Download - EUROLAB ANNUAL REPORT 2014
EUROLAB ANNUAL REPORT
2014
EUROLAB ANNUAL REPORT
2014
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Active members
Austria
Belgium
Bulgaria
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Iceland
Italy
Netherlands
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
UK
Associated members
FYROM
Turkey
Lebanon
International affilates
South Africa
USA
Observer members
Croatia
EUROLAB is a not-for-profit organisation composed of 21 Active Members, 3 Associated
Members, 1 Observer Member and 2 International Affiliates from Europe and beyond.
Grouping over 2,000 laboratories and conformity assessment bodies and representing over
100,000 technical experts and laboratory practitioners.
EUROLAB General Objective
To promote cost-effective testing, calibration and measurement services, for which the
accuracy and quality assurance requirements were adjusted to the actual needs.
Key Objectives:* Representation by formulating and voicing the opinion of laboratories regarding eco-
nomic, political and technical issues having a direct impact on laboratories’ activities
both on the European scene and world-wide.
* Co-ordination by interfacing with organisations having activities of interest to the la-
boratory community, and striving to avoid duplication of efforts and activities.
* EUROLAB should be the major multisectorial and horizontal forum for the circulation
and exchange of information and experience in development of:
* Test, measurement and analytical methods
* The use of test and analytical results in the implementation of legislation and
directives, in product certification and acceptance, and in technical evaluations
* New measurement and testing techniques for example within the EC framework
programmes, as well as
* Quality assurance measures
AIMS AND ACTIVITIES
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6TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Foreword by the PresidentEUROLAB in BriefEUROLAB – Highlights 2014* Political update
* Revision of ISO / IEC 17025
* 2014 CEOC – EUROLAB – IFIA Safety Seminar
EUROLAB and its partners* EUROLAB and CEOC International
* EUROLAB and UILI
* EUROLAB and EURAMET
* EUROLAB and NCSLI
* EUROLAB and IFIA
EUROLAB National Members’ news / activitiesAccreditationEUROLAB Committees and Events* TCQA
* JTC PTC
* COMMs
* EUROLAB General Secretariat
* EUROLAB General Assembly
* EUROLAB National Members’ Meeting
* EUROLAB structure
List of members and contact persons
56 - 9
10 - 19
20 - 23
24 - 3536 - 4142 - 53
54 - 55
FOREWORD BY THE PRESIDENT
7FOREWORD BY THE PRESIDENT
EUROLAB – the European Federation of National Associations of Measu-
rement, Testing and Analytical Laboratories – was set up in Brussels on
27 April 1990 as a network for the laboratory community and in response
to the evolution of the European Union. It has been since 1998 registered
as a legal entity in the form of an international association under Belgian
law (aisbl – association internationale sans but lucratif). In 2013 EURO-
LAB comprised more than 20 national associations from the EU and EFTA.
EUROLAB groups over 2,000 conformity assessment bodies representing
over 100,000 technical experts and laboratory practitioners. The Federati-
on represents and voices the opinion of measurement, testing and analyti-
cal laboratories regarding economic, political and technical issues having a
direct impact on laboratories’ activities both on the European scene and
worldwide.
This Annual Report 2014 is the successor to our successful Annual Report
2013 providing you with an overview of EUROLAB activities. In addition
to regular quarterly issued and more detailed EUROLAB Newsletters you
received eight EUROLAB Special Briefings covering (in that time) current
issues of interest such as: counterfeited food reports and food safety,
harmonisation of EU Safety rules, legislation on Medical Devices as well
as information on the latest developments in the medical devices field and
regarding the Product Safety and Market Surveillance package.
EUROLAB’s role as a main stakeholder is providing feedback to the Euro-
pean Commission (EC), European Accreditation (EA), ISO CASCO and the
International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC). For this we
needed information from our members related to the following topics:
* Inquiry Concerning Reissuance of test reports
* Opinions and Interpretations as part of the accreditation scope – call
for examples
* Inquiry on the top 5 ISO / IEC 17025 items to be addressed in the revi-
sion of ISO /IEC 17025
* Overlap of testing and inspection activities - call for examples
* Inquiry Concerning the Profile of Applied Metrology Laboratories
* MarketWatch Campaign – call for interest
The data received was carefully processed and whenever possible resul-
ted in the following key documents presented either by EUROLAB or jointly
with other European organisations.
* The issue of reissuance test repots was more or less closed. Reissu-
ance of original test reports is not possible but a new test report or
another document can be issued with reference to and full recognition
of the original one.
* The issue of opinions and interpretations is being resolved at both EA
and ILAC levels. However, ILAC is waiting for an EA solution.
* The Enquiry on ISO / IEC 17025 resulted in a EUROLAB White Paper
which was presented to ILAC, EA and to ISO CASCO in particular, whe-
re EUROLAB representatives are taking an active part in WG 44.
* Overlap of testing and inspection activities is still an issue to be solved
at ILAC level with active representation from EUROLAB. More examp-
les from members are still welcome as it appears that approaches and
solutions will be product family specific.
* Frequency of surveillance and reassessment of laboratories by ABs is
being discussed at ILAC level with active contributions from EURO-
LAB (Position Paper)
Systematic research of opinions of the laboratory community on subjects of
general interest using structured questionnaires will continue. The evaluati-
on and consolidated presentation of results at EC, EA, ILAC and ISO CASCO
levels has been highly appreciated. EUROLAB aisbl. is dedicated to conti-
nue serving as a hub which provides National Members with up to date
information from European and global sources and at the same time coll-
ects members’ opinions to provide qualified feedback to relevant parties.
EUROLAB aisbl is fully aware that testing is the main source of added value
for TIC sector, well established laboratories form a key part of the business
environment in each country, facilitate competitiveness of industry and last
but not least play an important role in protection of citizens and users.
EUROLAB aisbl thanks all experts and collaborators who contributed to the
success of EUROLAB aisbl in 2014 believing that even more effort will be
required in 2015 as there are many topics, some mentioned above, still to
be resolved.
As my presidency will finish in April 2015 I wish to say that since the year
2000 it has always been my great pleasure to work for EUROLAB aisbl. I am
grateful to all my colleagues and collaborators and I wish the new president,
EUROLAB aisbl. and all of you, great successes and many excellent achie-
vements in the future. I will be standing by to ensure continuity, ready to
assist as the need might arise.
Jiří Sobola
EUROLAB President
EUROLAB IN BRIEF
10EUROLAB IN BRIEF
EUROLAB‘s general objective is to promote cost-effective testing, calibration and measurement services, for which the accuracy and quality assurance requirements are adjusted to the actual needs.
EUROLAB aisbl PROFILE
EUROLAB is a European federation of national associations, grouping together accredi-
ted laboratories which represents and voices the opinion of measurement, testing and
analytical laboratories regarding economic, political and technical issues having a direct
impact on laboratories’ activities both on the European scene and worldwide. Any labo-
ratory may join and become a member of this European community that EUROLAB
represents by subscribing to its national association.
WHAT WE DO
* identification of areas of priority for the development of scientific
and technical cooperation and exchange of information in the field of
testing, measurement, analytical and calibration activities
* cooperation for the development and interpretation of test methods,
especially those relevant to EU Directives, Agreements or European
product certification schemes, as a contribution to the development
and implementation of EN standards
* implementation and improvement of quality standards and systems
for laboratories
* cooperation between laboratories and accreditation bodies on mat-
ters of common interest relating to laboratory accreditation and co-
operation on the training of staff.
EUROLAB - INFLUENCING THE REGULATORY AND BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
EUROLAB has grown from originally 17 members to currently 21 Active
Members, 3 Associated Members, 1 Observer Member and 2 Internatio-
nal Affiliates, which are all national associations of laboratories involved
in research and development, technical evaluation and conformity assess-
ment services based on measurements, testing and analysis of materials,
products and equipment. EUROLAB has proved very effective in influenci-
ng policies and regulations at the European level. Its voice on behalf of the
measurement and testing laboratory community in Europe is one which is
heard and respected. It works with EA and ILAC and played a major part
in developing, inter alia, a sensible policy on cross border accreditation
under the EU Regulation on Accreditation. It is currently engaged in influ-
EUROLAB has produced a number of ‘cookbooks’ on laboratory operations and procedures. They offer straightforward guidance and are excellent training materi-als for metrologists and laboratory practitioners at the start of their careers or for newly starting businesses.
encing EU policies including those on conformity assessment and accredi-
tation of notified bodies. EUROLAB cooperates with EURACHEM (A Focus
for Analytical Chemistry in Europe) and EFNDT (European Federation
for Non-Destructive Testing) and has Memoranda of Understanding with
CEOC International, EURAMET (European Association of National Metro-
logy Institutes) and UILI (The Union Internationale des Laboratoires Indé-
pendants). It is a member of NCSLI (The National Conference of Standards
Laboratories International) in the USA. EUROLAB represents its members’
interests in influencing the development of international standards
through its engagement with ISO CASCO and CEN CLC TC 1 and their cons-
tituent working groups.
Over 75% of regulations in EU countries now originate from the EU, imple-
menting Directives which impact on businesses. Accreditation, certification
and conformity assessment in general likewise are now largely determined
by European (and global) bodies. Small and medium sized businesses find
it very difficult, if not impossible to influence these matters.
The EUROLAB General Secretariat in Brussels first provides a platform for
our members to discuss their issues of concern and to exchange informati-
on and viewpoints, and, secondly acts as a facilitator of members’ interests
to the EU institutions. The General Secretariat supports also the Technical
Committees which provide expert input on key legislative or standardisati-
on initiatives.
11EUROLAB IN BRIEF
Membership of EUROLAB brings many benefits to your laboratory and helps it to thrive in the European and global business environment of the 21st century.
MEMBERSHIP
EUROLAB federates the national associations of laboratories involved in research and development, technical evaluation and conformity assessment servi-
ces based on measurements, testing and analyses of materials, products or equipment, in order to provide an organized interface at the European level
between this community of laboratories and all other parties having an interest in these fields.
CriteriaActive membersAdmission as an active member is open to: one legal not-for-profit entity per member of the European Union (EU) or the European Free Trade Associati-
on (EFTA) which must have been constituted under the laws and regulations of its country of origin and which must have demonstrated its representative
character concerning public or private measurement, testing and analytical laboratories within its national community,
Associated membersAdmission as an associated member is open to: one legal not-for-profit entity per country from countries eligible for membership to the European Union or
EFTA, or which country is a participating member of the European Neighbourhood Policy. The legal entity must have been constituted under the laws and
regulations of its country of origin and must have demonstrated its representative character of public or private measurement, testing and analytical labo-
ratories within its national community,
Observer membersAdmission as an observer member is open to legal entities or associations or groups of organisations not eligible for active or associated membership. The
legal entity or association must have been constituted under the laws and regulations of its country of origin and must have demonstrated its representati-
ve character of public or private measurement, testing and analytical laboratories within its national community.
International affiliatesAdmission as an international affiliate is open to : legal entities or associations or groups of organisations constituted under the laws and regulations of
their country of origin who do not wish to seek active, associated or observer membership and being interested in measurement, testing and analytical acti-
vities.
