| May 2007
|
The changing role of IANZ
By Dr Llew Richards, Chief Executive, IANZ
Expansionary mode
Not since inspection body accreditation was introduced by IANZ in 1995
have we had the significant increase in client numbers we are now experiencing.
This year, Local Authority building inspection functions will have been
assessed by IANZ for the first time and be registered with the Department
of Building and Housing as Building Consent Authorities. More than seventy
Local Authorities are involved and have spent much of the past year preparing
systems to meet the Department’s standards and criteria.
In the past year, IANZ completed the first compliance
audits for the Ministry of Health’s National Screening Unit programme
involving BreastScreen Aotearoa and the National Cervical Screening Programme.
This work will be on-going and may possibly extend into other screening
programmes.
These programmes illustrate the increasing use being made of IANZ accreditation
by government and other agencies to ensure standards and performance criteria
are being met. More new programmes of this type are expected in the coming
few years and with it comes the need to increase the number of assessors.
Already, two new assessors have joined the Inspection Body programme and
one new assessor has been added to the Medical Testing programme to help
us cope with our expanded work commitments.
It is taking longer than in the past to recruit the calibre of assessment staff we need to maintain the standard of service IANZ requires. Despite a comprehensive search, we are still without a Programme Manager in the Medical Testing programme: Graham Walker is acting in this position until a replacement for Phil Barnes, who left us at the end of last year, is found. Meanwhile, Sandra FitzPatrick has joined the Medical Testing accreditation team and Chris Astbury has been added to the Inspection Body accreditation team (see their profiles below). Further recruitments are planned for later on this year.
Also expanding is our role in assisting the Ministry of Economic Development with the technical aspects of trade negotiations between New Zealand and the European Union, Singapore, China and other Asian initiatives. The Mutual Recognition Arrangements that IANZ has with accreditation bodies in these economies is providing a sound underpinning of the negotiations.
New accreditations
Since last July, these organisations have been accredited
by IANZ:
- AgriQuality Laboratory Services, Christchurch Laboratory
- Alfa Group Ltd
- Calibration Connect Ltd
- Canterbury District Health Board, Radiology Services
- Coffey Geotechnics (NZ) Ltd, Orewa
- CRL Energy Ltd, Hamilton Air Emissions
- CRL Energy Ltd, South Island Air Emissions
- Crop & Food Research, Food Evaluation Unit
- Dunedin City Council, Midland Street Operation Base Water Meter Lab
- ESR (Institute of Environmental Science and Research Ltd), Kenepuru Science Centre, Wellington
- Fisher & Paykel Appliances Limited, Performance Laboratory, Auckland
- Hudson Fire Inspections Limited, Dunedin
- IGENZ LTD
- Living Cell Technologies New Zealand Limited, Molecular Diagnostic Laboratory, Manukau
- Middlemore Hospital, Counties Manukau DHB Laboratory Services, Auckland
- MSK Imaging
- New Zealand Laboratory Services Limited, Christchurch
- New Zealand Sugar Company Limited, Chelsea Sugar Refinery, Auckland
- Pest & Disease Laboratory, AgriQuality Limited, Auckland
- Sinclair Knight Merz, Wellington
- South Island Drinking Water Assessment Unit,
Community & Public Health (Division of Canterbury District Health
Board)
IMPORTANT REMINDER TO LABORATORIES
NZS ISO/IEC 17025:2005 accreditation now due
Accredited laboratories (excluding medical testing laboratories) are reminded that their accreditation must be upgraded to the new NZS ISO/IEC 17025:2005 standard by 1 June 2007. All laboratories should now have been assessed. If you have completed the process of assessment and clearance against the new standard but have not received your new certificate, please contact your IANZ Programme Manager.
Following a review of the ISO 15189 standard, changes have been made to align it with the requirements of ISO 9001:2005. Standards New Zealand has advised that they are adopting the new standard and publishing it shortly as NZS/ISO 15189:2007. Medical testing laboratories accredited to NZS/ISO 15189:2003 are advised that it is expected they will need to upgrade to the new standard by 1 May 2009. We will shortly be advising those laboratories accredited to this standard about the changes that have been made and the expectations on laboratories to comply with the new requirements. A copy of the new standard will be provided at that time.
