IAS Co-Hosts the Asia Pacific Accreditation Body Cooperation 2023 Annual Meeting
The APAC meeting provided a common platform for accreditation bodies to share and discuss policy matters, harmonize accreditation practices and manage the mutual recognition arrangements.
The International Accreditation Service (IAS) – an accreditation body of the International Code Council family of solutions – collaborated with peer organizations to host the 2023 Asia Pacific Accreditation Body Cooperation (APAC) Annual Meeting from June 23 to June 30, 2023, at the JW Marriott in Anaheim, Calif.
This event marked the first time in 20 years that the APAC Annual Meeting has taken place in the United States. The APAC organization has 57 full members across 32 economies that are APAC MRA signatories, 10 associate members across eight economies and 14 affiliates across 11 economies. Over 150 delegates from the Asia Pacific region were in attendance.
The APAC meeting provided a common platform for accreditation bodies in the Asia-Pacific region to share and discuss policy matters, harmonize accreditation practices and manage the mutual recognition arrangements (MRAs). Attendees included executive and technical leaders from accreditation bodies in 38 economies that accredit testing laboratories, inspection agencies and other companies impacting the safety and quality of building safety products.
“This, once-in-a-generation APAC annual meeting in the United States provided a valuable opportunity for code officials and the conformity assessment community to meet with the leading accreditation bodies in the Asia-Pacific region,” said Raj Nathan, President of IAS and APAC Vice-Chair.
The discussions from the meeting helped to develop a cohesive approach to address cross-frontier trade and service issues on conformity assessment practices. It also showcased to domestic regulators and stakeholders the range and depth of engagement of IAS and other peer organizations in bringing best practices to the domestic and global consumers of conformity assessment services.