EUROLAB's key objectives – members’ benefits
* Creating awareness among public and political authorities, industry
and other business partners of the work of the measuring, calibration,
testing, inspection and certification sector.
* Representation by formulating and voicing the opinion of European
laboratories regarding political and technical issues having a direct
impact on laboratories‘ activities both on the European scene and
worldwide
* Coordination by interfacing with all European organisations having
activities of interest to the laboratory community, and striving to avoid
duplication of efforts and activities.
* Action by providing adequate means for exchange of information and
experience, such as the publication of Position Papers, Technical Re-
ports, Newsletters; Seminars, and Working Groups and through our
website.
* Promoting cost-effective testing, calibration and measurement servi-
ces, for which the accuracy and quality assurance requirements are
adjusted to the actual needs.
EUROLAB HIGHLIGHTS
14EUROLAB HIGHLIGHTS
EUROLAB HIGHLIGHTSPolitical update
2014 - A year of changes in the Institutional Triangle
The new European Parliament
…the first elections held under the Lisbon Treaty
The Lisbon Treaty gave the European Parliament (EP) a number of impor-
tant new powers – e.g. for the first time, Member States were obliged to take
account of the EP election results when nominating the new President of
the Commission.
…the results of the 2014 European elections
At the elections held on 22nd-25th May 2014, a total of 751 Members of the
European Parliament (MEPs) were elected for the next five years. Each
Member State has a fixed number of MEPs, which, under the Lisbon Treaty,
ranges from six for Malta to 96 for Germany.
The first plenary session on the 1st July 2014 was dedicated to the formal
constitution of the EP. The newly-elected MEPs re-elected Martin Schulz as
President of the European Parliament for a second two and a half year term.
They also elected their 14 Vice-Presidents and 6 Quaestors. In the following
week, the EP’s standing committees elected their Chairs and Vice-Chairs.
During the second plenary session, MEPs elected Jean-Claude Junker as
President of the European Commission.
The hearings of the Commissioners-designate kept the new MEPs busy in
September. On 22nd October 2014 the EP gave its consent to the new Euro-
pean Commission.
…contacts established
EUROLAB had an introductory meeting with Vicky Ford, the new Chair of
the EP’s IMCO committee, and with other relevant MEPs.
Consumer Product Safety Regulation (CPSR)
…background
The proposal for a Regulation on consumer product safety (CPSR) is part
of the package adopted by the European Commission (EC) on 13th February
2013, which also includes a proposal for a regulation on market surveillance
(MSR).
On 17th October 2013 the Committee on Internal Market and Consumer
Protection (IMCO) adopted its report on CPSR drafted by Christel Schal-
demose by an overwhelming majority. The members of IMCO Committee
amended the EC proposal by introducing a mandatory country of origin
marking for non-food products (‘made in clause’ in Article 7). They also
introduced a new CE marking certifying that the product had been tested
and found safe by an independent third party (which was later replaced by
the idea of the ‘EU Safety Tested Mark’ in Article 6).
Since the ‘EU Safety Tested’ mark was not included in the original EC
Impact Assessment accompanying the proposal for a CPSR, the IMCO
Committee requested on 5th November 2013 an impact assessment to be
carried out on the subject. The objective of this study was to provide an
assessment of the probable costs and benefits related to the introduction
of an ‘EU Safety Tested’ mark (in general, and more in particular for SMEs),
and to assess the feasibility of its introduction.
…2014 – still not quite there
The issue of the ‘made in clause’ provoked lively discussions in the Council.
Member States were divided into two camps. A number of them together
with the EC supported the mandatory origin marking by stressing its posi-
tive effect on traceability of products. However, another group of Member
States argued that this provision would not increase product safety and
could generate unnecessary burdens on economic operators. Although the
IMCO Committee unanimously approved the mandate to enter trialogue
negotiations (EP, EC and Council) on the draft report no progress has been
achieved since the beginning of 2014.
The IMCO report was adopted by the EP Plenary on 15th April 2014. The
Rapporteur’s proposal to introduce a voluntary ‘EU Safety Tested’ making
was rejected.
After the EP elections in May 2014, Rapporteur Christel Schaldemose has
been re-elected and she has been reappointed as Rapporteur on CPSR.
Despite continued efforts, the Italian Presidency did not reach an agree-
ment on the proposed provision for establishing a mandatory country of
origin marking. The EC announced that it would conduct a technical study,
with the aim of gathering further information and evidence to overcome the
current deadlock over Article 7.
…EUROLAB’s position
With regard to the CPSR EUROLAB, together with IFIA and CEOC Internati-
onal, published two joint position papers:
CEOC International, IFIA and EUROLAB Position on Product Safety and
Market Surveillance Package adopted by European Commission on 13th
15EUROLAB HIGHLIGHTS
The new European Commission (2014-2019) © European Union, 1995-2015
February 2013 CEOC International, IFIA and EUROLAB, Position Paper –
European Parliament seeks to enhance product safety in Europe
Also, EUROLAB has had meetings with the Rapporteur Christel Schaldemo-
se and with members of DG ENTR to discuss its position.
The new European Commission
…the first democratically elected President of the European Commission
Jean-Claude Junker, the former Prime Minister of Luxembourg and the lead
candidate of the European People’s Party for President of the European
Commission was elected on 15th July 2014 by the European Parliament with
422 votes in favour. For the first time in the history of the EU, the European
Parliament elected – and not merely approved – the President of the EC
following a proposal by the European Council, according to the rules laid
down in the Lisbon Treaty.
…the process
On 10th September 2014 President Junker presented his team and the
allocation of portfolios. This was followed by individual hearings of the
Commissioners-designate in the relevant committees of the EP which star-
ted on 29th September 2014.
On 22nd October 2014, following some adjustments in Juncker‘s team,
the EP gave its consent to the entire College. The European Council then
appointed the new Commission which started its term of office on 1st
November 2014.
…changes to the structure of the new EC were made and a number of portfo-
lios were reshaped and streamlined.
President Juncker unveiled his team and the new shape of the new Commis-
sion on 10th September 2014. The changes to the structure of the College
included seven Vice-Presidents – six in addition to the High Representati-
ve of the Union for Foreign Policy and Security Policy. Each of them should
lead a project team of Commissioners and should steer and coordinate
their work. Also, a number of portfolios were reshaped and streamlined.
* The old DG MARKT and DG ENTR were merged to form the new
DG for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG
GROWTH) including Health Technology and Cosmetics.
* The old DG SANCO was reorganised. The new DG Health and Food
Safety (SANTE) no longer comprises Directorate SANCO B (Consumer
Affairs) which moves from DG SANCO to DG JUST, except for Unit
SANCO B2 (Health Technology and Cosmetics), which moves from DG
SANCO to DG ENTR.
* Consumer policy is no longer scattered across different portfolios.
Consumer affairs were moved to the new DG Justice, Consumer and
Gender Equality (DG JUST).
…the European Commission Work Programme
The EC adopted its Work Programme for 2015 on 16th December 2014. It
consists of a political Communication and four annexes. Annex I lists 23
new initiatives which the Commission commits to adopting in 2015. Out of
452 proposals currently awaiting decision by the European Parliament and
the Council, the Commission proposes to withdraw or modify 80 pending
pieces of legislation in Annex II. Annex III identifies 79 proposals and exis-
ting legislations, which will be reviewed and amended in 2015. Annex IV lists
legislation that becomes applicable in 2015.
…boosting the transparency of meetings held by EC senior officials
In November 2014, the Commission adopted two decisions that will apply to
Commissioners, their Cabinets, and the Directors-General of the Commis-
sion services. From 1 December 2014, the Commission should, within two
weeks of each meeting, publish on its website the dates, locations, names
of the organisations and self-employed individuals met and the topics of
discussion of its bilateral meetings. It was also clarified that they should
only meet organisations and self-employed individuals which feature in the
new EU Transparency Register.
The new rules represent the required implementation of the revised Inter-
institutional Agreement signed between the EP and the EC in April 2014.
The Juncker Commission intends to make its own proposal in 2015 for a
mandatory register of lobbyists covering the EC, the EP and the Council.
…contacts established
EUROLAB has established contacts with the new relevant Commissioners
and introductory meetings are scheduled for 2015.
The ISO/IEC 17025 Standard is an instrument for laboratories to improve
their competence. This standard is intended to be used by laboratories to
demonstrate their competence and it is considered vital to achieve stable
and fruitful relationships among all the actors involved, and for laborato-
ries to provide competent services to their customers.
Standard ISO/IEC 17025:1998 changed into ISO/IEC 17025:2005 and EURO-
LAB sees no need to revise the standard since any change will imply high
costs and efforts for Standardization bodies, for Accreditation bodies, and
for Laboratories and other conformity assessment bodies to get adopted.
The revision of the ISO/IEC 17025 has been launched however.
EUROLAB will be fully involved and proactive during the revision process
by participating in several forums such as EA, ILAC and ISO CASCO where
discussion on this item is open.
In order to define EUROLAB’s position on the revision of the standard, a
survey was undertaken in April 2014 among EUROLAB’s active members
over a 50 days period. The results have been collected, presented and
discussed within the Technical Committee for Quality Assurance in Testing
and Calibration (TCQA).
57% of the Active Members responded to the survey.
THE REVISION OF STANDARD ISO/IEC 17025:2005
The outcomes of the survey show that the Top 5 most commented clauses
were:
* Clause 5.10 „Reporting Results“
* Clause 5.4 „Test and calibration methods and method validation“
* Clause 4.2 „Management System“
* Clause 4.1 „Organization“
* Clause 5.9 „Assuring the quality of tests and calibration reports“
If the standard is divided into two parts, Management and Technical, the
following frequency charts are generated by the results of the survey:
16EUROLAB HIGHLIGHTS
Management Part:Most commented clauses were:
* Clause 4.2 „Management system“
* Clause 4.1 „Organization“
* Clause 4.3 „Document Control“
Technical Part:Most commented clauses were:
* Clause 5.10 „Reporting“
* Clause 5.4 “Test and calibration methods, and method validation”
* Clause 5.9 “Assuring the quality of tests and calibration results“
* Clause 5.6 “Measurement traceability”
Although members had comments on several Clauses of the Standard, the main impression was that a revi-
sion was not needed. This conclusion however did not change the decision to revise the standard.
EUROLAB member and TCQA Vice-chair Irache Visiers (EUROLAB España) has drafted, together with the
support of the members, a EUROLAB White Paper on the revision of the Standard ISO/IEC 17025:2005. This
paper was written in order to make EUROLAB’s view on the revision of the Standard explicit.
ISO/CASCO WG44 is the ISO Working Group in charge of the revision of Standard ISO/IEC 17025 and
EUROLAB’s official representatives in this ISO CASCO WG are Carol Stewart (EUROLAB UK) and Peter
Blinksbjerg (EUROLAB Denmark). Additionally, EUROLAB has also created a WG inside the TCQA to close-
ly monitor the activities of ISO/CASCO WG44. The participants of this WG are EUROLAB members that will
attend WG 44 either on behalf of their national standardisation bodies or different kind of organizations
such as international / European associations.The idea of this WG is for it to be used as a forum where all
views and ideas can be discussed and if possible, to harmonize and have a common view on the issues that
will be raised during the revision process.
