Ensuring the security of Internet of Things devices requires a comprehensive approach that combines technological innovation, best practices and trust mechanisms. In this context, voluntary conformity assessment programs have emerged as a strategic tool to complement government regulations.
The Global Accreditation Experience Index is the first longitudinal dataset on accreditation. The data shows that developing economies are increasingly engaging in international accreditation, with some surpassing their counterparts with longer-established systems.
AI is developing at a rapid rate. ISO standards are a human-centered approach making sure AI works for people, not the other way around.
The scope and competencies of accreditation have evolved significantly over the past decades. Accreditation bodies demonstrate their competence by participating in international arrangements such as the IAF MLA and the ILAC MRA. The Global Accreditation Experience Index (GAEI) is a novel indicator to assess an economy’s accreditation capability.
The “GQII-Report 2023: Insights and Trends on Economies Using Metrology, Standards, Accreditation and Conformity Assessment Services” was published earlier this year. The GQII database and ranking integrate information on quality infrastructure in 185 economies.
Digital transformation increasingly impacts citizens and businesses, leading to new laws and regulations. The EU has over 100 regulations and directives to manage the digital economy, with GDPR as the most prominent.
The vital role of how accreditation provides trust and confidence for global trade will be the topic of a special keynote address by the WTO at a much-anticipated conference in Sydney, Australia in June.
UNBS hosted the ISO/CASCO 38th Plenary and Workshop from 23 to 26 April 2024. Attendees engaged in a mix of formal sessions, panel discussions, and informative workshops, delving into CASCO’s technical and policy initiatives alongside key ISO projects.
IAQG has created and released a new program, AIMM, to help organizations move beyond compliance to the 9100 standard and improve the maturity of their quality management system.
A circular economy creates shorter and closed loops of material and energy cycles, minimizing pollution and waste. Circularity is strived for at all stages of the supply chain, from production to consumption, including repair and remanufacturing, waste management, and secondary raw materials that are fed back into the economy.
2023 is the ISO 9001 Auditing Practices Group’s 20th anniversary. All of those who have been involved in the work of the APG can look back with pride at the global recognition and praise they have received by providing short, practical guidance to the auditing community.
Fostering vibrant and competitive food SMEs that contribute to high value-added and export-ready outputs is at the heart of a comprehensive capacity building initiative known as TRAQ (TRAde and Quality) that started in late 2022 and aims to enhance SMEs’ competitiveness in the fields of quality and export in six countries: Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco and Tunisia.
There is a growing recognition that standards are not neutral; they are experienced differently depending on someone’s gender. A lack of gender responsiveness, for example, has been shown to have health and safety implications and, given the importance of standards to the economy, undoubtedly, the lack of gender responsiveness would have implications there too.
Since their invention, the WWW and Internet have grown rapidly whilst security has lagged behind. Cybercrime has increased exponentially in the 21st century, costing the global economy more than USD 6 trillion in 2021.
The adoption of technologies and digitalization of conformity assessment continues to evolve rapidly. To understand the latest trends, a team of researchers from BAM, TU Berlin and Fraunhofer Institute in Germany and from the University of Canterbury in New Zealand conducted surveys in fourteen countries and collected data from over 1,300 conformity assessment bodies.
The Global Quality Infrastructure Index (GQII) measures QI’s development status and dynamics worldwide. In close coordination with representatives and experts from QI bodies worldwide, key indicators were identified, the data collected, and a composite index was created.
From 01 January 2023, businesses will need to use the new UKCA product marking for many goods placed on the Great Britain market (England, Scotland and Wales).
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a substantial shift in how many organisations operate to not just keep delivering services and products, but to try and do so better. Certification and accreditation bodies have made a dramatic shift from on-site to remote techniques, most of which were not new.
IAF’s three Advisory Committees, the Accreditation Body Information Group (ABIEG), User Advisory Committee (UAC) and Conformity Assessment Body Advisory Committee (CABAC), all held meetings during IAF and ILAC’s 2021 annual meetings period from September – November. These committees act as a valuable means for specific categories of IAF […]
Cynthia WoodleyChief Operations Officer and PsychometricianProfessional Testing, Inc. Many of us have responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by changing how we operate our businesses and organizations, including by implementing remote work policies and technologies that will have an enduring effect on our practices. Almost every aspect of our […]
Mika VepsäläinenChief, Market Access Section, Economic Cooperation and Trade DivisionUnited Nations Economic Commission for Europe Fifty years ago, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) initiated a series of “Meetings of Government Officials Responsible for Standardization Policies”. The anniversary of these meetings was celebrated in circumstances that […]
IAF Outlook 