Institution · Accreditation
Accreditation: meaning and institutional status
Accreditation recognises the competence of conformity assessment bodies. It is different from inspecting an installation, certifying a management system or training a person.
Informational
Current status
IAC is studying the development of institutional accreditation capabilities. IAC does not currently offer its own accreditation services and does not accept applications for accreditation. Certification partnerships do not transfer accreditation to IAC.
What an accreditation function would require
- Published scheme and criteriaRequirements an applicant body must meet, applied consistently.
- Impartial governanceStructures that keep commercial interests separate from accreditation decisions.
- Competent assessorsAssessors qualified for each technical field.
- Decision and surveillanceDocumented decisions, periodic surveillance and public status.
ISO/IEC 17011 sets requirements for accreditation bodies and is cited here as a reference.