The CASCO secretariat has developed a work plan, and according to it, the first working draft of the revised standard will be available in May 2015. The draft
should be ready as a Committee Draft (CD) for ballot in August 2015. Furthermore the Draft International Standard (DIS) should then be out for ballot in
February, 2016. Finally the standard is planned to be published in December 2016.
17EUROLAB HIGHLIGHTS
CEOC – EUROLAB – IFIA INTERNATIONAL SAFETY SEMINARHow safe do you think you are? Why independent testing is important
On 5th November 2014 CEOC International, IFIA and EUROLAB organised
the 5th International Safety Seminar at the Residence Palace in Brussels.
This years’ focus was on the importance of independent testing in the field
of consumer testing. The event brought together more than 100 partici-
pants from the testing, inspection and certification (TIC) sector, EU institu-
tions and consumer and industry associations.
During his opening speech CEOC International President Simo Hassi high-
lighted the importance of working together with different stakeholders to
achieve a common goal. One example of this is the excellent cooperation
between CEOC International, EUROLAB and IFIA, who have not only orga-
nised this event together for many years now but who also regularly work
together in committees and publish joint position papers.
The first session, which was chaired by Roger Brockway (IFIA Director
General), focused on consumer safety, and included panellists coming from
market surveillance authorities, the TIC sector and industry.
Richard van Buuren (PROSAFE/ NVWA) outlined the weaknesses of the
systems that are currently in place for ensuring consumer product safety.
He pointed out that the different actors involved, e.g. market surveillance
authorities, testing laboratories, manufacturers, importers and standards
setting bodies, need to work closer together in order to address these weak-
nesses.
The dangers of counterfeit products and which measures can be taken to
avoid such products on the market were explained by Terry Hunter (CSA
Group / CIAC), who is in charge of anti-counterfeiting and I.P. enforcement
in his company and who is also involved in CIAC. CIAC is an international
network of certification organizations, co-ordinated by INTERPOL, commit-
ted to stopping the worldwide proliferation of products bearing counterfeit
certification marks that may endanger public health and safety.
The final speaker of the session, Annette Dragsdahl (BUSINESSEUROPE/
DI), stressed that three things should be kept in mind when talking about
product safety: proportionality, enforcement and fairness. While a high
level of product safety is undisputable the measures to achieve this high
level need to be proportionate and fair. Instead of adding additional requi-
rements the already existing ones should be better enforced. Additionally,
mutual recognition of test reports should be strengthened and a global
certification system be developed.
CEOC International President Simo Hassi opening the 2014 Safety SeminarThe first session was chaired by Roger Brockway (IFIA Director General)
Panellists of the first session
18EUROLAB HIGHLIGHTS
Session two, which was chaired by Jiří Sobola (EUROLAB President),
focused on the role of independent testing, especially in light of the
currently on-going Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP)
negotiations.
Jörg Mähler (TÜV Rheinland LGA Products) explained the differences in
the conformity assessment systems in the EU and the US, using the current
legal requirements for machinery, toys and medical devices as examples.
While it cannot be said that the safety levels on one side of the Atlantic are
higher than on the other, it has to be acknowledged that there are consi-
derable differences in the two systems, which will not be easily overcome.
Thus mutual recognition of standards and conformity assessment procedu-
res used should be encouraged, while at the same time a high level of safety
needs to be ensured.
František Vaculík and Jiří Boudnik (PSJ) described the experiences they had
made as a construction company active both in Europe and the US. The
main differences of the two markets were related to legal requirements,
working conditions, the influence of trade unions, the level of quality and
the role that testing, inspection and certification play during the construc-
tion process.
The second session was concluded by the presentation of the 2014 IFIA –
CEOC market study results by Marcello Manca (UL). The aim of the study,
which has been carried out for three consecutive years now, is to gauge
the effectiveness of securing safety of consumer products, comparing
self-declaration system and 3rd party testing and certification. In 2012, the
first year of the study, typical electrical consumer products were bought
that only carried the CE mark. In 2013 the same type of electrical consu-
mer products were bought but this time the products were certified by an
independent third party body. In 2014 it was again self-declared CE marked
products that were bought in the EU and in addition the same types of
products were purchased in the US (certified by an independent third party
body). The 2014 results showed that of the CE market products purchased
in the EU 78% were non-compliant, with 38 instances of safety critical failu-
res. Only 26% of the products taken from the US market were non-compli-
ant, with no instance of safety critical failures. If the data of all three studies
is applied to one example, household appliances, then this means that
in 3 out every 4 households in Europe there is an appliance that is not in
compliance with EU standards and regulations. One in every 8 household
has an appliance with a ‘major’, potentially dangerous, issue. This is surely
a level of safety that is not acceptable.
Panellists of the second session
EUROLAB President Jiří Sobola chairing the second session
19EUROLAB HIGHLIGHTS
20EUROLAB HIGHLIGHTS
21EUROLAB HIGHLIGHTS
EUROLAB AND ITS PARTNERS
24EUROLAB AND ITS PARTNERS
EUROLAB and CEOC International
EUROLAB and UILI
CEOC International – the International Confederation of Inspection and Certification Organisations – was
founded in 1961 and acts as the voice of the inspection and certification sector at EU and international
levels. Its headquarters are based in Brussels. The confederation represents the joint interests of many of
the world’s leading inspection and certification companies, employing more than 111,000 highly qualified
persons, of which over 60,000 are graduate engineers and technicians. CEOC International members are
involved worldwide in the periodical inspection of technical installations as well as the certification of new
products and services to protect the workers and citizens of Europe against unsafe products and technical
installations.
A closer cooperation between the two organisations was officially established by the Memorandum of
Understanding, which was signed in April 2010. A second and most recent Memorandum of Understan-
ding was signed in April 2014. As of 1st January 2011, the EUROLAB Secretariat has been transferred to the
CEOC International office, followed by the Technical Committee on Quality Assurance in Testing and Calib-
ration (1st January 2012). CEOC International and EUROLAB would now work together in the Joint Technical
Committee on Product Testing and Certification, chaired by EUROLAB (Carol Stewart, EUROLAB UK) and
CEOC International (Christian Priller, TÜV SÜD). Both associations had already been working together on
the various issues arising from the political agenda of the European institutions. Our cooperation has led
to the publication of common position papers in the field of medical devices, product safety and market
surveillance.
UILI (The Union Internationale des Laboratoires Indépendants) was founded on 13th March 1959 in Paris
and it is the worldwide organisation for testing and calibration laboratories, and for scientific consultants.
UILI represents their professional and commercial interests on an international basis.
In order to develop ties of cooperation, avoid duplication of activities and to organise regular consultation
on policy matters, EUROLAB and UILI agreed to start collaboration by signing a Memorandum of Under-
standing during the EUROLAB General Assembly on 09 April 2013 in Woerden. EUROLAB and UILI will
work closely together in during the revision process of ISO / IEC 17025.
EUROLAB AND ITS PARTNERS
Simo Hassi, CEOC President, Jiří Sobola, EUROLAB President
Manahen Fernandez Alonso, UILI Presiden, at the EUROLAB General Assembly 2015 in Warsaw
25EUROLAB AND ITS PARTNERS
EUROLAB and NCSLI
EUROLAB and IFIA
EUROLAB and EURAMET
NCSLI (The National Conference of Standards Laboratories
International) was established in 1961 in order to accom-
modate the need for an organization of standards laborato-
ries to promote cooperative efforts for solving the common
problems faced by measurement and testing laboratories.
From the beginning, the goal of NCSLI has been to bring
together those engaged in metrology to solve common
problems and set standards. To this end, the primary focal
point of the organization‘s activities involves meeting
together, gathering consensus and disseminating informa-
tion, standards, and practices amongst all of its members.
A closer cooperation between EUROLAB and NCSLI was
officially established by the Memorandum of Understan-
ding, which was signed in August 2011.
IFIA (International Federation of Inspection Agencies) was founded in 1982, IFIA is a trade association that
represents more than 40 of the world’s leading international testing, inspection and certification compa-
nies. These have a combined turnover of over €14 billion and over 220,000 employees. IFIA aims to impro-
ve the methods, standards, safety procedures and rules used by its members for the benefit of both them
and their stakeholders. IFIA members’ activities encompass every aspect of inspection, certification and
related testing. IFIA members agree to uphold the highest standards of quality and integrity by applying
appropriate technical and professional standards for all aspects of their work, implementing quality assu-
rances programmes throughout their organisations, implementing appropriate methods of technical trai-
ning and assessment, adhering to all applicable safety conventions and IFIA’s guidelines and adhering to
IFIA’s Compliance Code. Please see www.ifia-federation.org for further information about the wide range of
IFIA activities.
EUROLABs cooperation with IFIA and CEOC International has led to the publication of common position
papers in the field of medical devices, product safety and market surveillance.
The European Association of National Metrology Institutes
(EURAMET) is a Regional Metrology Organisation (RMO) of
Europe. It coordinates the cooperation of National Metro-
logy Institutes (NMI) of Europe in fields like research in
metrology, traceability of measurements to the SI units,
international recognition of national measurement stan-
dards and related Calibration and Measurement Capabili-
ties (CMC) of its members.
A closer cooperation between EUROLAB and EURAMET
was officially established by the Memorandum of Under-
standing, which was signed in July 2014.
Letters from Europe informing NCSLI about EUROLAB’s latest activities
EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´ NEWS
28EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´NEWS
CZECH REPUBLICAAAO MoU with Technology AgencyThe association of Accredited and Authorised Bodies (AAAO)
– a member of EUROLAB – CZ, has signed a Memorandum
of Understanding with the Technology Agency of the Czech
Republic. The co-operation between the Association and the
governmental agency is oriented to assess research and innova-
tion material results which are intended to be launched on the
market.
BELGIUMBELAB, the Belgian Eurolab National member, has organized a large survey in Belgium in 2012. Through a questionnaire of
about 60 questions, we tried to have a better overview about the accreditation process in general, and about BELAC, the Belgian
accreditation body, especially.
The first surprise was the number of participants: 219 answers on 350 contacted accredited laboratories! This means that that
topic is a very important one. We have analysed all the answers and comments, and published a detailed report. The results of
this study were also presented to our General Assembly and to the National Accreditation Council during the spring 2013.
The second surprise was the quite good opinions about the accreditation body, even if everything is not perfect. For example,
96% of the participants found that the auditors are competent!
Finally a list of important issues has been established, and we are now working on these topics.
Therefore we organized a first workshop (March 2014) on “non-conformities, flexible scope and uncertainties”. Speakers were
Nicole Van Laethem, Head of BELAC, and Peter Vermaercke, auditor and trainer at BELAC. With more than 120 participants, it
was a great success. It was also a nice opportunity to meet our members, and for many other labs to discover and join our asso-
ciation.
The 2015 edition “international development of the accreditation and internal audits” is now ready and we are expecting a lot of
participants.
Finally, we will host the Eurachem General Assembly and its International Workshop in 2016. A nice challenge for our small asso-
ciation!
