Policy
Follow @ILAC_Official on “X” (formerly Twitter) or https://www.linkedin.com/company/ilac-accreditation/ on LinkedIn to receive the latest ILAC news, including information on meetings, events, liaison activities and new publications.
The April 2024 edition of the ILAC Newsletter is available from News-and-Events/ILAC Newsletter (ilac.org). The next edition will be published before the end of November 2024.
Subscribe to the latest news to receive updates from ILAC members and liaisons.
Prepared by the ILAC Secretariat on 20 November 2024.
IAF and ILAC have launched the 2025 World Accreditation Day (WAD) poster contest, to select a design for the official WAD 2025 poster. WAD, which takes place yearly on 09 June, highlights how accreditation benefits businesses, industry, regulators and consumers. The 2025 theme is Accreditation: Empowering Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
SMEs are essential to the global economy, driving innovation, creating jobs and supporting local communities. However, these businesses often face challenges such as limited resources, competition and difficulty accessing markets. One tool that SMEs can use to address these challenges is conformity assessment, which can provide assurance that their products, services, processes or procedures meet specified requirements. Accreditation of a conformity assessment body confirms that the body is competent and reliable, providing confidence in its results.
Through accredited conformity assessment, SMEs can demonstrate their commitment to quality, safety, sustainability and compliance with recognized best practices. This can strengthen their reputation and consumer confidence, helping SMEs to attract and retain customers. Additionally, SMEs can increase their business opportunities and market access by proving their compliance with standards and regulations.
Accredited conformity assessment can aid SMEs in identifying areas for improvement in their operations, such as enhancing product quality and streamlining processes. For SMEs seeking funding, accredited conformity assessment can improve access to financial support, by signaling lower risk to lenders and investors. It can also enable the SME to meet requirements for government grants or incentives.
The IAF Multilateral Recognition Arrangement (MLA) and ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) provide an infrastructure that allows accredited conformity assessment results to be recognized around the world. They enable the acceptance of products and services across borders, by removing the need for them to undergo additional tests, inspections or certification in each economy where they are sold.
IAF and ILAC welcome all interested parties to explore how accreditation empowers SMEs in the 2025 WAD poster contest, with a chance of winning the first-place prize of 1,500 USD or the second- or third-place prizes of 500 USD.
Individuals can submit up to three entries at https://tinyurl.com/ypdbyhpd by the submission deadline of 02 January 2025, 23:59 UTC. The contest rules, including instructions for how to submit entries, are available here.
Posted on behalf of Eurolab
Dear EUROLAB Members and Contacts,
IMEKO TC24 (Technical Committee on Chemical Measurements) would like to invite you to attend the next event of the series ‘IMEKO Talks on Chemical Measurements’.
It will be held on the 28th of November 2024 at 1 p.m. (CET – Rome time)
Title of the talk: LNG – a milestone toward a new era
Presenter: Dr. Aleksandra Aleksić (NIS Gazprom Neft a.d.)
Short description of the discussion topic:
Energy diversification and decarbonisation are topics greatly emphasized in the last few years in the media, even though sometimes sufficient technical rigour is not used. Among the various possibilities for their implementation, LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) and LNG terminals are globally recognized as interesting solutions in many ways. It seems that natural gas should certainly be a transit to the new energy horizon for several reasons. LNG is a relatively new industry branch that in a short period has to play the key role in the shift from the old to a completely new energy policy. Such a complex task opens up many others, thus driving science to new frontiers in many different fields. It implies great advances both in science and in industry and a replacement of so-called dirty with clean energies. Apart from the fact that this change seems inevitable, is it realistic and even possible? The session will present the LNG value chain and its role in the current energy landscape.
It is an online and free event (held on MS Teams platform); you can find the link on the IMEKO website: https://www.imeko.org/index.php/tc24-homepage/tc24-events/talks
Duration: about 45 minutes.
For additional information please contact: tc24.imeko@gmail.com
Posted on behalf of Eurolab
We are excited to invite you to our upcoming webinar on Guidelines for the Management of Digitalised Systems in Laboratories Accredited to ISO/IEC 17025, scheduled on 27 November 2024, from 10:00 to 12:00 CET. This session will explore EUROLAB’s new Technical Report, offering insights on managing digitalised processes in ISO/IEC 17025-compliant laboratories.
Webinar Highlights
You can register for the event here: Event Registration Page.
Registration fee: 70 € (all ticketing fees included).
Don’t miss this unique opportunity to enhance your knowledge and apply the latest digital management guidelines in your laboratory!
The International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) have begun the process of incorporating the Global Accreditation Cooperation, a single international organization for accreditation. The target date for the Global Accreditation Cooperation to become operational, taking over the roles of IAF and ILAC, is provisionally January 2026.
To provide regulators, specifiers and other stakeholders with information on the transition to the Global Accreditation Cooperation, IAF and ILAC have released a communication Download on specifying the use of Global Accreditation Cooperation accreditation. The communication addresses the transition from the IAF Multilateral Recognition Arrangement (MLA) and ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) to the Global Accreditation Cooperation MRA, the use of the IAF MLA and ILAC MRA marks, and other related issues. Until the target date and establishment of the internal processes and procedures of the Global Accreditation Cooperation, IAF and ILAC will maintain normal operations.
IAF and ILAC are encouraging our members, regulatory bodies, scheme owners and other stakeholders to collaborate on making any necessary changes to regulations and specifications as soon as possible after the target date. This will aid in a smooth transition to the Global Accreditation Cooperation, which is positioned to improve the acceptance and recognition of accredited conformity assessment results across borders.
The signatory status of Swiss Accreditation Service (SAS), Switzerland, to the ILAC MRA has been extended to include the accreditation of Proficiency Testing Providers (ISO/IEC 17043) and Reference Materials Producers (ISO 17034).
The full list of signatories to the ILAC MRA is available from https://ilac.org/signatory-search/ .
The signatory status of Organismo Salvadoreno de Acreditacion (OSA), El Salvador, to the ILAC MRA has been extended to include the accreditation of Medical Testing (ISO 15189).
The full list of signatories to the ILAC MRA is available from https://ilac.org/signatory-search/ .
The signatory status of Jamaica National Agency for Accreditation Global Accreditation (JANAAC), Jamaica, to the ILAC MRA has been extended to include the accreditation of Calibration (ISO/IEC 17025).
The full list of signatories to the ILAC MRA is available from https://ilac.org/signatory-search/ .
The signatory status of Sri Lanka Accreditation Board for Conformity Assessment (SLAB), Sri Lanka, to the ILAC MRA has been extended to include the accreditation of Proficiency Testing Providers (ISO/IEC 17043).
The full list of signatories to the ILAC MRA is available from https://ilac.org/signatory-search/ .
Posted on behalf of EUROLAB
Dear EUROLAB Members and Contacts,
We are pleased to announce that registration for our upcoming Webinar on the “Mutual Recognition Agreements on Conformity Assessment and Challenges Faced by Laboratories in the EU and International Export Markets” is now open.
Don’t miss the opportunity to attend the webinar on 2 October 2024, from 10:00-13:30 CET to gain valuable insights into the crucial role of MRAs in global trade and the challenges and opportunities they present for laboratories in the EU and beyond. The discussion will be led by industry experts and policymakers, with a keynote address by Lucian Cernat, Head of Unit at DG Trade, European Commission.
Updates and news regarding the webinar will be posted on the EUROLAB website and LinkedIn page .
Register here by 29 September.