IAS Goes Green

On April 8‚ the IAS Accreditation Committee will open discussions on expansion of accreditation scopes for testing laboratories and inspection agencies to cover sustainable (green) construction. With many national and international agencies involved in green product certification and increasing momentum in field inspection of sustainable construction‚ the timing is just right for IAS’ entry into this arena. The committee meeting is open to the public.
Contact IAS President Chuck Ramani for details.

IAS Offers BDA Presentations

Code Council Chapters and building organizations in California‚ Colorado‚ Louisiana‚ Michigan‚ Oregon and Texas have already discovered the industry-proven benefits behind attaining IAS building department accreditation (BDA). Now it’s your turn. Contact IAS Marketing Manager Greg West to schedule a free presentation for your next chapter meeting and learn more about the IAS BDA program.

ISO/IEC Standards 17020/
17025 Training Scheduled

IAS training on ISO/IEC Standards 17020 and 17025 is open to anyone interested in laboratory and inspection agency accreditation. The training courses will be held May 19-23 in Country Club Hills (Chicago area)‚ Illinois.
Click here for information.

BOARD MEETINGS

May 4

IAS Board Meeting
Washington, D.C.

MSC Workshop Offered

IAS Accreditation Officer Hershal Brewer will host a workshop at the Measurement Science Conference (MSC) March 10-14 at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, California. The tutorial, Accreditation: Challenges and Solutions, will cover common roadblocks to laboratories seeking accreditation and the nuts and bolts of accreditation—from computer systems and software to general criteria for selecting an accreditation body. Learn more about IAS Testing, Calibration and Inspection Agency accreditation programs at the IAS booth on the MSC Exposition floor.

Lessons Learned in California

IAS conducted a successful training program on “Uncertainty in Measurements” at the laboratories of Southwest Inspection and Testing in La Habra‚ California. Attendees gained insight into the intricate aspects of this requirement of ISO/IEC Standard 17025:2005 on accreditation through lectures on theory‚ group discussions‚ hands-on practical work‚ mathematical evaluation of uncertainties and an examination at the end of the program.

IAS Trainer B.N. Taranath (second from left) works with training program participants during the laboratory hands-on session.

IAS Completes SIA
Training in Las Vegas

The City of Las Vegas Building Department hosted an IAS training class on Special Inspection Agency–IBC Chapter 17 requirements and IAS AC291 implementation with trainers Sandi McCracken‚ John Pakianadan and Gary Larsen. Participants covered structural steel‚ masonry‚ NDT‚ concrete‚ soils and AC291 special inspection course material. Paul Wilkins‚ Director for the City of Las Vegas Building Department‚ indicated the city was encouraged by the IAS special inspection program.

IAS Assessor Will Be Missed


Ken Haas

IAS Lead Assessor/
Consultant Ken Haas represented IAS’s best practices in every assessment he led‚ and helped build the IAS brand as the best in the industry. Upon his recent passing, Ken’s wife‚ Laurie‚ recalled to IAS President Chuck Ramani what a perfectionist Ken was; everything in his life was orderly and well planned‚ and Ken valued his association with IAS as the organization reflected the values he lived by—integrity‚ hard work and quality. A consummate professional engineer‚ Ken’s contributions to IAS will be sorely missed.

Guy Tomberlin‚ Sr.‚ Passes

IAS Board member Guy Tomberlin’s father‚ Guy Tomberlin‚ Sr.‚ passed away on February 6. He proudly served in the U.S. Navy in 1944, and had a 35-year career with Northwest Airlines as a ground service machinist. Our sympathies go to the Tomberlin family.

IAS eNews
March 2008
Vol. 4, Issue 1

IAS Vision 2008

The world is going through a transformation—from climate change to green building—and the International Accreditation Service (IAS) and the services it provides can play an important role in helping industry and building regulators by facilitating the transition.
Continue reading here.

Beyond Pen and Paper
The Role of Document Control in Quality Management

Whether in the structures we build or the services we provide‚ the building and construction industry has always emphasized the importance of quality. For many‚ the focus has been on new and improved policies‚ procedures and overall business processes. However‚ many organizations forget the importance of organization-wide document control—at least until something goes wrong. Continue reading here.

In Search of Improvement
Rochester Hills Seeks Building Department Accreditation

The City of Rochester Hills‚ located about 20 miles north of Detroit‚ Michigan‚ is a suburban neighborhood community of 68‚000 residents with a good mix of commercial and retail businesses. During the last four years‚ the Building Department has implemented new operational processes and inspection procedures to ensure continual customer service improvements. Continue reading here.

The Rochester Hills Building Department recently underwent its final accreditation evaluation by IAS and is waiting to hear if it will receive accreditation.

Weigh in on Important Issues
Los Angeles Hosts April Accreditation Committee Hearing

The IAS Accreditation Committee hearing to establish or revise accreditation criteria pertaining to IAS accreditation programs will be held April 8 at the Westin Los Angeles Airport Hotel in Los Angeles. Interested parties are invited to attend and participate in the hearing. Click here for details.

APLAC Meets in Malaysia

IAS is co-hosting the June APLAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) Council meeting in Long Beach‚ California. The APLAC MRA Council is open only to signatories of the APLAC MRA and the designees of the APLAC member bodies. At this meeting‚ the MRA Council will consider the continuing accreditation status of the current signatories and also take up matters relating to applicant accreditation bodies from various economies.

International Accreditation Service President Chuck Ramani and Raj Nathan, Director Accreditation Service, attended the Asia Pacific Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (APLAC) meeting December 1-7‚ 2007‚ in Kuala Lumpur‚ Malaysia. This year’s APLAC meeting included more than 100 delegates from countries around the world. Read more on this event.

Call for Committee Members
Make a Difference, Gain International Expertise

The International Accreditation Service is looking for talented building code professionals interested in an opportunity to guide the direction of an internationally recognized accreditation body while gaining a global perspective on quality control and quality systems. Positions are available on the IAS Accreditation Committee and a new Technical Advisory Council for Product Certification agencies.
Click here to make a difference.

Testing the Laboratories

One of the most important activities for accreditation bodies and the laboratories they accredit is participation in Proficiency Testing (PT). IAS-accredited testing and calibration laboratories are required to have quality control procedures for monitoring the validity of the tests and calibrations they conduct. There are a number of ways for laboratories to measure the quality of their results‚ including the use of certified reference materials‚ participation in inter-laboratory comparisons or PT‚ replication of tests or calibrations‚ and retesting or recalibration of retained items.
Continue reading here.

IAS Heads to the Hill

Every year‚ the International Code Council and its governmental members take the building and fire safety message directly to the nation’s top lawmakers in Washington, D.C.‚ through an Annual Capitol Hill Day. This year’s 2008 Building Safety Week Capitol Hill Day will include an International Accreditation Service contingent consisting of the organization’s Board of Directors and executive staff. Continue reading here.

BDA Hot Topic: Training and Supervision

As part of the building department accreditation process‚ IAS asks building departments to describe their processes for training and supervision of departmental staff in four distinct categories: code officials‚ administrative and permitting staff‚ plan reviewers and inspectors. The information provided is evaluated by IAS for compliance with AC251 (Accreditation Criteria for Building Departments/Code Enforcement Agencies). How does IAS determine if departments or code enforcement agencies are in compliance with the AC251 sections? Click here to find out.