More information on www.belab.be
DENMARKDedicated effort on the revision of ISO / IEC 17025ILAC has submitted a New Work Item Proposal (NWIP) to ISO CASCO suggesting an early revision of ISO / IEC 17025. The TCQA
members and the EUROLAB Board of Administrators have come to the conclusion that, even though a (early) revision was not
desirable, it was to be assumed that ISO CASCO would accept the NWIP. As part of the revision EUROLAB has mailed out a
questionnaire to all its members. They have sent their 5 most important ISO / IEC 17025 items which represent the main focus of
EUROLAB regarding the ISO /IEC 17025 revision.
As a follow-up on the answers to the Danish version of the TCQA questionnaire on the top 5 subjects of main concern in the revi-
sion process, EUROLAB Denmark arranged on 26th August a members` meeting (also inviting non-members from accredited
laboratories and from DANAK – the Danish NAB) to discuss the upcoming revision process from different angles.
EUROLAB Denmark has also had the following meetings:
* Network for Analytical Chemistry: “Selection of methods – are we doing it well enough?” (25th September)
* Network for QA & Accreditation: “Assessment of quality – quality of assessments!” (1st October)
* Network for Calibration: (no specific subject – but discussion of latest ILCs) (22nd October)
* Network for Microbiology: “References for microbiological tests – RMs and ILCs, are they useful?” (3rd November)
EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´
NEWS ACTIVITIES
29EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´NEWS
FRANCEEUROLAB France has prepared a document on the revision of the ISO / IEC 17025 standardEUROLAB France has also started an action plan for preparing the revision of ISO / IEC 17025 in two directions: the federation of
industry (electrical and mechanics in priority) the French Ministry of Industry
EUROLAB France considers that federations of industries must be alert to the fact that the framework must remain appropriate
to their needs and not to become too „conceptual“. For the competitiveness of the industry it is important that this standard
remains targeted on key issues. EUROLAB France alerted its federation to ensure that EA, the European co-operation of accredi-
tation bodies, opens an efficient work to create a common reference framework for laboratory accreditation.
EUROLAB France organised a technical day in October focused on the major non-conformity during the accreditation audits.
GERMANYOn the 1 January 2014 the transfer of the EUROLAB-D Secretariat from the BAM Federal Institute for Materials Research and
Testing to the VMPA (Verband der Materialprüfungsanstalten e.V.) (Association of materials testing institutes), which was prepa-
red in the year before, became effective. The new postal address is as follows: EUROLAB-D, Littenstr.10, 10179 Berlin. Additio-
nally a new website was launched: www.eurolab-d.de.
During last year‟s Annual Meeting EUROLAB-D had to elect a new chairman since the previous chairman Professor Manfred
Hennecke did not stand for re-election as he had retired. Therefore Professor Kurt Ziegler has been elected for the next two
years. He is a retired civil servant who has been in his previous professional career, among others, the president of a public
materials testing institute and until 2009 the CEO of DAP, one of the previous German accreditation bodies, which is now part
of the German National Accreditation Body. Besides the chairmanship of EUROLAB-D, Kurt Ziegler is still active as a professor
at the university, as chairman of three German standardisation committees and as expert in publicly funded projects supporting
developing countries in establishing their modern quality infrastructures.
In connection with the Annual Meeting EUROLAB-D arranged a colloquium with four lectures. Among the lecturers was Heri-
bert Schorn, who later in the year was appointed by IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) as one of the co-conveners
of the ISO CASCO Working Group 44 for the revision of ISO/IEC 17025. He talked about the latest developments in conformity
assessment standardisation. Other subjects were:
* Risk assessment of equipment and products by laboratories by Süleyman Berber, VDE Testing and Certification Institute,
* Certification of products and quality systems – common features and differences by Tilman Denkler, BAM,
* Terminology problems – greetings from Babylon by Volker Czabon.
8th International Workshop on Proficiency Testing in Analytical Chemistry, Microbiology and Laboratory Medicine
EUROLAB-D chairmanProf. Dr. Kurt Ziegler
At 3 year intervals Eurachem organises workshops on Proficiency Testing in Analytical Chemistry, Microbiology and Laboratory
Medicine in co-operation with CITAC (Cooperation on International Traceability in Analytical Chemistry) and EQALM (European
Organisation for External Quality Assurance Providers in Laboratory Medicine). The eighth event of this series of workshops took
place on 6 – 9 October 2014 in Berlin. This time the local organiser was EUROLAB-Deutschland, the German member of the
European Federations EUROLAB aisbl and Eurachem.
The workshop commenced on 6 October 2014 with a training course on ISO 13528 and beyond. Two groups with in total 100 parti-
cipants were trained in a morning and afternoon session. The subject of this training was the revised Draft International Stan-
dard ISO 13528-2 Statistical methods for use in proficiency testing by interlaboratory comparisons.
This draft standard and the accreditation of PT providers against ISO/IEC 17043 Conformity assessment -- General requirements
for proficiency testing were also main topics of the following days together with
* PT on sampling,
* evaluation of qualitative PT,
* PT activities in developing countries.
These topics were addressed in keynote lectures and intensively discussed in working group sessions. The programme was
complemented by the presentation of 77 scientific posters. Many of the lectures and posters as well as the summaries of the
working group sessions are available from the workshop website (http://www.eurachempt2014.de).
With some 250 participants from 64 countries the series of Eurachem workshops has obviously developed to one of the most
important events on proficiency testing globally and will hopefully continue being successful in 2017.
Dr. Michael Nitsche at the workshop on Proficiency Testing in Analyti-cal Chemistry, Microbiology and Laboratory Medicine, 2014
Heribert Schorn, Colloquium organised during the Annual Meeting EUROLAB-D 2013
30EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´NEWS
THE NETHERLANDSCalibration Event 2014After the successful Fenelab Calibration Event for auditors in September, DARE!! and Kalibra International B.V. organized in
November a new, two-day Calibration Event. The event was a great success and both days were fully booked. The presentations
and discussions led to an enormous exchange of information. Companies from all major markets visited the event to learn about
the latest developments in the calibration world and to sharpen their knowledge in regard to measurement uncertainty and
traceability. During the different lectures, it was made clear what the value is of an accredited service supplier for calibration,
inspection and testing, as these companies deliver guaranteed certainty and quality.
The importance of this subject is growing because of the growing importance of documented traceability of measurement, but
also in regard to growing quality demands of complete and complex core processes. This in combination with process control
will become even more important in the future. The use of accredited suppliers is the first step to support any manufacturer in
safeguarding the quality of the process and thereby (eventually) lowering costs.
The many questions asked during the event, is a good indication that many companies acknowledge that this subject is high on
their agenda and that the impact of the quality of calibrations is regarded as a vital part of their business. Not only are compa-
nies working to sustain their calibration process, but they are looking to optimize this process to achieve maximum efficiency
and quality whereby minimizing costs.
The event was a success and based on the comments received from the visitors, the event is likely to become a yearly event! (for
more information about the event see www.kalibratie-event.nl).
Participants in the Calibration event
PORTUGALRELACRE (Eurolab Portugal) has organised the 3rd Natio-
nal Conference on NDT, joining the NDT Sectorial Forum
(FSEND-RELACRE) in partnership with the Portuguese Air
Force. It has also had the support of CANEND – Natio-
nal Aerospace Non Destructive Testing Board and OGMA
(Portuguese Aeronautic Material Laboratory). More than
30 papers were presented and there were 10 partners for
technical exhibition and 5 sponsors. Among others, interna-
tional entities like ICNDT, EFNDT, ABENDI (Brazil), AEND
(Spain), Siemens, TÜV Rheinland, Karl Deutsch attended
the event.
Further information can be found on RELACRE website:
www.relacre.pt
31EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´NEWS
ROMANIADuring the last two years, ROLAB-CIC –Center for Training and Consulting had organised a 60 trainings events in the following
fields: General Metrology, Legal Metrology, Laboratory Management System, Dimensional, Mechanics, Electricity, Physical-
Chemistry, Thermometry, Force and Hardness, in which more than 400 persons were trained. In the period 2013-2014, 52 labora-
tories intercomparisons had been organised by the ROLAB-IC – Proficiency Testing Body.
ROLAB Romania together with BRML (Romanian Bureau of Legal Metrology) organised a well-attended event entitled ´Metrolo-
gy Day in Romania`.
This was an occasion to celebrate:
* 150 years from the promulgation of the Law for adoption of Metric System in Romania by A. I. Cuza Prince
* 125 years from the foundation of the ´Central Office of Weights and Measures` (Serviciul Central de Măsuri şi Greutăţi).
* 60 years from the publication of the first issue of the journal ´Applied Metrology`.
Participants in the ‘Metrology Day in Romania’ Fănel Iacobescu at the 'Metrology Day in Romania'
32EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´NEWS
R O L A B
Q uality is a state of mind
SPAINAt the elections held on 8th May 2014 Mr. Javier Moles Gomez was elected as President and Mr. José Luis Sánchez Álvarez-
Campana as Vice-President.
EUROLAB-Spain held a workshop in January 2014 to generate ideas in view of the revision of the current strategic plan. Thus, the
new President can submit a new plan for the coming years at the General Assembly 2015.
EUROLAB-Spain developed a program with 21 courses to highlight topics related to uncertainty testing, microbiology, intercom-
parisons, ..., that is, on the main technical aspects affecting the laboratories regarding ISO / IEC 17025.
Mr. Pedro Pablo Morillas Bravo, representative of EUROLAB-Spain, was elected in the Spanish Association of Standardization
and Certification, AENOR, in ISO CASCO committee regarding the revision of ISO / IEC 17025.
EUROLAB-Spain is represented in the EUROLAB Board of Administrators by the Board member Mr. José Luis Sánchez Álvarez-
Campana and by Ms. Irache Visiers as Vice-President of the TCQA.
Participants at the XI Symposium organised by FELAB Speakers at the XI Symposium organised by FELAB
During the last two years EUROLAB-Spain has become active again in EURACHEM through the participation of Mr. Alfonso del
Rey Estévez and Mr. Pedro Pablo Morillas Bravo in EURACHEM working groups. EURACHEM guides have been translated into
Spanish.
On Thursday, 27 November, 2014, FELAB organised the XI Symposium entitled ‘Situation and Prospects of National and Inter-
national Markets - Monitoring and Technical Legal Issues in the Scope of Laboratories. EUROLAB-Spain also participated in the
event which was well attended and stirred up discussions on topics such as: the latest laboratory legislative news and trends at
the national, European and international level; the development of standardization and accreditation; the market environment
and the internationalization; the markets outlook.
33EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´NEWS
SWITZERLANDEUROLAB-CH/SNV organised a Seminar on 19 November 2014. The event was well attended and focused on Internal Audits and
Recipes for Maximum Benefit. The same day EUROLAB-CH held its General Assembly.
UNITED KINGDOMMedical Laboratory Accreditation Workshops Teddington 4 June 2014, Edinburgh, Scotland 20th June 2014BMTA in conjunction with UKAS, held its 2nd and 3rd medical laboratory accreditation workshops in June to help medical labo-
ratories with the transition from CPA accreditation to accreditation by UKAS to ISO 15189:2012. At each event, after an opening
lecture, delegates were split into groups to attend 3 workshops covering the issues that laboratories need to address to obtain
accredited status (Measurement Uncertainty, Verification and Validation, and Traceability). Each workshop was preceded by an
introductory talk on the subject, and then run by our expert speakers. Over 120 delegates in total attended these two events.
