Quality System
Quality System & Standards
The standards, traceability and management arrangements that govern the work described on this site.
Overview
Calibration is performed by laboratories accredited to ISO/IEC 17025:2017. Certificates are issued under the performing laboratory's accredited scope and record the reference standards used and the reported measurement uncertainty for each result. Documented procedures govern how a request moves from intake to certificate.
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.
What is included with a quotation is explained on the accreditation documentation page.
Metrological Traceability
Measurements are traceable to the SI through NIST, and the chain of comparisons supporting that traceability is recorded against each reference standard used. Certificates state the specific standards applied to a given instrument, not a general claim of traceability. Before a request is accepted, the instrument is checked against the performing laboratory's accredited scope to confirm the range, parameter and uncertainty required are covered. A request outside that scope is declined or referred instead of measured against an unsupported method.
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
Reference equipment includes bridge, gantry and cantilever coordinate measuring machines, portable articulated arms, granite surface plates, gauge blocks, and ring and plug gauges. Each category is maintained under its own calibration schedule and verified against higher-echelon standards before use. Documented procedures cover request review, method selection, and result review and release, along with a complaints-and-appeals process for a disputed result. Records supporting a given certificate are retained and available for audit review on request.
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.
Looking for paperwork to support a supplier file?
Scope, method statements and traceability detail are supplied with the quotation.