This article is about accreditation of conformity assessment bodies. Before proceeding further, however, it is important to provide some definitions in order for all of us to have the same understanding of key terms.

The first term is “conformity assessment body” (CAB). According to ISO/IEC 17000 a conformity assessment body is “the body that performs conformity assessment services.”

The second term is “conformity assessment.” Again, from ISO/IEC 17000, conformity assessment is “a demonstration that specified requirements relating to a product, process, system, person or body are fulfilled.” An example might be verifying that your quality management system meets the requirements of ISO 9001.

Finally, “accreditation.” Many of us are familiar with accreditation of educational institutions, hospitals, and other health service organizations. However, this article is about the accreditation of bodies that perform conformity assessment. The definition of accreditation, in ISO/IEC 17000, is “the third-party attestation related to a conformity assessment body conveying formal demonstration of its competence to carry out specific conformity assessment tasks.”

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