More information can be found at bmta.co.uk/news.htm.
Construction Products Regulations: Emission of Chemicals from Products and Materials, Markes International, Llantrisant, South Wales, 21st October 2014BMTA, in conjunction with its member company, Markes International, organised a seminar on the topic of the Construction
Products Regulations following its conference held at BRE in 2010. In addition to a range of presentations from well-regarded
speakers in their field, delegates benefited from afternoon workshops and the opportunity to visit some of Markes‟ laboratories.
BMTA Conference: Accreditation, Communication and Innovation WWEM, Telford on 6th November 2014This BMTA Conference was aimed primarily at managers and senior staff in environmental laboratories but the techniques and
quality procedures discussed were of interest to staff in other types of laboratory. The presentations dealt with the methods of
achieving quality and consistency in sampling and in laboratory measurements. The speakers represented the national accredi-
tation body, UKAS, large water companies and commercial laboratory based organisations.
34EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´NEWS
FYROM2014 Annual Assembly of Macedonian Association of Labora-tories and Inspection bodies – MAKLABOn 12th February 2014 the Annual Assembly of the Macedonian Association of
Laboratories and Inspection bodies – MAKLAB was conducted. In the presence
of representatives of Maklab members and representatives from the Institu-
te for Accreditation of the Republic of Macedonia - IARM, the President Ms.
Magdalena Trajkovska Trpevska presented the activities of Maklab in 2013. The
representatives agreed that the undertaken activities were very successful. Also,
the working program for 2014 and the plan of activities in 2014 were presented,
discussed and approved by the Assembly.
All presentations and introducing papers debated during the event are available
online at www.maklab.org.mk.
Ms. Magdalena Trajkovska Trpevska at the MAKLAB Annual Assembly 2014
35EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´NEWS
TURKEY15th March 2014 TURKLAB National Members’ MeetingTurklab members discussed different sectorial problems and possible solutions for remedy. Five major improvement areas were
determined. Strategies were decided: high cost of AB inspections; unfair competition; public laboratories vs private labora-
tories; unfair price competition in private testing sector; problem with supplier companies; non-harmonized practice of AB
inspectors.
13 -14th June 2014 “1st National Workshop for Testing & Inspection”The two-day workshop was performed by the sponsorship of Science, Technology and Industry Ministry (STI). The Deputy Minis-
ter Prof. Dr. Davut Kavrano‟lu chaired the opening session. The President of Turklab, Dr. Ömer Güzel had a presentation entitled
“Conformity Assessment activities in the framework of 10th Improvement Plan”. The Board members of Turklab, Mehmet
Hüsrev, Ne‟e Güne‟, Hakan Tan, Numan Çakır and members Derya Turgay, Aliye Kıyıcı, Serkan Çelebi participated in the meeting
and working group activities. The Ministry of STI published the results of the workshop as a strategy paper.
Turkish Accreditation Body – TÜRKAK, Turklab, Eurolab and UDDER organized two-day workshop on the Construction Products RegulationThe workshop was held in Istanbul on 19-20th September at the Renaissance Hotel. During the first day TÜRKAK inspectors
attended the meeting. During the second day the Notified Body representatives and different ministry and public authority
representatives attended the workshop. The very positive outcome of this workshop satisfied all parties. Mr Jiří Sobola, EURO-
LAB President, was the keynote speaker of the two days. All participants had the chance to ask questions on the debated topics.
It was a successful collaboration between Turklab, EUROLAB and TÜRKAK.
13 -14th June 2014 “1st National Workshop for Testing & Inspection” President of EUROLAB Mr. Jiří Sobola invited by Turklab as key note speaker and expert in the field.
Dr. Mehmet Karabay, Ms. Ayfer Adıgüzel, Mr. Simo Hassi, Dr. Ömer Güzel
36EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´NEWS
KALDER 23rd Quality Congress” 17-19th November 2014 Istanbul TurkeyTURKLAB, UDDER and CEOC International participated in the session that was chaired by the Ministry of Economy and was
entitled: “Safe Life, Safe Products and Services: Conformity Assessment”. Emerging new technologies, new products, consu-
mer protection, increasing social awareness bring a new era to the Testing, Inspection and Certification sector. The TIC Sector
is becoming more and more important in every field of our social life. Attendants of the Quality congress showed high interest
in this session. Dr. Mehmet Karabay, General Director for Product Safety and Inspection in the Ministry of Economy, chaired the
meeting and presented the importance of TIC sector for the Turkish economy. Mr. Simo Hassi, President of CEOC International,
presented data for the importance of TIC sector in the European trade activities and the future of the sector. The President of
UDDER, Ms. Ayfer Adıgüzel, made a presentation, entitled “Importance of Conformity assessment in Product safety”. National
structure of TIC sector, importance of certification, results of Market surveillance activities, market share of TIC sector in Turkey
and future perspectives were covered. The President of TURKLAB, Dr. Ömer Güzel, made a contribution to the national struc-
ture of Market Surveillance activities, statistical and research results from EU Market Surveillance projects.
Ankara Chamber of Industry, UDDER and TURKLAB organized a full day PRODUCT SAFETY SEMINAR on 23th September 2014 in AnkaraThe General Secretary of the Chamber of Industry, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Yavuz Cabbar, made the opening speech. Mr. Jiří Sobola,
EUROLAB President, Dr. Mehmet Karabay, General Director of Product safety and inspection, Ministry of Economy, Mr. Muhsin
Dere, Industrial Products Safety and Inspection General Director, Ministry of Science and Technology, Ms. Ayfer Adıgüzel,
President of UDDER, Dr. Ömer Güzel, President of TURKLAB were keynote speakers. “Product Safety and Legal regulations”,
“Market Surveillance and unsafe products”, “products safety for producers and consumers” were the three main topics of the
presentations. Turkish National Accreditation Body, TÜRKAK, Turkish Consumer Protection Associations TÜDEF, Turkish Const-
ruction Materials Producers Association, IMSAD also made presentations.
Participants in the Product Safety Seminar on 23th September 2014 in Ankara
37EUROLAB NATIONAL MEMBERS´NEWS
ACCREDITATION
40ACCREDITATION
EA General Assembly (EA GA)EUROLAB President Jiří Sobola (EUROLAB – CZ) attended the EA General
Assemblies, which took place in Prague on 27 and 28 May 2014 and in The
Hague on 19-20 November 2014. During the meetings the reports of all EA
committees were presented.
The issues which were mainly discussed were:
* Higher need for cooperation between the Regions as well as more
cooperation between EA and the Americas
* Content of the Multilateral Agreement (MLA); Discrepancies between
the Blue Guide and EA 2/17 Document on Accreditation for Notifica-
tion Purposes
* Surveillance and reassessment
* Benchmarking
EA Laboratory Committee (EA LC)EUROLAB representatives and members of the TCQA committee Irache
Visiers (EUROLAB España) and Manfred Golze (EUROLAB Deutschland)
attended the meetings of EA LC, which took place in Malta on 12 and 13
March 2014 and in Windsor on 10 – 11 September 2014.
Main points of discussion were:
* Reissuance of test reports:
This issue has been discussed for three years at the EA-LC meetings.
During the last meeting, it was decided to send a resolution to EA-EX
and EA-GA: Reissuance of test reports when the trade name / trademark
of the tested product has changed (§ 5.10.9 of ISO/IEC 17025)
* Opinions and Interpretations
It was agreed to continue with the document, and some points were
discussed as e.g.: how the ability to perform opinions and interpreta-
tions should be remarked at the accreditation scope, or the need to
set boundaries to opinions and interpretations.
* Task Force Group on RMP and PTP MLA
Future Multilateral Agreement (MLA) for the accreditation of Profici-
ency Test Providers (PTP) and Reference Material Producers (RMP):
This TFG met twice and proposed the withdrawal of the document:
EA-2/09 on EA Policy on the Accreditation of Proficiency Testing
Schemes
EA Certification Committee (EA CC)EUROLAB representative Wilfried Hinrichs (EUROLAB Deutschland) atten-
ded the EA CC meeting which took place on 26 and 27 March 2014 in Oslo.
A strategic discussion on the future of the EA CC was held during the
meeting. This was done against the background of newly defined strategic
positions both of ILAC and IAF. Consequently it has been decided that the
Committee shall mainly remain a discussion forum and, if possible, a decis-
ion making instrument.
EA Inspection Committee (EA IC)EUROLAB representative Wilfried Hinrichs (EUROLAB Deutschland) atten-
ded the EA IC meeting which took place on 26 and 27 March 2014 in Oslo.
Main topics on the agenda were the difference between testing and inspec-
tion, and sampling as a standalone activity. The majority of the IC members
were against sampling as a stand-alone activity.
There were other discussions on approaches to type approval/examina-
tion/testing (according to ISO/IEC 17065:2012 on Conformity assessment -
Requirements for bodies certifying products, processes and services; ISO/IEC
17020:2012 on Conformity assessment - Requirements for the operation of vari-
ous types of bodies performing inspection; ISO/IEC 17025:2005 General requi-
rements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories) as well as
on prototype testing or inspection and the possibility to issue approvals on
the basis of ISO / IEC 17065.
EA 5/02 TA: 2007 EA Guidance on the application of EN 45004 in recur-
rent inspection of motor vehicles has been concluded and distributed for
comments.
EA Horizontal Harmonization Committee (EA HHC)The EUROLAB representative Magnus Holmgren (EUROLAB Sverige) atten-
ded the EA HHC in Brussels on 16 - 17 September 2014.
The following points were mainly highlighted in the meeting:
* Recognition of accreditation issued outside of the regional framework
of Regulation 765/2008 regarding which the EA HHC approved the
draft policy paper and agreed to fine-tune it based on the comments
made during the meeting. The EA GA has decided to publish this do-
cument only as an informative document (see GA resolutions). Revi-
sion of EA-2/17: HHC endorsed the final draft which was presented at
the meeting and it was circulated for voting.
* Revision of EA-1/22 EA Procedure and Criteria for the Evaluation of Con-
formity Assessment Schemes by EA Accreditation Body Members: HHC
endorsed the final draft of the document. The draft has been finalized
considering the editorial suggestions made during the meeting and
then circulated for voting
ACCREDITATION
EAABP. Blinksbjerg
EAAB CAP. Blinksbjerg
J. Sanchez
EA GAJ. Sobolda
EUROLAB GALAXY
2015BoA
J. Sobola, J. Llewellyn, R. Zantman, J. Sanchez,
O. Guzel, P. Launey, A. S. Ribeiro, P. Blinksbjerg, M. Golze, I. Visiers, C. Steward
JTC PTCC. Priller, C. Stewart, S. Aretz,
M. Böttcher, E. C. Amell, P. Dewolfs,D. Dichtel, H. Eberhardt, H. Egolf, H. Falster,
A. Gerymska, M. Giumelli, T. Hruska,R. Hulmes, D. Konický, M. Manca,
F. M. Sánchez, D. Pflumm, A. Šafařík-Pštrosz, H. G. Schaub,
A. Schmidt, B. Siegemund, O. Talbot, P. van Breugel, A.-F. Vollema, S. Waldner-Sander, M. Weigel-Hafner,
H. Wessel-Segebade, N. Wronski
4E + CChairpersons
PLGM. Golze
EEE-PTJ. v. de Kreeke,
U. Leist, P. Rosario,
Braun
ILAC LCJ. Sobola
ILAC GAJ. Sobola
ILAC ARCJ. Sobola
ILAC IC
EA LCI. VisiersM. Golze
ILC Testing
J. v. de Kreeke
ILC Calibr.
