Having attained ISO 9001:2000 Certification in 1997, Johnson Gage is in the process of attaining ISO 17025 Certification, which is on schedule for 2020 finalization. “ISO 17025 is the main standard used by testing and calibration laboratories. There are many commonalities with the ISO 9000 (9001, 9002) standard, but ISO 17025 adds the concept of competence to the equation and it applies directly to those organizations that produce testing and calibration results. Updates to ISO 17025 have introduced greater emphasis on the responsibilities of senior management, and explicit requirements for continual improvement of the management system itself, and particularly, communication with the customer. Laboratories use ISO 17025 to implement a quality system aimed at improving their ability to consistently produce valid results. Since the standard is about competence, accreditation is simply a formal recognition of a demonstration of that competence. A prerequisite for a laboratory to become accredited is to have a documented quality management system. Regular internal audits are expected to indicate opportunities to make the test or calibration better than it was. The laboratory is also expected to keep abreast of scientific and technological advances in relevant areas.” International Standards Organization
