Transitioning the testing laboratories to the new DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025:2018

Accomplished! At the beginning of February this year the quality management system at the Salzgitter Flachstahl testing laboratories (chemical laboratories, emission protection laboratory, materials testing) was assessed by the accreditation body Deutsche Akkreditierungsstelle GmbH (DAkkS) in accordance with the new DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025:2018. After about a year of intensive preparation, an action plan detailing how to transition to the new standard was developed and implemented. This was then sent to DAkkS in advance of the evaluation.

What has changed due to the new standard? We were required to carry out extensive risk/reward analyses for the various testing areas, ensure that the data were kept securely confidential, and provide proof of impartiality. The potential measurement inaccuracies of the testing methods had to be calculated in order to compare these with the specified values. The competence of our employees had to be systematically recorded, documented and taken into account when carrying out tests.

Over the two days of the DAkkS assessment, an approximately 30 page questionnaire had to be worked through. The assessor asked questions on every topic and called for documentary evidence. Finally, at the end of the second day our efforts were rewarded when the assessor recommended accreditation in accordance with the new standard. Once a few minor deviations have been ironed out, there is now nothing to stand in the way of the new certificate being issued. The new document management software introduced throughout the company for quality management systems helped a great deal. This software was able to provide most of the testing instructions and proofs that were called for.

The competence confirmed by DAkkS in respect of the testing procedures applied by Salzgitter Flachstahl extends across the entire bandwidth of physical, physical-chemical and chemical tests, workplace and emission measurements and mechanical-technological investigations ranging from metallic materials to the analysis of drinking water, and encompasses well over 100 testing procedures.