J. v. de Kreeke
ISO CASCO WG 43V. Catalan
ISO CASCO WG 42K. ZieglerC. Stewart
CEN TC 1
CEN CCB
EA HHCM. Holmgren
EA CCW. Hinrichs
EA ICW. Hinrichs
ISO CASCO
P. Blinksbjerg
ISO CASCO WG 32E. Redondo
ISO CASCO
CPCP. Blinksbjerg
ISO CASCO WG 44
P. BlinksbjergC. Stewart
TC QAM. Golze, I. Visiers,
P. Agathonos, M. Avraam, P. Blinksbjerg, A. Brzyski, E. Bulska, H. Eberhardt,
B. Frenn, Ö. Güzel, M. Holmgren,P. Jackson, P. Launey, J. Llewellyn,
W. A. J. Mandersloot, J. Matta, C. Raponi, A. S. Ribeiro, R. Robinson, J. L. Sanchez, M. Schwaiger, L. P. Sibbesen, J. Sobola,
G. Todorov, I. Urdea,U. von Känel, R. Zantman
EA CPC
41ACCREDITATION
EUROLAB President Jiří Sobola (EUROLAB CZ) represented EUROLAB at
the following ILAC meetings from 07 to 10 April 2014 in Oslo and from 08 to
18 October 2014 in Vancouver:
* ILAC General Assembly
* ILAC Laboratory Committee (ILAC LC)
* ILAC Inspection Committee (ILAC IC)
* ILAC Accreditation Issues Committee (ILAC AIC)
* ILAC Arrangement Committee (ILAC ARC)
* ILAC Proficiency Testing Working Group (ILAC WG PT)
ILAC Laboratory Committee (ILAC LC)In addition to the revision of ISO/IEC 17025:2008 General requirements for the
competence of testing and calibration laboratories, the topics which were on
the agenda of the meeting were: ILAC R3:12/2014 ILAC Strategic Plan 2015-
2020, the report on revision of the ILAC P9:06/2014 – ILAC Policy for Parti-
cipation in Proficiency Testing Activities and ILAC P13:10/2010 Application of
ISO/IEC 17011 for the Accreditation of Proficiency Testing Providers.
ILAC Inspection Committee (ILAC IC)Differences between testing and inspection activities was the main topic
on the ILAC IC agenda. Apart from this, APLAC did a research on sampling
as a standalone activity: results showed that only one Accreditation Body
is accrediting sampling against ISO EN 17020 as standalone activity. ILAC
P9:06/2014 ILAC Policy for Participation in Proficiency Testing Activities was
published.
ILAC Arrangement Committee (ILAC ARC)The ILAC Arrangement Committee is responsible for harmonized imple-
mentation and continual improvement of the ILAC Arrangement. As such
it looks after the revisions / reviews of both ISO CASCO standards and ILAC
documents.
In 2014 the committee dealt with the following issues:
* how regulators are using accreditation
* ILAC G21:09/2012 Cross Frontier Accreditation - Principles for Co-
operation
* WG 10 ILAC rules for termination and suspension of member-
ship
* WG11 comments for revision of ISO/IEC 17011:2004 on Confor-
mity assessment - General requirements for accreditation bodies
accrediting conformity assessment bodies
* Regulatory use of accreditation, resolution on PT and RM
ILAC Accreditation Issues Committee (ILAC AIC)The Revision of ISO/IEC 17025 General requirements for the competence of
testing and calibration laboratories, was on the agenda of the 2014 meeting
of the ILAC AIC.
The main discussions centred as well on the following issues:
* Measurement uncertainty (MU) in testing
* ILAC P10:01/2013 ILAC Policy on Traceability of Measurement Results
* Good practice in using RMs
ILAC G12:2000 Guidelines for the Requirements for the Competence of Refe-
rence Materials Producers and ILAC G9:2005 Guidelines for the Selection and
Use of Reference Materials are documents which have been withdrawn and
at the same time new documents have been drafted as ILAC G19:08/2014
Modules in a Forensic Science Process. Documents which will be updated
are ILAC G26:07/2012 Guidance for the Implementation of a Medical Labora-
tory Accreditation System, ILAC G18:04/2010 Guideline for the Formulation of
Scopes of Accreditation for Laboratories and G11:07/2006 ILAC Guidelines on
Qualifications & Competence of Assessors and Technical Experts.
EAABP. Blinksbjerg
EAAB CAP. Blinksbjerg
J. Sanchez
EA GAJ. Sobolda
EUROLAB GALAXY
2015BoA
J. Sobola, J. Llewellyn, R. Zantman, J. Sanchez,
O. Guzel, P. Launey, A. S. Ribeiro, P. Blinksbjerg, M. Golze, I. Visiers, C. Steward
JTC PTCC. Priller, C. Stewart, S. Aretz,
M. Böttcher, E. C. Amell, P. Dewolfs,D. Dichtel, H. Eberhardt, H. Egolf, H. Falster,
A. Gerymska, M. Giumelli, T. Hruska,R. Hulmes, D. Konický, M. Manca,
F. M. Sánchez, D. Pflumm, A. Šafařík-Pštrosz, H. G. Schaub,
A. Schmidt, B. Siegemund, O. Talbot, P. van Breugel, A.-F. Vollema, S. Waldner-Sander, M. Weigel-Hafner,
H. Wessel-Segebade, N. Wronski
4E + CChairpersons
PLGM. Golze
EEE-PTJ. v. de Kreeke,
U. Leist, P. Rosario,
Braun
ILAC LCJ. Sobola
ILAC GAJ. Sobola
ILAC ARCJ. Sobola
ILAC IC
EA LCI. VisiersM. Golze
ILC Testing
J. v. de Kreeke
ILC Calibr.
J. v. de Kreeke
ISO CASCO WG 43V. Catalan
ISO CASCO WG 42K. ZieglerC. Stewart
CEN TC 1
CEN CCB
EA HHCM. Holmgren
EA CCW. Hinrichs
EA ICW. Hinrichs
ISO CASCO
P. Blinksbjerg
ISO CASCO WG 32E. Redondo
ISO CASCO
CPCP. Blinksbjerg
ISO CASCO WG 44
P. BlinksbjergC. Stewart
TC QAM. Golze, I. Visiers,
P. Agathonos, M. Avraam, P. Blinksbjerg, A. Brzyski, E. Bulska, H. Eberhardt,
B. Frenn, Ö. Güzel, M. Holmgren,P. Jackson, P. Launey, J. Llewellyn,
W. A. J. Mandersloot, J. Matta, C. Raponi, A. S. Ribeiro, R. Robinson, J. L. Sanchez, M. Schwaiger, L. P. Sibbesen, J. Sobola,
G. Todorov, I. Urdea,U. von Känel, R. Zantman
EA CPC
EUROLAB GALAXY
42ACCREDITATION
43ACCREDITATION
EUROLAB COMMITEES AND EVENTS
46COMMITEES & EVENTS
MembersThe committee currently comprises 32 members from 20 countries. In 2014
two meetings were held, one on 31st March 2014 in Warsaw, Poland, and the
other one on 06th October 2014 in Lisbon, Portugal.
OrganizationEUROLAB has revised its procedure for nominating delegates to European
and international committees and working groups. In the future TCQA will
play an important role in the nomination of EUROLAB representatives.
Guides / Technical Reports
During the Warsaw meeting the TCQA members approved the Draft guideli-
ne for Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Method Development and Vali-
dation as a Technical Report The document had been prepared by a group
of NMR experts from the German Federal Police Forensics Department and
has been made available to EUROLAB. The TCQA members agreed that
this is a very useful document.
It was also decided to draft a guidance document on continuous impro-
vements. The aim of this document will be to make laboratory staff more
aware of which
Position PapersA position paper on surveillance and reassessment was approved. This
paper was a response to an ILAC discussion paper on the application of
clauses 7.11.3 and 7.11.4 of ISO/IEC 17011. EUROLAB felt that the recommen-
dations given in this discussion paper were a misinterpretation of ISO / IEC
17011’s intention. Based on our members’ experiences EUROLAB sugges-
ted to extend the intervals after a first satisfactory surveillance visit to 18
months as a rule (instead of twelve) with extensions or reductions in cases
of respective evidence.
TECHNICAL COMMITTEE ON QUALITY ASSURANCE IN TESTING AND CALIBRATION (TCQA)
Inquiries Topics for metrology laboratoriesA 2012 inquiry into the membership structure of EUROLAB showed that a signifi-
cant number of EUROLAB members are metrology laboratories. EUROLAB consi-
ders that the development of the relationship between metrology, testing and
industry is strongly related to the success of R&D. In fact, the EU’s new frame-
work programme for research and innovation (Horizon2020) states its concern to
promote the development of these bonds to build a roadmap for future compe-
titiveness and to “bridge the gap between research and the market”. TCQA there-
fore drafted a questionnaire explicitly for metrology laboratories in order to find
out how EUROLAB can better support their positions and views on both a Euro-
pean and an international level. The preliminary results of the inquiry were presen-
ted during the TCQA meeting in Warsaw. More than seventy replies were received.
Calibration laboratories generally seem to have a positive view of EUROLAB, even
though EUROLAB is not providing specific services to them. Their main working
fields are the industry, energy and environmental sector. Most of the laboratories
are accredited. 29% of the respondents were EUROLAB members.
Reissuance of test reportsThe question of whether or not a reissuance of test reports is allowed has been
discussed both within the TCQA and the EA Advisory Board (EAAB). EUROLAB
has conducted an inquiry among its members in order to find out more about the
common practice. The inquiry had been prepared and carried out by the TCQA.
The results were presented during the 2014 EAAB spring meeting and also during
the TCQA meeting held in Warsaw. The results showed that only 11 replies were
received and thus the results are not representative. Generally there seems to be a
lack of information among the laboratories and a lack of harmonization among and
even within the member states.
It was concluded that this topic did not seem to be of great importance to the
members and thus there will be no further follow-up.
TCQA Chair Manfred Golze EUROLAB Deutschland
TCQA Vice-Chair Irache Visiers EUROLAB España
47COMMITEES & EVENTS
Reports from the EUROLAB representatives
The TCQA is EUROLAB’s platform for technical discussions on accreditati-
on and standardisation as well as related issues. For this reason the EURO-
LAB representatives in EA, ILAC, ISO and CEN committees report back to
the TCQA and discuss with the other members the joint EUROLAB position
on the various guides, standards and other documents that are of the labo-
ratory community’s concern. Additionally the TCQA members also discuss
topics that are being dealt with by other associations, joint committees and
/ or working groups (e.g. EURACHEM, UILI, EEE-PT, JTC PTC) in order to
define areas in which they can work together. Thanks to this approach and
the expert input provided by the members, TCQA, and therefore EUROLAB
as a whole, is always in a position to provide comments and feedback on
current technical issues.
