Quality System
Quality System & Standards
The standards, traceability and management arrangements that govern the work described on this site.
Overview
Calibration and verification work is placed with laboratories holding accreditation to ISO/IEC 17025:2017. No accreditation is claimed here beyond what the performing laboratory holds. Each request is scoped against that laboratory's published scope of accreditation before a quotation is issued, matching the specific measurement, range and reported uncertainty to the instrument being submitted.
Standards Referenced
Work described on this site is performed under ISO/IEC 17025:2017.
Accreditation, where it is referenced anywhere on this site, is the accreditation held by the laboratory that performs the work, and it extends only to the measurements listed in that laboratory's published scope. Measurements outside a published scope are performed and reported as non-accredited work and are identified as such on the certificate. No accreditation is claimed here that is not held by the party performing the measurement.
Metrological Traceability
Measurements are traceable to the SI through NIST, with each step in the chain documented and carrying a stated uncertainty. Certificates identify the reference standards used, the method applied, environmental conditions where they affect the result, and the reported measurement uncertainty with its coverage factor. Where a statement of conformity is given, the certificate states the decision rule applied. Accredited and non-accredited items are identified separately on both the quote and the certificate, so the distinction is visible before work begins, not discovered during an audit.
Traceability is captured at the level of the measurement. The certificate records which reference was used, how that reference stood in its own calibration interval, and the chain that links it to the SI unit. Where a reference is subsequently found out of tolerance, work measured against it since its previous calibration is reviewed and affected parties are notified.
Equipment and Maintenance
Equipment handled includes bridge, gantry and cantilever coordinate measuring machines, portable articulated arms, granite surface plates, gauge blocks conforming to ISO 3650, and ring and plug gauges. Out-of-tolerance findings are reported with as-found data intact, before any adjustment, so a reverse-traceability impact assessment can be run against parts accepted since the last passing calibration. Records, asset identifiers and due-date recall notices are retained in a form that can be retrieved on short notice for a registrar or customer audit.
Reference equipment is individually identified and kept under controlled conditions, with a defined recalibration interval that is shortened where drift data supports it. Items that have been damaged or overloaded, or that give results which do not stand up, are withdrawn and labelled, and are not used again until checked and released in writing.
Management System
The work sits inside a documented management system:
- 01
Controlled documents
Procedures carry issue and revision status.
- 02
Retained records
Retained for a defined period and retrievable against a certificate number.
- 03
Audit and review
Internal audit and management review run on a schedule.
- 04
Corrective action
Nonconforming work and improvement actions are tracked to closure, and their effectiveness is checked afterwards.
Impartiality and Complaints
Impartiality risks are assessed and controlled, and findings are reported as measured even where the commercial result is unwelcome. Complaints and appeals are treated as a formal input rather than an inconvenience — the process, including the response commitment, is set out on the complaints policy page. How results should and should not be read is covered on the disclaimer page.
Need supplier-approval documentation?
Scope, method statements and traceability detail are supplied with the quotation.