Accreditation under ISO 17020: Overview, Conditions, and Advantages

Did you know that to conduct the inspection, the inspection bodies that evaluate the dependability and quality of businesses' goods and services must obtain their regulatory certification?

This falls under the purview of ISO 17020, which guarantees the proficiency of the inspection bodies as well as the objectivity and consistency of their inspection actions.

A conformity assessment known as ISO 17020 contains specifications for several body kinds that carry out inspections, surveys, and risk evaluations. The accreditation/examination bodies have been categorised by the standard into Type A, Type B, and Type C classes based on the services they provide.

The international standard includes a variety of inspection body activities, such as:

• The inspection of materials, goods, installations, plants, processes, labour methods, or services.
• Determination of the examined services and products conformity against respective requirements.
• The subsequent reporting of results of the activities, performed in the above two steps, to clients and authorities.

Conditions for ISO 17020 Certification

The ISO 17020 accreditation has the same level of specifications as the ISO/IEC 17000 series, which also includes ISO/IEC 9001, ISO/IEC 17025 (for testing and calibration laboratories), and ISO/IEC 17065. However, it more emphasis on the capacity of accreditation authorities to control objectivity, conflicts of interest, the body's technical competence, and inspection services and procedures.

The accreditation equips the certifying organizations with the skills necessary to exercise professional judgment while conducting inspections, in particular when determining whether certain conditions are being met.

Five main categories are used to classify the conditions that inspection agencies must meet:

• General Conditions: objectivity, independence, and confidentiality
• Structural Conditions: Administrative demands, managerial, and organizational conditions
• Resources Conditions: staff, buildings, machinery, and subcontracting
• Process Conditions: Inspection methods and procedures, handling of inspection items and samples, inspection records, reports, and inspection certificates, complaints and appeals, and processes for complaints and appeals.
• Management System Conditions: documentation of the management system, control of documents and records, management review and internal audits, and corrective and preventive measures.

The Advantages of ISO/IEC 17020 Certification

• Incorporates standards for organizational quality management systems at the same level as those in ISO 9001 and the ISO/IEC 17000 Series.
• Emphasises the technical proficiency of staff, inspection procedures, and equipment more than the organization's capacity to manage objectivity and conflicts of interest.
• Guarantees technically proficient service and consistently dependable outcomes.
• Decreasing risks and expenses
• Displays items, machinery, buildings, and systems that adhere to the necessary standards.
• The utilisation of approved inspection services is becoming more and more required by governments and companies worldwide.
• Gives a business the chance to show its clients that it is trustworthy and adheres to ethical standards.

An ISO 17020 accreditation for inspection bodies is provided by ISO 17020 compliance. It entails all of the tasks carried out by an inspection body, such as inspecting the services, processes, goods, and tools they use to ascertain their general compliance and the accuracy of their findings reporting.

Consider using accreditationconsultancy.com to purchase top-notch lab equipment if you need to expedite the ISO 17020 certification procedure. They provide labs and organizations with a flexible and tailored lease program that could be helpful during any accreditation process.

Michel Adrien has published so many articles regarding ISO Certification Documentation. As ISO Consultant profession since last many years Michel has rich experience in preparing such certification documents within ISO guideline to his global clients