Task Force Group on Interlaboratory Com-parisons and Proficiency TestingThe EUROLAB Task Force Group on Interlaboratory Comparisons and
Proficiency Testing met once in April after the General Assembly. The TFG
has been active in commenting on important documents for ILC/PT stake-
holders (including accreditation of Reference Material Producers). It also
elaborated one draft EUROLAB Position Paper which it might include the
risk of the ”Closed shop” which means that in the future only accredited
RM-producers can be used.
Additionally, the TFG is dealing with two draft documents:
* How to deal with a single questionable or unsatisfactory PT score?
Guidance for users of laboratory PT results
* Guidelines for the assessment of interlaboratory comparisons with
few participants in the process of laboratory accreditation
A Working Group has been created to draft a Guidance document on
harmonisation of assessors. This Guidance will use as a basis, the result of
a 2 days’ workshop held in Turkey. The Convenor of the WG on Harmonisa-
tion is Ömer Güzel (TURKLAB).
Main focus areasIn addition to the general work of the European and international accredita-
tion and standardisation organisations, the TCQA followed and discussed
in particular:
* The creation of a EUROLAB White Paper on the revision of ISO/IEC
17025 (see Highlights section)
* ILAC-P10 :01/2013 ILAC Policy on Traceability of Measurement Results
* ILAC Position Paper on frequency of surveillance audits
* Revision of ILAC G17 on Measurement uncertainty in testing
* Overlap of testing and inspection activities
* Opinions and interpretations in test reports
* Sampling as a standalone activity
* EA 2/17 EA Guidance on the horizontal requirements for the accre-
ditation of conformity assessment bodies for notification purposes
* Revision of ISO / IEC 17011 General requirements for accreditation
bodies accrediting conformity assessment bodies
* Revision of ISO Guide 34 General requirements for the competence of
reference material producers
Meetings08/04/2014 TCQA meeting in Warsaw, Poland hosted by POLAB
06/10/2014 TCQA meeting in Lisbon, Portugal hosted by RELACRE
TCQA Chair Manfred Golze, EUROLAB Deutschland, and TCQA Vice –Chair Irache Visiers, EUROLAB España
TCQA Meeting in Warsaw
TCQA Meeting in Lisbon
EUROLAB co-chair:(since April 2014)Carol StewartExova, UK
CEOC International co-chair: Christian Piller TÜV SÜD
EUROLAB co-chair:(until April 2014) Philippe Dewolfs BELAB
The main issue on the JTC PTC’s agenda continued to be the Product Safe-
ty and Market Surveillance Package. EUROLAB, CEOC International and
IFIA published two joint position papers on the Product Safety and Market
Surveillance Package, in which they advocate the role of third party testing,
inspection and certification for enhancing consumer safety, the involve-
ment of laboratories and conformity assessment bodies (CABs) in the
proposed Market Surveillance Forum and a clearer differentiation between
CABs and European Union reference laboratories. The second positi-
on paper mainly focused on the idea of an ‘EU Safety Tested’ marking. All
three associations agree that if such a marking is to be introduced at some
point certain criteria will have to be fulfilled in order to ensure a robust
system. CEOC International and EUROLAB, together with IFIA, are develo-
ping a strategy how such a safety marking could be introduced on the Euro-
pean market.
Other significant EU policies for the committee were:
* the revision of the Medical Devices Directive
* the New Legislative Framework and the Alignment Package
* the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP)
* the revision of the Blue Guide
* the European Commission’ Communication on an Industrial Renais-
sance in Europe
JOINT EUROLAB – CEOC TECHNICAL COMMITTEE ON PRODUCT TESTING AND CERTIFICATION (JTC PTC)
Main focus areas:EU Policies
48COMMITEES & EVENTS
AccreditationThe JTC PTC members have been actively following and participating in the
work of the following EA committees:
* the Horizontal Harmonisation Committee (HHC)
* the Inspection Committee (IC)
* the Certification Committee (CC)
* the EA Advisory Board (EAAB) and the Conformity Assessment bo-
dies’ College (CAB College)
Also of special interest to the JTC PTC is the work of IAF and ILAC.
StandardisationThe JTC PTC has been closely following the work of ISO, in particular the
ISO / IEC 17011 Requirements for accreditation bodies accrediting confor-
mity assessment bodies, ISO/ IEC 17021 Requirements for bodies providing
audit and certification of management systems, ISO/ IEC 17026 Guidance
on a third-party certification system for products and ISO/ IEC 17067 Funda-
mentals of product certification and standards.
Of particular interest was the decision to revise ISO/IEC 17025. While both
EUROLAB and CEOC International where against an early revision of
the standard the two associations will now be actively involved in WG 44
dealing with the revision. Both JTC PTC co-chairs will be participating in
WG 44 and they will work closely with together other CEOC International
and EUROLAB representatives in this group. JTC PTC will also coordinate
its action with EUROLAB’s TCQA.
New co-chairAt the 2014 EUROLAB General Assembly in Warsaw, Carol Stewart (Exova)
was elected as the new EUROLAB co-chair of the JTC PTC, succeeding Phil-
ippe Dewolfs (Vinçotte), who had been the co-chair of the committee for
the past three years.
Meetings07-08/04/2014 JTC PTC meeting in Vienna (with IFIA participation), hosted
by TÜV Austria and Austrolab
06/11/2014 JTC PTC meeting in Brussels (with IFIA participation)
JTC PTC meeting in Vienna
49COMMITEES & EVENTS
EUROLAB website: www.eurolab.org
What is EUROLAB doing for the European Laboratory Community?
How my Laboratory can profit from such activities?
In the nineties, leaders of major multi-disciplinary laboratories created a European federation of national associations, grouping together accredited laboratories. This federation, named EUROLAB, represents and voices the opinion of measurement, testing and analytical laboratories regarding economic, political and technical issues having a direct impact on laboratories’ activities both on the European scene and worldwide. Any laboratory may join and become a member of this European community that EUROLAB represents by subscribing to its national association.
European Federation of National Associations of Measurement, Testing and Analytical Laboratories
Modern Laboratories do not operate in isolation. There are many European and international influences, which will affect how they are run.
AustriaBelgiumBulgariaCroatiaCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkFinlandFranceGermanyGreeceIcelandItalyNetherlandsPolandPortugalRomaniaSpainSwedenSwitzerlandUK
Active members
Associated members
International affiliates
LebanonSouth AfricaUSA
FYROMTurkey
EUROLAB Communication Activities
EUROLAB Special Briefing EUROLAB Newsbriefing EUROLAB leaflet
EUROLAB LinkedIn Group
COMMS
The Communication committee promotes effective, appropriate and
innovative communication and aims at strengthening relationships with
sector-oriented organisations and supporting the coherence of action in
the laboratory community. The main objectives of the Communication
committee are : to promote cost-effective testing, calibration and measu-
rement services, to demonstrate the added value of the laboratory commu-
nity work, to identify possible target group(s) decision-makers, technical
representatives and press, to develop the EUROLAB key messages deli-
vered to the identified target groups and further increase the understan-
ding of the industry.
The committee contributes to the development and constant updates of
the main EUROLAB communication channels: Website, publications,
LinkedIn group. The LinkedIn group was created in order to get closer to
the members and to provide them with a new platform for exchanging
information and publishing EUROLAB position papers as well as other
communication materials.
The communication activities are made in conjunction with the EUROLAB
Board and in close cooperation with the EUROLAB General Secretariat.
In order to meet the key objectives and to further strengthen its voice
on the European scene and worldwide, EUROLAB needs an innovative
communication strategy. Thus an important project for 2015 will be the
strengthening of the existing communication committee and the imple-
mentation of an innovative communication strategy.
Co-ChairÖmer Güzel EUROLAB Board member for Associate Members
Co-ChairJeff Llewellyn EUROLAB Vice-President
50COMMITEES & EVENTS
The EUROLAB General Secretariat in Brussels first provides a platform for
our members to discuss their issues of concern and to exchange informati-
on and viewpoints, and, secondly acts as a facilitator of members’ interests
to the EU institutions. The General Secretariat supports also the Technical
Committees which provide expert input on key legislative or standardisati-
on initiatives.
Services provided by the EUROLAB General Secretariat:* representation in the EU Institutions;
* monitoring selected EU legislation;
* organising meetings / events
* publication of quarterly newsletter / position papers
The priority areas of focus for 2014 were:* the Product Safety and Market Surveillance Package
* Revision of ISO / IEC 17025
EUROLAB GENERAL SECRETARIAT IN BRUSSELS
Laura Martin, Drewin Nieuwenhuis, Franziska Kassler, Zlatina Zheleva, Diana Popa
51COMMITEES & EVENTS
EUROLAB elected new Board members and approved new Articles of Asso-
ciation at the General Assembly in Warsaw, on 1st April 2014.
The EUROLAB members elected Mr Pascal Launey, EUROLAB France, who
joined the Board as a new member, running for a term of two years. Mr Álva-
ro Silva Ribeiro, RELACRE, and Mr Peter Blinksbjerg, EUROLAB Denmark,
defended successfully their position in the Board by their re-election.
Mr Ruud Zantman, FENELAB, was elected as the new Treasurer following
the retirement of Mr Jan Basten. The Board members and Treasurer were
officially announced after the confidential ballot which took place during
the meeting.
Around 40 delegates representing 18 different countries attended the
EUROLAB General Assembly in Warsaw on 1st April 2014, kindly hosted by
POLLAB.
New Articles of AssociationDr Jeff Llewellyn, EUROLAB Vice-President, presented the new Articles of
Associations which, among others, revise Article 5 - membership categories.
Dr Jeff Llewellyn underlined the positive impact of this provision to attract a
wider variety of members who wish to be represented by EUROLAB.
New Associated MemberEUROLAB was pleased to welcome LEBLAB (The Lebanese Laboratories
Association), represented by Mr Joseph Matta, as a new associated member.
Memorandum of Understanding & Service Agreement with CEOC Interna-
tional
The long-term fruitful collaboration between EUROLAB and CEOC Inter-
national was reconfirmed by renewing the Memorandum of Understanding
and Service Agreement, signed by Mr Jiří Sobola, EUROLAB President and
Participants EUROLAB General Assembly, Warsaw
GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2014
Mr Jan Basten, previous EUROLAB Treasurer and Mr Jiří Sobola EUROLAB President Mr Joseph Matta, LEBLAB and Mr Jiří Sobola EUROLAB President
52COMMITEES & EVENTS
The EUROLAB National Members’ Meeting, which followed the Extraordi-
nary EUROLAB General Assembly, on 7th October 2014, which was hosted
by RELACRE in Lisbon, gathered delegates from 18 countries to discuss
current developments within the Federation and the laboratory area.
Mr Jiří Sobola, EUROLAB President, outlined the main activities and achie-
vements in the last period with reference to the EUROLAB European
cooperation and its participation in various technical committees and
working groups. In addition a substantial part of the meeting was dedicated
to the discussions on the EUROLAB political strategy for the next five years
and the importance of establishing a proactive approach.
