Be it manufacturers, suppliers, exporters, or customers, everyone wants the best, accurate, efficient, and pocket-friendly testing services. Often, underestimating the value of accredited labs and being unaware of their benefits, people go for non-accredited laboratories and end up facing unfavorable consequences. Well, you should always remember that the best guarantee that the data you’re depending on was generated in a professional laboratory is laboratory accreditation.

What is Laboratory Accreditation?

Laboratory accreditation is a method by which an authoritative body recognizes technical expertise for particular tests/measurements based on third-party evaluation and conformity with international standards.
To become accredited, a laboratory must demonstrate not only that it has a quality system that meets the relevant criteria, but also that it is technically qualified for the testing or calibrations, i.e., it meets the claimed measurement accuracies and traceability.

Which Authority Gives Accreditation to Testing Laboratories in India?

Conformity Evaluation Bodies (Laboratories) are certified by the National Accreditation Board for Research and Calibration Laboratories (NABL). NABL is a constituent board of the Quality Council of India which is an autonomous body set up under the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
NABL Schemes include Accreditation (Recognition) in Technical Competence of Research, Calibration, Medical Testing Laboratories, Proficiency Testing Suppliers (PTP) & Reference Material Producers (RMP) for a specific scope based on ISO/IEC 17025, ISO 15189, ISO/IEC 17043[2] & ISO 17034:2016[3] Standards. It has Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) with Asia Pacific Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (APLAC), International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC). Once the NABL approves the laboratory for its standards, the lab becomes a NABL accredited laboratory.

Understanding the Importance of Accredited Laboratories

1. Why is accreditation important for a laboratory?

Ever wondered why a lab’s technical expertise and standards are crucial for you as a manufacturer, customer, supplier, or exporter? Well, look at the benefits you earn by using an accredited laboratory:
Save money on retesting: Well, who wants to pay twice for the same thing? When you use a NABL accredited lab, you get the best, accurate, and standardized results without errors which means you don’t have to go through paying expensive bills on retesting.
Minimize the risk: This connects to the first point. When you know your products, equipment, materials, or machines are tested by a good accredited lab, the chances of risk of damages, poor workability, and durability are very low.
Build customer trust and loyalty: When the services and products provided by you are of good, tested, and standardized quality, not only new customers are attracted to your business, but the old ones indulge in customer loyalty, thus, increasing your profits.
Reduce costs and increase international recognition of your products: The cost of retesting and repairs increases the prices of services and products. Thus, using accredited laboratories helps in controlling and reducing the costs in the supply chain. When your products and services are of good, acknowledged, approved, tested, and standardized value, you start getting recognition not only nationally but globally too.

2. What factors to look for before choosing a laboratory?

Accreditation, as mentioned before, helps in determining the technical and overall expertise and competence of the laboratory such as:
The staff’s credentials, training, and experience: Only a good trained, experienced, and qualified staff can test the products and materials accurately.
Usage of proper and right equipment: If the equipment and machines required for testing are not calibrated and of good quality then, the results will have errors. That is why it’s important to go for labs that use up-to-date equipment of good and calibrated quality.
The practice of standard quality assurance and procedures: To ensure proper testing, the accredited labs should follow proper guidelines and procedures of quality assurance. Quality assurance helps in knowing if the standard quality requirements of the products are fulfilled or not.
Proper collection and sampling practices: The sampling should be done using the guidelines and appropriate tests to help further in quality assurance. The samples should be collected and tested with all the necessary precautions and safety measures as well.
Providing proper and necessary testing procedures: The testing services provided for a product should be able to check all the probable problems and should be done as prescribed by authorized government bodies.

3. How to know if the laboratory is accepted and accredited?

An accredited lab would make sure to mention its acceptance by NABL to attract potential customers. However, here’s how you can check:
To endorse themselves, laboratories use the symbol indicating their accreditation by authorized government bodies on reports issued and their websites.
You can check websites that provide a directory of accredited labs or search on Google.
All in all, it is always a good choice to go for accredited laboratories to ensure quality and standardized services and avoid spending on expensive retesting, repairs, and damages.