In one months’ time, World Accreditation Day (9 June 2013) will be with us with this year the focus is on the important role accreditation plays in facilitating trade around the world, both within and across national borders.
The primary purpose of World Accreditation Day is to celebrate and promote the work of both IAF (International Accreditation Forum) and ILAC (International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation).
These bodies establish the multilateral arrangements between their member accreditation bodies based on mutual evaluation and acceptance of each other’s accreditation systems.
These arrangements enhance the acceptance of products and services across national borders by removing the need for them to undergo additional tests, inspections or certification for at each country of entry. This helps to reduce bureaucracy and the costs to businesses and contributes to operational efficiency.
Accreditation can act as catalyst within national economies in two ways–by helping domestic companies pitch for business abroad and by promoting confidence in imports. As accreditation is becoming, increasingly, recognised internationally, it can open doors abroad equally as well as those in the domestic market.
A number of promotional materials are available from the International Accreditation Forum website at http://bit.ly/Z1Elu9