Commerce Minister Lianne Dalziel announced three
appointments to the Testing Laboratory Registration Council on 30 April
2007. Lianne Dalziel said she was pleased to appoint Dr Robin Pratt, Dr
Richard Janes, and Jo Brosnahan to the Council.
“They complement each other’s strengths and together bring
a good mix of strategic, leadership, governance and business skills, combined
with experience and understanding of public sector policies and processes.”
Dr Robin Pratt succeeds the late Dr Geoff Page as council chair. Current council member Dr Richard Janes has been appointed as deputy chair, while Jo Brosnahan becomes a member of the council. All three have been appointed for three-year terms.
Lianne Dalziel also acknowledged the commitment and contributions of Richard Dimmock who became temporary chair in August last year, and outgoing member Graeme Robertson who served on the council for the past six years. Mr Dimmock, who did not seek the position of chair, will continue to serve as a member of the council.
The Council is composed of nine members, with five
appointed by the Minister of Commerce, and four appointed by the Council.
Current members include:
Ministerial Appointees: Dr Robin Pratt (Chair),
Dr Richard Janes (Deputy Chair), Jo Brosnahan, Nigel Cann, Miriam Dean
QC; and
Council Appointees: Richard Dimmock, Dr John
Hay, Sarah Kennedy and one vacancy.
| Dr Robin Pratt was trained as a chemical pathologist and was previously a Telarc technical assessor. He was, until last year, Chief Executive of Ngai Tahu Holdings Group and Chair of its five subsidiaries. He was also the Chief Executive of the New Zealand Blood Service from 1998-2002, and was Chief Operating Officer of Medlab Ltd prior to that. He is a past director on the boards of Shotover Jet Ltd, Whalewatch Kaikoura Ltd, and the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology. |  |
Dr Richard Janes is a professional director on a range of export-focused boards and past Chief Executive of the NZ Game Industry Board and Cervena Company. He has a background in chemistry and textile engineering, and has 25 years of international experience in international marketing and branding. Among his directorship positions, he is the Chair of Asure New Zealand Ltd, a state-owned enterprise providing quality assurance and process enhancement services to the food industry.
Jo Brosnahan has a background in economic geography and 15 years of knowledge and experience of working with local governments, and the transport and infrastructure sectors. She was Chief Executive of the Auckland Regional Council from 1996-2004, and the Northland Regional Council from 1991-1996. She is the Chair of Leadership New Zealand, and a member of, among others, the boards of Landcare Research NZ Limited, Housing New Zealand, and NZ Business Excellence Foundation.
Dr Tony Barker has resigned from the Testing Laboratory
Registration Council and the Medical Testing Professional Advisory Committee,
effective 30 April 2007. Dr Barker is one of the longest serving members
of a PAC having served on the MTPAC since 1982. He took over the Chair
of this committee in 2005. In 2006 he was appointed as a member of the
Council. Dr Barker, a chemical pathologist, has worked extensively in
the public health system and brought this important perspective to the
PAC.
A periodic MRA (Mutual Recognition Arrangement) re-evaluation of IANZ by APLAC (Asia Pacific Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation) was undertaken in March. The five-person evaluation team spent five days obtaining evidence, including witnessing twelve on-site accreditation assessments of testing and calibration laboratories and inspection bodies. Issues raised were in regard to the accreditation process, and IANZ is addressing these. Confirmation of our continuing MRA signatory status with APLAC and EA (European cooperation for Accreditation) will be made at the APLAC MRA Council meeting in December.
In its report, the evaluation team was impressed by the professionalism of IANZ staff and the high degree of value provided to clients. Team members were also impressed by the demanding qualifications required of new assessment staff before undertaking assessments on their own, and of the thoroughness of the information kits provided to assessment teams.
APLAC evaluation team, March 2007
Back left: Steve
Medellin (A2LA, USA), Mike Ouellette (CLAS, NRC, Canada), Wong Wang Wah
(HKAS, Hong Kong) and Liao Chih-Heng (TAF, Chinese Taipei).