NATIONAL MEMBERS MEETING
Participants EUROLAB National Members’ meeting, 7th October, National Laboratory for Civil Engineering (LNEC), Lisbon, Portugal
Mr Jiří Sobola, EUROLAB President and Mrs Visnja Gasljevic, HMD
Mr Simo Hassi, CEOC International President.
An Extraordinary EUROLAB General Assembly took place on 7th October
2014 at the National Laboratory for Civil Engineering (LNEC) Lisbon, Portu-
gal and was well attended with around 40 delegates representing 18 diffe-
rent countries. During the Extraordinary GA, Dr Jeff Llewellyn, EUROLAB
Vice - President, presented the new Articles of Association, among which
were the revised Articles 15.1 / 15.2: Board extension. Dr Jeff Llewellyn
underlined the added value of the Board extension, namely to get better
representation of all EUROLAB members and to have more human resour-
ces. The EUROLAB members approved the new Articles of Association and
the revised Internal Rules.
During the Extraordinary EUROLAB General Assembly HMD (the Croati-
an Metrology Society) was welcomed as an Observer Member. HMD was a
EUROLAB Associated Member from 2004 to 2013. The membership certi-
ficate was ceremonially signed during the General Assembly by EUROLAB
President, Mr Jiří Sobola and Mrs Visnja Gasljevic, HMD.
53COMMITEES & EVENTS
EUROLAB STRUCTURE
EUROLAB BOARD OF ADMINISTRATORS
ADVISOR TO THE BOARD / DELEGATE FOR THE INTERNATIONAL AFFILIATES
Prof. Dr. H
orst Czichos
EUROLAB-Deutschland
1. Jiří Sobola, EUROLAB CZ, President
2. Jeff Llewellyn, BMTA, Vice-President
3. Ruud Zantmann, Fenelab, Treasurer
4. José Luis Sanchez Alvarez-Campana. EUROLAB España, Member
5. Ewa Bulska, POLLAB, Member
6. Pascal Launey, EUROLAB France, Member
7. Peter Blinksbjerg, EUROLAB Denmark, Member
8. Álvaro Silva Ribeiro, RELACRE, Member
9. Ömer Güzel, TURKLAB, Representative of Associated Members
10. Manfred Golze, EUROLAB Deutschland, TCQA Chair
11. Carol Stewart, BMTA, JTC PTC Co-Chair
10
9
7
5
3
1
11 864 2
54COMMITEES & EVENTS
8
EUROLAB TECHNICAL COMMITTEES
EUROLAB GENERAL SECRETARIAT
TCQA Chair
Manfred Golze
EUROLAB-Deutschland
TCQA Vice-Chair
Irache Visiers
EUROLAB-España
JTC PTC Co-Chair
Carol Stewart
BMTA
Drewin Nieuwenhuis
CEOC International
Secretary General
Zlatina Zheleva
Junior International
Affairs Manager
Dagmar Kotová
International Affairs
Manager (until
30.06.2014) Franziska Kassler
International Affairs
Manager Laura Martin
Junior International
Affairs Manager
Diana Popa
Junior International
Affairs Manager
55COMMITEES & EVENTS
CZECH REPUPLICEUROLAB – CZwww.eurolabcz.czPražská 16CZ-102 00 Praha 10Tel.: +420 28 101 7382Email.: [email protected] Person: Ms. Libuše Futerová
DENMARK EUROLAB – Denmarkwww.eurolabdanmark.dkSkjoldborgsvej 1 stDK-5270 Odense NTel.: + 45 47 72 17 07Email.: [email protected] Person: Mr. Lorens P. Sibbesen
FINLAND EUROLAB – Finlandwww.finntesting.fiA.I. Virtasen Aukio 1P.O. Box 55, University of HelsinkiFI-00014 HelsinkiTel.: +358 9 191 50 409Email.:[email protected] Person: Ms. Marja-Leena Kuitunen
FRANCE EUROLAB – Francewww.eurolab-france.asso.frEurolab France c/o SopemeaZone Aéronautique Louis BréguetB.P. 48FR-78142 Vélizy-Villacoublay, CedexTel.: +33 1 40 43 37 40Email.: [email protected] Person: Mr. Jean-Luc Laurent
GERMANYEUROLAB - Deutschlandwww.eurolab-d.deLittensraße 10DE-10179 BerlinTel.: +49 30 27908330Email: [email protected] Person: Mrs. Susanne Feist
GREECEHellasLabwww.hellaslab.grThesi StefaniGR-19300 Aspropyrgos, AttikiTel.: +30 210 558 27 20Email.: [email protected] Person: Mr. Agathonos Pericles
ICELAND EUROLAB - Icelandwww.nmi.isInnovation Centre IcelandKeldnaholt 112IS-112 ReykjavikTel.: +354 522 9000Email.: [email protected] Person: Mr. Arnbjörnsson Aðalsteinn
ITALY ALPI – Associazione Laboratoridi Prova e Organismi diCerfificazione e Ispezionewww.alpiassociazione.itVia Lapidari 12, IT-40129 Bologna Tel.: +390 516 12 16 98Email.:[email protected] Person: Mr. Claudio Raponi
NETHERLANDS Fenelabwww.fenelab.nlPostbus 64NL-2260 AB LEIDSCHENDAMTel.: +31 70 3378760Email.: [email protected] Person: Ms Mariandl van den Andel
POLANDPOLLABwww.pollab.plKlobucka Str. 23 APL-02-699 WarsawTel.: +48 22 4645 503Email.: [email protected] Person: Mr. Andrzej Brzyski
PORTUGALRELACREwww.relacre.ptRua Filipe Folque, 2-6° Dto.PT-1050-113 LisboaTel.: +351 21313 98 40Email: [email protected] Person: Mr. José Manuel dos Santos Duarte
ROMANIA EUROLAB – Romaniawww.eurolabrom.roStr. Polona N°16, Sector 1RO-023692 BucharestTel.: +40 21 242 16 43Email.: [email protected] Person: Mr. Titus Anghelescu ROLABwww.rolab.roUnirii Avenue, n° 61, F3-building,TR 2 entrance, 3rd floor, 301 door,3rd sectorRO-030828 BucharestTel.: +4021 320 33 05Email: [email protected] Person: Mrs. Mirela Adelaida Anghel
Active Members
AUSTRIAAUSTROLABwww.austrolab.atStadlauerstrasse 39/6AT-1220 WienTel.: 0664/20 23 778Email.: [email protected] Person: Mr. Norbert GlantschniggEmail: [email protected]: Ms. Irene Zirbs
BELGIUMBELABwww.belab.beMastellestraat 57BE-3020 HerentTel.: +32 474 397800Email: [email protected] Person: Mr. Pascale Laevens
BULGARIABULLAB34 General Totleben, Blvd.Building 6, Floor 2PO BOX 290BG-1606 SofiaTel.:+359 889 508812Email:[email protected] Person: Eng. Alexander Petrov
CROATIA CROLABwww.crolab.hrBerislavićeva 6HR-10000 ZagrebTel.: +385 1611 1570Email: [email protected] Person: Ms. Štefica Cerjan Stefanovic
CYPRUS CyprusLabPO Box 27415CY-1645 NicosiaTel. : +357 224 582 60Email.: [email protected] Person: Dr. Marios Avraam
MEMBER CONTACT LIST
56LIST OF MEMBERS AND CONTACT PERSONS
R O L A B
Q uality is a state of mind
SPAINEUROLAB – Españawww.eurolab.org.esC/Alenza, 1ES-28003 MadridTel.: +34 9 13 99 01 74Email: [email protected] Person: Dr. Miguel Sánchez
SWEDENEUROLAB – Sverigewww.eurolab-sverige.orgP.O. Box 857SE-50115 BorasTel.: +46 105 16 50 07Email.: [email protected] Person: Mr. Magnus Holmgren
SWITZERLANDEUROLAB – CHwww.eurolab.chc/o SNV Swiss Association forStandardizationBürglistrasse 29CH-8400 WinterthurTel.: +41 52 224 54 03Email: [email protected] Person: Ms. Monika Di Michele
UNITED KINGDOMBMTA - British Measurementand Testing Associationwww.bmta.co.ukEast Malling Enterprise CentreNew Road, East MallingKent, ME19 6BJ, United KingdomTel.: +44 (0)1723 897453Email.: [email protected] Person: Dr. Jeff Llewellyn
Associated Members
FYROMMAKLABwww.maklab.org.mkbul. Kuzman Jositovski Pitubr.28/3lok.13MK-1000 SkopjeTel.: +389 2 2448 058Email: [email protected] Contact Person: Mrs. Magdalena Trajkovska Trpevska
LEBANONIRI – Industrial Research Institutewww.iri.org.lbLebanse University CampusHadath (Baabda)P.O. Box 11 LB-2806 BeirutTel.: + 961 5 467 831Email.: [email protected] Person: Mr. Bassam Frenn
TURKEYTURKLABwww.turklab.orgBuyukdere Cad. Gokfiliz IshaniK:3 No: 8 34387 MecidiyekoyIstanbul / TurkeyTel.: +90 212 217 41 41Email.: [email protected], [email protected]
Contact Person: Mr. Ömer Güzel
International Affiliates
SOUTH AFRICA NLAwww.nla.org.zaP.O. Box 298Perseqour Park, Pretoria, 0020South AfricaTel.: +27 12 349 1500Email.: [email protected]
Contact Person: Mr. Steve Sidney
USANCSLIThe national conference of Standards Laboratories Internationalwww.ncsli.org2995 Wilderness Place, Suite 107Boulder, Colorado 80301-5404, USA+0013 303 44 033 39Email: [email protected] Person: Ms. Roxanne M. Robinson
Observer Members
CROATIA HMD-Hrvatsko mjeriteljskodruštvowww.hmd.hrBerislavićeva 8HR-10000 ZagrebTel.: +02 16 517 66 90Email: [email protected] Person: Ms. Visnja Gasljevic
57LIST OF MEMBERS AND CONTACT PERSONS
58
EUROLABEUROLAB aisbl - The European Federation of National Associations of Measurement, Testing and Analytical Laboratories
EUROLAB aisbl was set up in Brussels on 27 April 1990 as a network of the laboratory community and in
response to the evolution of the European Union and is since 1998 registered as a legal entity in the form
of an international association under Belgian law (aisbl – association internationale sans but lucratif).
Composed of 21 Active Members, 3 Associated Members, 1 Observer Member and 2 International Affilia-
tes from Europe and beyond, EUROLAB is grouping over 2,000 conformity assessment bodies represen-
ting over 100,000 technical experts and laboratory practitioners. Associated and Observer membership
is open world-wide and includes representatives from the European Neighbourhood Countries, East
and Middle East, South Africa and America. Besides formulating and voicing the opinion of laboratories
regarding economic, political and technical issues, EUROLAB aims at promoting cost-effective testing,
calibration and measurement services, for which the accuracy and quality assurance requirements were
adjusted to the actual needs. These are particularly addressing European legislation, consumer protec-
tion, product and occupational safety.