November 2010

 

From the Chief Executive/Annual Report Published

The annual report for the Testing Laboratory Registration Council has now been published, and it is available on the IANZ website.

During the previous year (2008/2009) the Council focussed on a number of measures to lift business performance, including productivity improvement and overhead cost reduction.  As a result the gross margin for IANZ, increased from 39% to 44%.  Overhead costs were reduced by $590,779, and consolidated cash reserves increased from $1.3 million to $2.1 million.  The Council turned around its financial performance with a surplus, $101,068 which was an improvement of $733,523 over the previous year’s deficit of $632,456.

The number of IANZ accreditations grew slightly from 1,736 to 1,759, with growth in biological testing laboratories, and a new Auckland medical testing laboratory.  The second round of building consent authority assessments was completed (except for the Auckland area), and a new contract signed with the Ministry of Health to undertake assessments on behalf of the National Screening Unit for Breast Screening and Colposcopy providers.  IANZ also committed to the Business Excellence programme, and achieved Bronze status in its first assessment.

International recognition of IANZ accredited laboratories and inspection bodies continued to grow, with the number of countries where accreditation authorities recognise test and/or inspection reports from IANZ accredited organisations increasing from 55 to 58.

The Council’s 75% owned subsidiary, Telarc SAI Ltd., had an excellent year in achieving certification targets, but did not achieve financial targets, largely as a result of significant restructuring of its health division.

The Council’s training division, the New Zealand Quality College, had a drop in training numbers, with a significant decrease in both overseas training activity and in-house courses.  This also affected the Council’s overall financial result.

Obituary

Dr Mervin Probine (CBE, FRSNZ) passed away in April 2010, aged 86. Dr Probine had a distinguished career with the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) serving as the Director of the Physics and Engineering Laboratory (PEL) from 1967 to 1977 and then as an Assistant Director of the DSIR. In 1979 he was appointed as a State Services Commissioner and in 1981 he became Chairman of the State Services Commission, the head of the New Zealand Public Service.

It was in his role as Director of PEL that Dr Probine made a seminal contribution to the development of laboratory accreditation in New Zealand. PEL was the DSIR division responsible for maintaing national standards of measurement and for providing a calibration service for the scientific and industrial communities. Dr Probine became concerned at the relative lack of interest in these communities in having calibrated instruments traceable to the national standards of measurement so he began to investigate how such an interest might be stimulated.

He became aware of a laboratory accreditation scheme that had been operating in Australia for twenty years. The National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) offered accreditation for laboratories across a wide range of disciplines including calibration and metrology. In 1968 Dr Probine despatched one of his PEL staff members (Dr John Buckingham) to Australia to study the work of NATA. On his return John wrote a detailed and enthusiastic report in which he recommended that New Zealand should set up a similar scheme. Dr Probine accepted this recommendation and began actively promoting the development of a national accreditation programme operated by a statutory body under the auspices of an Act of Parliament.

The Testing Laboratory Registration Act (1972) established the Testing Laboratory Registration Council on 1 January 1973. New Zealand then became the second country in the world to offer a broad spectrum laboratory accreditation scheme.

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Balance calibration

In August 2010 the Measurement Standards Laboratory of New Zealand (MSL) published version 1 of its newest Technical Guide; TG 25 Calibrating Balances. TG 25 is a concise summary of the method that is taught in the MSL Balances and Weighing Workshop and is therefore the definitive procedure for the calibration of balances and weighing instruments in New Zealand. IANZ will use MSL TG 25 as the reference method for IANZ accredited balance calibration laboratories.

TG 25 includes information on balance scale factor adjustments, for both the balance user and the calibration provider. Correct use of the scale factor, sometimes called Cal-Mode or Cal function, is very important when using higher accuracy balances, such as analytical balances, to determine actual sample weight values. This adjustment is used to correct for local variations in gravity, air pressure and temperature, which are able to be resolved by many modern balances. Adjusting the scale factor does not invalidate the balance calibration. In fact it is an essential requirement for getting the best performance from a balance, whether for weighing or as part of a calibration procedure.

The key point to note from TG 25 is that the balance calibration provider should discuss with the balance owner/user how they use the balance for day-to-day weighing to establish how often (if at all) scale factor adjustments are made. The calibration provider needs to perform the calibration in the same way that the balance is used in practice to determine the correct balance performance and uncertainty. This information needs to be clearly communicated in the balance calibration report.


MSL TG 25 Calibrating Balances can be downloaded (free of charge) from the MSL web site. If you would like to download your own copy of this document, please click on the following link and scroll down to TG 25.


http://msl.irl.cri.nz/training-and-resources/technical-guides


Balance users may also be interested in MSL TG 12 Assuring the Quality of Weighing Results. This guide defines the in-service checks that are required between calibrations in order to confirm that the instrument is still performing within specification (and within its reported Best Accuracy).