Front left: Barry Ashcroft (General Manager - Accreditation
Services, IANZ), Yoshinobu Uematsu (Team Leader, IAJapan, Japan) and Dr
Llew Richards (Chief Executive, IANZ).
While the primary motivation for being accredited is that it is a necessity for doing business, the majority of clients are satisfied with IANZ’s service. In a survey of 100 clients in March by independent market research company TNS, 82% of respondents gave an overall satisfaction score of 7 or above (out of 9), which is considered to be well above average.
TNS reported that clients feel IANZ is professional and assessors show objectivity and neutrality in their approach to clients and assessments. These are points that IANZ clients believe are important in an accreditation provider and are highly influential in terms of impact on the customer relationship. Also of a high standard are the manner in which we communicate, and the knowledge and information being conveyed.
As in past surveys, respondents said the main reason for being accredited was that it is a requirement for business; this included legal requirements, their clients required it and/or it allowed them to be competitive. Accreditation also ensured improved operating systems and gave them credibility within the industry. Accreditation is seen as an endorsement for the quality of their service.
The results of the survey were compared to other public authorities and industrial service providers worldwide, and showed the strength of relationship that IANZ has with its clients is well above average.
Patience and understanding needed
During assessments, IANZ assessors focus solely on the site being assessed and are not available to respond immediately to telephone or email messages from outside callers. There are times when this inconveniences the caller, often a client who is endeavouring to resolve an issue. There is, unfortunately, little that can be done to ensure you are always able to reach the assessor within your timeframe but they do attempt to contact you at the earliest opportunity they get. This is not always the same day as some assessors often continue on into the evening completing the assessment process and managing the assessment team.
Exasperating the situation is that the assessor, in many instances, is the only person who will have the information you require. But please, when calling, do explain your predicament to our telephone operator who will endeavour to find somebody who may be able to help you, usually a member the administration team who is familiar with the assessor’s work.
International recognition expands
Reports from IANZ accredited laboratories and inspection bodies are now recognised by 63 accreditation bodies in 48 economies. In the past year, four accreditation bodies in four economies (Costa Rica, Thailand, Turkey, and USA) have become signatories to the Mutual Recognition Arrangements (MRAs). New signatories are being added each year. Two new members of APLAC, Russia and Bangladesh, have yet to acquire signatory status, but Russia has applied.
Also in 2006, the Regional Cooperation body for the Americas, Inter- American Accreditation Cooperation (IAAC), received formal ILAC recognition of the IAAC MRA in the fields of testing and calibration. Other Regional Co-operations such as the Southern African Development Community in Accreditation (SADCA) and the Central Asian Cooperation on Metrology Accreditation Standards and Quality (CAC-MAS-Q) continue to work toward ILAC MRA recognition.
Global Mutual Recognition Arrangements for accredited inspection reports are gaining momentum with IANZ leading the way. IANZ now has signed arrangements recognising inspection body reports with Australia; People’s Republic of China; Hong Kong, China; Indonesia; Mexico; Singapore; Chinese Taipei; USA and Vietnam, and most member countries in the European Union.
Another new element to MRAs is accreditation against ISO 15189 (for medical testing laboratories), with signatories to date being: IANZ, HKAS (Hong Kong), JAB (Japan), Standards Malaysia, TAF (Taiwan), DMSc (Thailand), SAC (Singapore) and ema (Mexico).
Details of all international accreditation bodies and current MRA status can be found on www.ianz.govt.nz/international.
People
Sandra FitzPatrick
With wide experience in the medical testing field, Sandra has been appointed
to the IANZ Medical Testing programme as an Accreditation Assessor. Sandra
trained initially in the microbiology and haematology laboratories at
Auckland Hospital and later as a medical laboratory scientist in clinical
biochemistry. More recently, Sandra has worked at the University of Auckland
- School of Biological Sciences as a Technical Specialist in the Reference
laboratory, undertaking both medical and biological testing for the biotechnology
company Protemix.
Sandra, who took up her appointment in May 2007, has a Diploma in Medical Laboratory Science from the Auckland Institute of Technology, and the MAACB examination (chemical pathology).
