A2LA Signs The Bilateral Mutual
Recognition Agreement With EA

On September 21, 1999, A2LA signed the bilateral mutual recognition agreement with the European cooperation for Accreditation (EA)¹.

"Finally!" says A2LA President, Peter Unger. "We have been working towards this important moment for almost a decade. A2LA is the first laboratory accreditation body in the Americas to reach such an agreement with EA. We now have mutual recognition agreements with accreditation bodies in 25 countries ²."

The Agreement is expected to facilitate the acceptance of test and calibration data with a number of European countries whose national accreditation bodies have signed the EA Multilateral Agreement (MLA). EA promotes the recognition and acceptance in all the MLA countries of certificates and reports issued by organizations accredited by national accreditation bodies who have signed the MLA.

Through the EA MLA evaluation process, a uniform level of competence of the accredited bodies is assured, and the need for multiple assessments is diminished or eliminated. This means that ideally, a supplier would only need one certificate or report to satisfy the entire European market and all governments.

There are a number of different areas within the EA MLA, including: testing laboratories, calibration laboratories, certification bodies (products, quality systems, personnel, environmental management systems), and inspection bodies. The bilateral mutual recognition agreement signed between A2LA and EA MLA signatories is for testing and calibration laboratories only.

To obtain more information on EA, please visit the EA web site at www.european-accreditation.org.

The text of the bilateral agreement between A2LA and EA is as follows:

 

The Text of the Agreement

"The EA Signatories for Testing and Calibration and A2LA will

(i) recognize the operation of their Nationally Recognised Laboratory Accreditation Schemes as being equivalent;

(ii) accept on an equal basis the test reports and calibration certificates issued by their accredited testing and calibration laboratories;

(iii) promote the acceptance of test reports and calibration certificates issued by their accredited testing and calibration laboratories by all users in their countries;

(iv) investigate all complaints resulting from test reports and calibration certificates issued by their accredited testing and calibration laboratories;

(v) inform each other, as soon as possible, of any significant changes that have occurred or will occur in the status and/or operational practices of their own accreditation body and system."

The development of this agreement involved several activities for a period of years in order to establish mutual confidence. The principal confidence building activities included:

- an exchange of information on the development and operation of EA and the Nationally Recognised Laboratory Accreditation Schemes of its Member Laboratory Accreditation Bodies on the one hand and A2LA on the other hand;

- participation in meetings of the EA General Assembly;

- participation in international interlaboratory comparisons and proficiency testing programs;

- participation in meetings of EA Technical Committees and expert groups, and task forces to discuss problems related to testing and calibration in various technical fields;

- an exchange of experts taking part in assessments or surveillance visits to testing and calibration laboratories applying for or holding an accreditation by the signatories to this Agreement;

- mutual re-evaluations with intervals of four years;

- dissemination to A2LA of information on the results of the evaluation and the re-evaluation of EA Member Laboratory Accreditation Bodies made in the framework of the EA Multilateral Agreement."

Mutual Recognition Agreements Partners

A2LA is now a signatory to several bilateral and multilateral recognition agreements. These agreements facilitate the acceptance of test and calibration data between A2LA-accredited laboratories and the following other countries/economies:

Australia Austria Belgium Canada Chinese Taipei Czech Republic Denmark Finland France

Germany Hong Kong Ireland Italy Japan Korea Netherlands New Zealand Norway

Portugal Singapore Spain Sweden Switzerland United Kingdom United States *

This list will continue to expand as A2LA establishes additional agreements.

To obtain the names and contact information for the accreditation bodies in a specific country/economy listed above, please contact A2LA Headquarters at 301 644 3248.

* NIST NVLAP – National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program
* NAVSEA NSLAP – Naval Sea Systems Command Naval Shipyard Laboratory Accreditation Program

About A2LA

The American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA) is a nonprofit, non-governmental, public service, membership society. The mission of A2LA is to provide comprehensive services in laboratory accreditation and laboratory-related training. Services are available to any type of organization, be it private or government. Laboratory accreditation is based on internationally accepted criteria for competence (ISO/IEC Guide 25). A2LA also offers a program for accreditation of inspection bodies and is currently developing an accreditation program for proficiency testing providers and reference material producers.

With more than 1,300 accredited laboratories, A2LA is the largest multi-purpose laboratory accreditation body in the United States.

The fundamental goals of A2LA are to:

• Achieve customer satisfaction through meeting the needs of both laboratories and their users for competent testing;
• Improve the quality of laboratories and the test data they produce; and
• Increase acceptance of accredited laboratory test data to facilitate trade.

---

¹ EA is the collaboration of nationally recognized laboratory accreditation bodies in Europe. Each of these bodies together with its accredited laboratories and their activities constitute a "Nationally Recognized Laboratory Accreditation Scheme".

² Refer to the updated list of countries included in the "Mutual Recognition Agreement Partners" section of this document.

 

A2LA Information | Accredited Fastener Laboratories
Proficiency Testing Provider Accreditation Program | Source of Calibration Labs
Suspensions, Withdrawals, Reinstatements | Training Catalog | Membership Information
A2LA Newsletter | Annual Meeting | Program Requirements
  Applications for Accreditation
Press Releases | A2LA Signs EA Bilateral Agreement
A2LA's Mutual Recognition Agreement Partners | Hot Links | A2LA Advertising Policy

Please Sign Our Guest book | Request More Information

	American Association for Laboratory Accreditation 5301 Buckeystown Pike, Ste 350 Frederick, MD 21704 301-644-3248, FAX 301-662-2974