What is an ISO 17025 Checklist?
DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025:2017 is an internationally recognized standard that defines requirements for laboratory performance in testing and calibration. ISO 17025 ensures that laboratories work competently and generate valid results.
An ISO 17025 checklist is a useful tool for laboratory managers to determine whether their laboratory meets the requirements for testing and calibration defined by the standards.
The standards were revised in 2017 thanks to significant changes in the market and technology since the last version was published in 2005. They are suitable for any type of lab, from government to university laboratories and are also designed to help cooperation between different labs.
The following topics are briefly covered in this article:
1. How to prepare for ISO/IEC 17025 certification
2. Advantages of Lumiform to obtain certification
7 practical tips for preparing for ISO 17025 certification using a checklist
It is crucial to that a laboratory prepares for ISO 17025 certification. For best practices it is highly recommended to implement a checklist system for preparation. Read the following 7 Tips with advice on how to become ISO 17025 accredited.
- Communicate with Team Members
In order to implement a new system it is important to get everyone on board, especially the management team. The system and necessary steps should be communicated and agreed upon. The support of management personal will ensure a smooth implementation process. - Define the Plan
You should define the scope and responsibilities which are necessary to achieve a certification. Establish your laboratories Quality Policy and what specific daily activities are applicable to ISO 17025. Clearly define and document the associated responsibilities throughout the organization. - Identify Risks
Preparing for certification is an ideal opportunity for a company to evaluate daily business and identify risks, malfunctions and potential harming factors as well as opportunities. Using a checklist for identifying risks or doing a root cause analysis to identify certain specific problems at their root helps you to improve overall performance and thoroughly prepare for a ISO 17025 certification. - Define all Processes
Once you are aware of the specific standards and guidelines of ISO 17025, it is crucial to specifically document all correct steps when undergoing certain processes in the laboratory. By clearly stating the correct way to operate, you ensure that all personal has access to and is aware of the standards which are required to obtain certification. - Keep track of the Progress
After stating the specifics of each procedure it is absolutely necessary to continuously keep track of the progress and correct operations at the laboratory. An internal audit checklist for each operator when working on a specific process can be a useful tool. - Offer Help and Training
Once you have implemented the correct guidelines for each processes you should offer help and training for your employees whenever necessary. Assign training personal and make sure that all employees have the necessary help to operate correctly. - Review the Preparing Action
All actions to operate corrrectly and prepare for ISO 17025 certification should be reviewed frequently. This again helps to identify risks and opportunities, address nonconformance and communicate the progress of your organization with all involved parties.
Advantages of Lumiform to obtain certification
There are many ISO requirements, like the ISO 9001:2015 audit or the ISO 31000 framework for risk management and Lumiform makes it easier for you to comply with the ever-increasing legal requirements for process documentation by using the mobile app to document via smartphone or tablet and being guided by the system through all documentation processes. Clean, transparent documentation helps you avoid high fines. The easiest way to do this is with a digital solution like Lumiform.
Benefits
- All audit results are automatically bundled in a report and can be sent to relevant stakeholders. automatically.
- Generate real-time data about your processes. This makes quality and safety measurable for the first time and you can use the data to continuously improve processes.
- Get a general overview of everything that happens in the field.
- Reports are generated completely automatically, which saves you the need to do all the manual follow-up work.
- Increase the efficiency of your internal processes: Solve incidents up to 4x faster than before through more efficient communication within the team, with third parties and with management and faster reporting of incidents.
- Save time with easier analysis of all data and faster identification of areas that need your attention.
- Continuous improvement of quality and safety: With the flexible checklist construction kit, you can continuously optimize internal checks and processes. The Lumiform guides the examiner through the exam, no training is required.
