Dr. Andreas Hönnerscheid, Head of Quality Management at Deutsche Akkreditierungsstelle (DAkkS).
Dr. Andreas Hönnerscheid is the new Chairman of the Arrangement Committee of the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC ARC)
Dr. Hönnerscheid assumes the chairmanship of ILAC ARC – a significant step in turbulent times for international accreditation
Press Release,
Dr. Andreas Hönnerscheid, Head of Quality Management at Deutsche Akkreditierungsstelle (DAkkS), is the new Chairman of the Arrangement Committee of the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC ARC).
Dr. Hönnerscheid has represented DAkkS for many years as a member of various national and international committees. With his assumption of the chairmanship of the ILAC Arrangement Committee (ILAC ARC), he will now play a key role within the international accreditation community. This office also includes a seat on the ILAC Executive Committee and the joint ILAC and the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) Executive Committee.
Dr. Hönnerscheid’s involvement in these committees comes at a time when ILAC and IAF are working to deepen their structural consolidation. The goal is to establish a new international organisation. DAkkS supports the goal of creating a joint, globally recognised accreditation organisation as a matter of principle, but sees some specific issues in the current arrangements that still require clarification.
Dr. Hönnerscheid has a great deal of commitment and expertise, and the necessary prudence, to contribute to this challenging role. “It is a special honour, and at the same time an obligation, for me to be given the opportunity to help shape the international accreditation system at such a crucial stage,” says the DAkkS quality manager.
The ILAC ARC plays a key role: the committee is responsible for maintaining and developing the ILAC multilateral mutual recognition arrangements (MRAs) currently in place. These agreements constitute the basis for international recognition of the activities and results of accredited testing, calibration and medical laboratories, and of inspection bodies, reference material producers and proficiency testing providers.
Background
Alongside IAF, ILAC is the umbrella organisation for accreditation bodies worldwide and currently has 109 member institutions from 116 economies. Members also include regional accreditation organisations, such as EA, which coordinates evaluation activities for the European region.
The role of ILAC and IAF is to strengthen confidence in the results provided by accredited conformity assessment bodies with a view to facilitating global trade and reducing technical barriers to trade, while at the same time contributing to improving health, safety, sustainability and protection of the environment. This is achieved by means of the established multilateral recognition agreements (MRAs) and an evaluation system that ensures that the work of accreditation bodies worldwide is comparable, so that confidence in the results provided by accredited bodies is justified.
In addition, ILAC and IAF define the basic requirements for accreditation and conformity assessment bodies necessary to ensure uniform implementation of the relevant international standards worldwide.