There are many other Technical Guides that may be of interest to laboratory personnel that are available on the MSL web site, as well as the MSL Uncertainty Calculator. This useful tool is based on Microsoft Excel software and includes calculations for Degrees of Freedom and Coverage Factor (k). Users can download the Uncertainty Calculator (from the Uncertainty Tools page) and modify it for their own use.

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Council Restructured
 The Testing Laboratory Registration Council has been restructured. Two previous members, Ms Jo Brosnahan and Ms Sarah Kennedy, have been replaced by Ms Susan Paterson and Ms Elizabeth Hopkins (see biographies below).

The Full Council is as follows: Dr Robin Pratt (chairman), Mr James Hill (deputy chair), Mr Nigel Cann, Ms Miriam Dean QC, Dr John Hay, Dr Richard Janes, Dr Campbell Kyle, Ms Elizabeth Hopkins and Ms Susan Paterson.

New Council members
Ms Elizabeth Hopkins
Elizabeth has spent over 20 years successfully commercialising science outcomes and is actively involved in the New Zealand biotech community, being Deputy Chair of NZBIO and a founding member of NZBio - Auckland. She is currently Acting Director of Biocommerce for the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology. She is also an Executive Director of Innate Therapeutics, which is developing immune modulators to target Multiple Sclerosis and other immune-based diseases. Elizabeth is also the Deputy Chair of Canterbury Polytechnic Institute of Technology and a member of Canterbury University’s Technology Transfer Advisory Board. Previously Elizabeth was CEO of Wool Equities, a publicly-listed New Zealand company focused on the biotech sector and the commercialisation of technologies derived from pastoral sector research. Prior to working for Wool Equities, Elizabeth has been involved in senior management of a number of New Zealand Biotech start-ups, including EnCoate and Neuren Pharmaceuticals. Before coming to New Zealand she worked for many years as a senior scientist for Pfizer, at their European headquarters. Elizabeth trained at Oxford University and holds a First Class Honours degree in Pharmacology. She was also a member of the New Zealand Biotechnology Taskforce.

Ms Susan Paterson
Susan has been a professional director for the past 15 years. Having trained and practiced as a pharmacist, Susan completed an MBA at London Business School. Susan then worked in management roles in New Zealand and the UK. She worked overseas for 10 years including strategy consulting for Boston based Index Group throughout Europe and USA. Susan is Deputy Chair of Airways Corporation and Chairman of Theta Systems Ltd. Her current directorships include Goodman NZ, Abano Healthcare Ltd, and Les Mills NZ Ltd. Previous Directorships include Ports of Auckland Ltd, Transpower NZ Ltd, Auckland Regional Holdings, Tower Health and Life, and America’s Cup Village Ltd. Susan has a keen interest in education and the environment, she is Deputy Chairman of the NZ Eco-Labelling Trust, a past Board Member of St. Cuthbert’s College and EECA, and a Fellow of the Institute of Directors.

Click on the following http://www.ianz.govt.nz/about2/governance.htm#4 to view full Council membership, functions and biographies.

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New Accreditations
 Congratulations to these organisations for achieving IANZ accreditation or for extending their accreditation into another field.

Laboratories

  • HJ Cooper (1993) Ltd, Auckland - Physical Testing
  • Marlborough Cylinder Testing Picton - Gas Cylinder Testing
  • Translational Medical Research Laboratory,Palmerston North - Medical Testing
  • Investigation & Diagnostic Centre,Christchurch - Biological Testing
  • Labtests Auckland Limited, Auckland - Medical Testing
  • Inghams Enterprises (NZ) Pty Limited, Waitoa - Biological Testing
  • University of Otago, Wellington - Medical Testing
  • Powerstrip Cylinder Testing, Auckland - Gas Cylinder Testing
  • Source Testing NZ Ltd, Lower Hutt - Chemical Testing
  • SGS New Zealand Limited, Auckland - Mechanical Testing
  • Southern District Health Board, Invercargill - Mechanical Testing
  • NIWA (National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research Ltd), Hamilton - Biological Testing
  • Pernod Ricard NZ, Auckland - Chemical Testing
  • Institute of Applied Sciences [IAS], Suva - Biological Testing
  • The New Zealand Drug Detection Agency Ltd, North Shore City - Medical Testing
  • New Zealand Veterinary Pathology Limited, Hamilton - Biological Testing
  • Perry Resources (2008) Ltd - Mechanical Testing
  • Gribbles Veterinary Pathology, Auckland - Biological Testing

Radiology

  • Southern District Health Board, Invercargill
  • Reflect Ultrasound Specialists, Christchurch
  • Hibiscus Radiology Ltd, Orewa
  • Breast Care Services, Dunedin

Inspection Bodies

  • Turners AutoInspect, Auckland

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New Staff at IANZ

Olento Peauafi
Olento joined us in May as an accreditation assessor to fill a vacancy in the Medical Testing accreditation programme.

