Accreditation

ACCREDITATION - NMX-EC-17025-IMNC-2006

First steps

Since 2000, CIBNOR, S. C. had the purpose of designing a quality system that would allow the laboratories to operate at levels of excellence acknowledged nationally and internationally. This is why the objective was to to credit assay methods under the Mexican Norm NMX-EC-17025 (ISO 17025).

On November 3, 2004, fue otorgada la acreditación de 19 assay methods from 6 laboratories under the norm NMX-EC-17025-INMC-2000 were credited because of their potential to provide external services. This accreditation was granted by Entidad Mexicana de Acreditación; same which later updated the norm to NMX-EC-17025-IMNC-2006.

Currently, 13 assay methods from 6 laboratories maintain the accreditation.

Accreditation implies two basic components:

• Establish a quality management system in the laboratories;
• Achieve the recognition of the technical competence of their services granted by Entidad Mexicana de Acreditación, A. C. (ema).

What is accreditation?

Accreditation is a documented process through which Entidad Mexicana de Acreditación (ema) grants a formal competence recognition to the laboratories to perform assays that comply with the requisites established by this organization and the Mexican Norm NMX-EC-17025 (ISO/IEC 17025).

Accreditation refers to the formal recognition from an authorized organism that a laboratory is competent to perform specific or other types of assays. Accreditation applies to assay and calibration laboratories. It provides trust in the results obtained by internal and external audits to credit that the laboratory has a quality management system to reach the requirements with the norm (NMX-EC-17025), with its customers, and with its own quality management system.

Implementing the Quality Management System

The Quality Management System was implemented in the laboratories starting from 1 October 2003. In this perception, the laboratories are working under highly organized processes with specific technical and administrative requirements based on policies, objectives, procedures, rules, practices, and resources, which can be applied both to technical staff and to the benefit of the users. Some aspects that stand out are:

• Adoption of written procedures;
• Equipment calibration and traceability;
• Use of certified reference materials or substances;
• Technique validation;
  
• Documented record (binnacles) of all the activities within the laboratory;
• Confidential management of the information;
• Attention to complaints;
• Regulation application;
  
• Observance of a code of ethics.
  

Accreditation process

This process is maintained through the Support Services and Laboratories Unit. For this purpose it has:

• A Responsible Body for the Quality System and accreditation equipment, formed mainly by credited laboratory technician, who perform the activities that the accreditation process requires.