Eurachem supports the “shared vision for a better world”

October 14 has been designated as World Standards Day, organised by IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission), ISO (International Organization for Standardization) and ITU (International Telecommunication Union) with the aim of celebrating the power of standardization. This year, the three organizations have invited all public and private partners to join efforts towards “A shared vision for a better world” promoting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and addressing social imbalances, developing a sustainable economy and slowing the rate of climate change^1,2.

At the same time they refer to the on-going battle against the global pandemic and the necessity of addressing the SDGs in an inclusive way. To this end they underline the importance of available tools, among them international standards and conformity assessment. The seventeen SDGs³ address all aspects of interest to society, e.g. health, quality of life, education, the environment, energy, gender equality, sustainability of cities and communities, innovation etc. They were set by the United Nations in 2015 and are designed as a ‘blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all’ and are to be met by 2030.

International Standards are the outcome of the cooperation of all interested parties, both at national level and globally. Their implementation supports the perspective of substantial steps required to ensure that the SDGs are met despite the relatively short timescale. Industrial units, enterprises and other organizations are entitled to implement standards; this is confirmed by laboratories and other conformity assessment bodies (CABs) responsible for relevant activities with a main role undertaken by laboratories which are involved in sampling, testing and calibration.

The competence of laboratories is assessed against specific requirements set in ISO/IEC 17025; in the case of medical laboratories ISO 15189 is applied. This assessment is officially carried out by Accreditation Bodies. Further standards provide for CABs supporting laboratories; for example, proficiency testing providers (ISO/IEC 17043) and reference material producers (ISO 17034). Other standards in the ISO 17000 series refer to the competence of inspection and certification bodies.

For more than three decades Eurachem has been one of the main pillars supporting laboratories in achieving reliable results. Its mission is to promote best practice in chemical analysis and related disciplines, and to address the needs and expectations of the analytical community and its customers. A number of guides, leaflets and other publications have been prepared by expert Working Groups, some of them jointly with other organizations, to address specific issues such as metrological traceability, measurement uncertainty, uncertainty arising from sampling, method validation, quality assurance in non-routine analysis, terminology, proficiency testing schemes and compliance assessment. Many have been translated into a number of languages. All of these Eurachem guidance documents build on a foundation of globally recognised international standards.

The message of 14 October is an invitation and a challenge for the world society, especially in these difficult times!

Dr Kyriacos C. Tsimillis
October 2022

Find out more

1 https://www.worldstandardsday.org/message.html#message
2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zm6ymCWAcWM
3 https://sdgs.un.org/goals

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Published: Thursday, 13 October 2022 10:54

• Standardisation

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