The A2LA Accreditation Program for Reference Material Producers is designed for producers of reference materials who wish to demonstrate their competence by formal compliance with a set of internationally recognized criteria. The program will provide users of reference materials, such as testing and calibration laboratories, with increased confidence that the reference material being relied upon are being produced in accordance with specified technical and management system requirements and are of appropriate quality

The requirements for this program are based on those contained in ISO Guide 34, "General Requirements for the Competence of Reference Material Producers." ISO Guide 34 sets out the general requirements that a reference material producer has to demonstrate that it operates in compliance with, if it is to be recognized as competent to carry out the production of reference material. It is recognized that each reference material needs to be characterized mainly to the level of accuracy required for its intended purpose (i.e. appropriate measurement uncertainty.)