Olento had initial training in biochemistry, haematology and microbiology laboratories at Vaiola Hospital Tonga. He later came to NZ and trained as a medical laboratory scientist in clinical chemistry. Working at Auckland Hospital, North Shore Hospital, Mercy Hospital and for many years at Diagnostic Medlab Auckland as Senior Medical Laboratory Scientist in biochemistry. He has achieved a NZCS in Biology from Auckland University of Technology and a Diploma in Medical Laboratory Science, specialising in Clinical Chemistry.

Presently, Olento is studying part time towards a Bachelor of Business Degree from the Open Polytechnic of NZ.

Nathan Crichton
Nathan has joined IANZ in the role of IT Support Technician giving support to the IT Manager and investigating and implementing new ICT initiatives.

Derolan Pillay
Derolan has joined IANZ in the role of IT Helpdesk. He gives support to all staff in general ICT issues and gives cover for day to day maintenance of the ever growing ICT facilities.

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Promote Your Accreditation Status for Free
IANZ has separate flyers for accredited laboratories and accredited inspection bodies to inform their clients about IANZ accreditation. They are A5 in size and can be easily folded once to fit a DLE envelope. Each flyer explains accreditation in simple terms, including the five essential points that emphasise the rigour of the accreditation process.

broc_lab

broc_inspection

Order what ever quantity you need to keep your customers and potential customers informed by contacting info@ianz.govt.nz or phoning Accreditation Services Administration on (09) 525 6655.

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Articles of Interest

Current awareness service from IANZ

The IANZ Information Centre regularly scans journals it receives and maintains a list of articles worth a look at on its website at: http://www.ianz.govt.nz/publications2/articles.htm

We look for useful or interesting items on subjects such as quality management, laboratory management, conformity assessment, auditing, accreditation and measurement.
Five items added this month are listed below.

1.    “How management review can benefit the laboratory”.
Inside Laboratory Management  J/A  2010.

Looks at why you should conduct a review, the required elements and how to prepare for one.

2.    “Top this : How to maintain your edge after gaining a quality advantage”
Quality Progress July 2010    p24-29

Argues that the factors necessary to help you achieve quality superiority may be different than those that help you preserve quality superiority. Lists six factors necessary.

3.    “Time to align : success comes when culture, vision, leadership and quality are in sync”.
Quality Progress July 2010 p18-23

Looks at how to assess an organization's culture by looking at what leaders within the  company pay attention to, how they react to critical events, how they allocate scarce  resources, how they behave and how they are hired, fired and promoted. Emphasises that it is important for an organisation's culture to be aligned with its leadership and that quality should be recognised as a strategic choice rather than just a program.


4.    “Seven eyes : developing a new kind of vision”.
Quality World Sept 2010     p50

When looking at risks and quality problems it pays to look beyond the superficial. This  article describes an approach used by Panasonic called "seven eyes for risk awareness"  and looks at the seven different perspectives needed to develop a fuller understanding of  the situation.

5.    “Resources for root cause analysis”
Inside Laboratory Management May/June 2010

This article gives some basic information on Root Cause Analysis (RCA) and some of the resources available for developing RCA in a laboratory setting. Provides a table listing some tools, techniques and models for RCA, some of which can be found online.

If you would like to see a copy of any of these, or if you would like be notified of new items added to the list, just send an email to rapperley@ianz.govt.nz . This service is provided free of charge. Please make sure to include your name and full postal address,as we are prevented by copyright from emailing them to you.

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Training Courses of Interest


As the end of 2010 approaches, there are places available on the following courses:

Auditor Training
Internal Auditing
Auckland
1-2 December

Lead Auditor Training in Quality management systems
Auckland
22-26 November

The 2011 New Zealand Quality College Calendar will be available in November. This includes a survey on possible new training courses.

Keep in touch with our new offerings, and plan your staff training programmes for next year by going to  www.nzqc.co.nz, by phoning 0800 9000 99 or emailing info@nzqc.co.nz.

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To contact IANZ call 09 525 6655 or email info@ianz.govt.nz
Private Bag 28908, Remuera, Auckland 1541
626 Great South Road, Ellerslie 1051
www.ianz.govt.nz