Accreditation of Inspection Bodies

Accreditation scheme for Inspection Bodies is based on ISO/IEC 17020 – General Criteria for the operation of various types of bodies performing inspection. This scheme provides a formal recognition to an inspection body for its services for integrity and reliability.

Organizations required to conduct various types of inspections for regulatory purposes are accredited under this scheme. Regulatory bodies could make effective use of this mechanism to implement regulations. This mechanism has been adopted in Europe, North America and in many other Developed countries.

Through the establishment of ACBCB Accreditation Schemes an effective mechanism is developed for regulatory authorities to have the necessary conformity assessment functions performed by other bodies both in the public and private sector, where such bodies have been assessed for competence and credibility by the ACBCB.

ISO/IEC 17020:1998 For Inspection Bodies

ISO 17020:1998 "General Criteria for the Operation of Various Types of Bodies Performing Inspection", is an internationally recognized standard for the competence of inspection bodies. Many people confuse ISO 17020 with ISO 9001, which is a generic quality management system. ISO 17020 requires evaluation of the technical competence of an inspection body.

ACBCB Accreditation requires that Inspection Bodies must conform to the most recent version of the following standards:

• ISO 17021:1998- General Criteria for the Operation of Various Types of Bodies Performing Inspection
• Demonstrated Technical Competence specific to the field in which inspection is done.
• Any additional requirements established by ACBCB from time to time.

ISO/IEC 17024:2003 For Bodies Operating Certification of Person

ISO/IEC 17024:2003 Conformity assessment -- General requirements for bodies operating certification of persons. This standard provides a benchmark for certification bodies offering certification of individuals applicable to any occupation.

ACBCB Accreditation requires that the Certification Bodies must conform to the most recent version of the following standards:

• ISO/IEC 17024:2003 Conformity assessment -- General requirements for bodies operating certification of persons.
• Any additional requirements established by ACBCB from time to time.

ISO/IEC Guide 65:1996 For Bodies Operating Product Certification Systems

ISO/IEC Guide 65:1996- General requirements for bodies operating product certification systems (or EN45011 as it is known in its European version) is for those certification bodies who require to demonstrate their competence to certain regulatory authorities. ISO Guide 65 accreditation is be performed against a reference standard or standards. The reference standard may be the production and processing standards of a national regulation (often a national standard) but may also be your own or another organization’s private standard.

ACBCB Accreditation requires that the Product Certification Bodies must conform to the most recent version of the following standards:

• ISO/IEC Guide 65:1996- General requirements for bodies operating product certification systems.
• Demonstrated Technical Competence specific to the field in which product certification is done.
• Any additional requirements established by ACBCB from time to time.