Chris Astbury
Chris joined IANZ in January this year as an accreditation
assessor in the Inspection Body programme where much of his initial work
will be assessing Building Consent Authorities. Chris is an experienced
quality assurance professional having held quality management positions
with Feltex Carpets and Precision Transducers (PT) in New Zealand; and
a number of engineering and large construction companies in South Africa.
He has City and Guilds engineering trade qualifications, a Certificate
in Quality Assurance from Auckland Institute of Technology and a Graduate
Diploma – Quality Assurance from Massey University. Chris has over
20 years experience in conducting audits, surveillance and assessments.
Jane Busby
Jane has been appointed Programme Manager for the
IANZ Radiology Services accreditation programme, replacing Graham Walker
who is currently acting Programme Manager for the Medical Testing accreditation
programme. Jane, an experienced radiographer, has been an Accreditation
Assessor in the Radiology Services accreditation programme since July
2005.
IANZ Publications
NZFSA Laboratory Approval Scheme – AS LAB
10
Just published is the new Specific Criteria for accreditation
to the NZFSA Laboratory Approval Scheme. Chemical and/or biological testing
laboratories which conduct testing in support of the NZFSA official certification
of exported food products will be guided by this publication. Initial
copies will be posted to the clients registered in this programme and
further copies are available on request.
Recognition of Technical Competence – IA 4
We have updated the Regulating by Numbers pamphlet,
first published in 1996, and renamed it Recognition of Technical Competence.
This pamphlet is a comprehensive guide to IANZ’s accreditation programmes
and is aimed at government departments, regulatory bodies, local authorities,
legal profession and all bodies that regulate, monitor or control on the
basis of inspection, measurement or test results.
Testing Laboratory Registration Council –
IA 2
Changes to the functions and the updated list of
members on the Council are included in the April 2007 issue of Testing
Laboratory Registration Council information sheet.
A hardcopy of these and all other IANZ publications can be downloaded from www.ianz.govt.nz/publications or hard copies can be obtained free of charge by emailing: info@ianz.govt.nz or phoning (09) 525 6655.
Communication between Accrediting
Body and Testing Laboratory
by Arlene Fox
Inside Laboratory Management Mar/Apr 2007 p10
Good communication is essential in facilitating the accreditation process.
Understanding the Meaning of Accuracy,
Trueness and Precision
by Antonia Menditto, Marina Patriarca, Bertil Magnusson
Accreditation and Quality Assurance v12 n1 Jan 2007 p45-47
Looks at why the understanding of some basic terms sometimes proves difficult.
Evaluation of analytical instrumentation.
Part XXII. Instrumentation for liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry
Accreditation and Quality Assurance v12 n1 Jan 2007 p3-11
The purchase of analytical instrumentation is an important function of
many laboratory managers who must choose between wide ranges of competing
systems that are not always easily comparable. This article is one of
a series that tabulates a number of features of analytical instruments
that should be considered when making comparison between competing systems
making it possible to score features in a rational manner allowing a scientific
comparison to be made as an aid to selection. A list of the previously
published articles on other instruments is included.
Photocopies
of these articles are available on request from Rosemary Apperley,
our IANZ Librarian free of charge. Email library@ianz.govt.nz
or phone 09 525 6655 to obtain a copy. Please provide a mailing address as we are prevented by copyright from emailing them to you. |
 |
Training courses coming up
New staff or staff in new positions can benefit from
attending one or more of these New Zealand Quality College courses designed
to help IANZ accredited organisations:
Laboratory Quality Management
Christchurch 15-17 August
Auckland 10-12 October
OECD Good Laboratory Practice
Auckland 12-13 September
Internal Auditing
Auckland 2-3 August
19-20 September
Wellington 30-31 August
Christchurch 6-7 September
Radiology Quality Management
Auckland 25-26 October
Inspection Body Accreditation
A two day course covering requirements of ISO/IEC
17020 is planned for December in Auckland. No date has yet been set, but
those interested should contact the NZ Quality College who will keep you
informed as details are completed.
Details of all courses and booking forms are available
from www.nzqc.co.nz , by phoning
0800 9000 99 or emailing info@nzqc.co.nz.
To
contact IANZ call 09 525 6655 or email info@ianz.govt.nz