IAS eNews
APLAC MRA Council Meets in Singapore
IAS Re-Evaluation Report on MRA Agenda
The IAS re-evaluation report is on the Asia Pacific Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (APLAC) Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) Council agenda for consideration at the next meeting scheduled for May 22-24, in Singapore. IAS President Chuck Ramani will represent IAS at the Singapore meeting.
The MRA Council manages the APLAC multilateral MRA, including peer evaluation of applicant bodies and re-evaluation of existing signatories. One of the Council's main functions is to approve new signatories to the APLAC multilateral MRA. Admission to the MRA is based on rigorous peer evaluation against the international standard ISO/IEC 17011: Conformity assessment — general requirements for accreditation bodies accrediting conformity assessment bodies. Peer evaluations are conducted by experienced and approved APLAC evaluators, using procedures set down in the APLAC publication MR001, "Procedures for Establishing and Maintaining Mutual Recognition Agreements between Laboratory Accreditation Bodies."
APLAC was initiated in 1992 as a forum to enable accreditation bodies to share information, harmonize procedures, and develop MRAs that enable accredited test, calibration and inspection results to be recognized across national borders. APLAC's principal objectives are to foster the development of competent laboratories and inspection bodies in member economies; to harmonize accreditation practices in the region and with other regions; and to facilitate mutual recognition of accredited test, measurement and inspection results. These objectives are consistent with, and support, the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade, which encourages WTO members to recognize each other's conformity assessment results (testing, inspection and certification); provided they are confident the assessment procedures are equivalent.
APLAC is recognized by the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) member economies as a Specialist Regional Body, assisting with the work of the APEC Sub-committee on Standards and Conformance (SCSC). The Chair of APLAC or a delegate attends APEC SCSC meetings. The list of APLAC members almost mirrors that of APEC, with the exception of Chile, Peru and Russia (APEC members that have not yet applied for APLAC membership) and India (an APLAC member that is not an APEC member).
APLAC has active programs for information exchange between members, for the development of technical guidance documents, for inter-laboratory comparisons (proficiency testing), for training of laboratory assessors, and for the development of procedures and rules for the establishment of MRAs.