Dubai Accreditation Centre becomes associate member of ILAC

The DAC gives approval to compliance evaluating bodies such as testing and calibration laboratories, inspection units and other bodies that issue compliance certificates. The ILAC has conferred associate membership to DAC after ascertaining its compliance with the requirements for getting such memberships.

Eng. Abdullah Al Shaibani, Assistant Director General of Dubai Municipality for Technical Services Affairs and Head of the Supervising Committee on DAC said that on the basis of this membership the DAC can officially represent the field of accreditation of laboratories and inspection bodies in the meetings of the General Assembly of the ILAC, which are held annually. The General Assembly is the body that formulates the policies and decisions of approval of ILAC at international level regarding accreditation of laboratories and inspection bodies.

He said that based on this membership DAC will also be entitled to many other rights such as voting right on the decisions of the General Assembly, participation in technical committees formed by the ILAC and participation in preparing and reviewing the publications of the ILAC. However, DAC will not be allowed to sign multi-pronged mutual recognition agreement because this right is reserved for only full members. Qualifying for signing recognition agreement is subject to conditions such as complying with international specifications of ISO/IEC 17011 and passing through accreditation body for evaluation process known as Peer Evaluation by an evaluation team specially registered with ILAC.

Al Shaibani said getting membership was the fruit of the concerted efforts by the employees of the DAC since more than three years when it was part of the Dubai Central Laboratory Department. "Due to the perception of the officials at Dubai Municipality on the basic role played by accreditation in international free trade the DAC was separated from the Dubai Central Laboratory Department and given the necessary freedom for achieving the required neutrality according to international specifications," he said.

Eng. Adnan Sharafi, Director of DAC said the centre will strive for getting full membership in the ILAC after fulfilling the requirements for that category in a year's time.

He said signing mutual recognition agreement with ILAC is very important because it becomes the main reason for accepting accreditation certificates issued by accreditation centres internationally. "Accepting accreditation certificates issued by accreditation centres means accepting certificates and test result reports issued by compliance evaluating bodies that are approved by the centre in any other part of the world. It also include avoiding loss of time and effort for re-testing during transferring the reports and test certificates from country to country that helps international free trade and realizing the international principle, "Tested once accepted everywhere," said Sharafi.

The DAC has given approval to 13 laboratories in the field of chemical, biological, physiological and mechanical tests on a number of products. It also approved a laboratory for calibration of mass and power as per international specifications of ISO/IEC 17025, in addition to seven inspection bodies that conduct inspection on safety requirements for lifting equipments that are used at the building construction sites that conform the international specifications of ISO/IEC 17025. With this the total number of bodies approved till date by the DAC has become 21 laboratories and approved bodies.

The activities of the DAC will be expanded in the near future to include accreditation of bodies that issue compliance certificates to products, individuals as well as systems. The DAC also has future plans for enhancing the standard of test and inspection results and issuing certificates and also strengthening its credibility as well as enhancing the safety standards and contributing in the process of releasing the shackles hindering free trade movement.