Cooperation is on the key concepts embodied by IAF. Randy Dougherty provides an update on how the IAF is closely working with its key stakeholders.

2012 will be a highly productive year for the publication of new ISO CASCO documents. Find out which documents are planned for publication in the next 12 months.

Regulation (EC) 765/2008 places stretching demands on EA as an organisation. In order to meet these demands, and to develop into the organisation the European Commission first envisaged as it sets out to reform this policy area, EA has defined a series of strategic objectives that must be achieved in the next four years.

EA Committee work is progressing well. This article sets out the current activities, issues being discussed, as well as document revisions, and planned training sessions.

This report includes IAAC activities from August 2011 to March 2012.

The testing and certification industry has been identified as one of the six economic areas where Hong Kong enjoys clear advantages and has good potential for further development. As a result, the Hong Kong Accreditation Service (HKAS) has been tasked to ensure that its services meet the changing needs through providing new accreditation services in response to demand from the industry. 

SANAS supports government departments in the protection of health, safety, the environment and economic growth objectives. During the past twelve months, SANAS has played a significant role to underpin the Industrial Policy Action Plan, through the development of two new accreditation programmes, namely the accreditation programmes Measurement and Verification of Energy Efficiency and Responsible Tourism.

The Italian system of conformity assessment, which operates under ACCREDIA’s authority, took on a new dimension in 2011: accreditation, which had traditionally been in the voluntary sector, was extended to mandatory, or cogent, sectors, in order to implement the Directives of the EU’s “New Approach” and the regulations this entails.

From September until November 2011, Cgcre carried out a satisfaction survey of the clients of accredited Conformity Assessment Bodies (CAB). The survey was sent to a database of 22,122 clients (informed by the CABs themselves). The questionnaire was conducted online, using the Quest Manager software. From a total of clients who received the questionnaire, 1,277 answered it, conferring to the survey a sample error of 2.74%. The confidentiality of the survey was maintained, as the software does not allow access to the name of the respondents, only to the answers.

The Mauritius Accreditation Service (Mauritas) together with a development partner, L’agence Française de Dévelopement (AFD) is implementing a project for the extension of the accreditation programme for certification bodies involved in the certification of Food Security and Information Security Management Systems with the assistance of the Norwegian Accreditation (NA).