Conformity assessment - Requirements for the functioning of different types of bodies carrying out inspections
The ISO 17020 (full name NEN-EN-ISO/IEC 17020:2012) can be used by inspection bodies to demonstrate that they meet the requirements of expertise and independence, among other things. The current version dates from 2012 and replaces the version from 2004.
The criteria that an inspection must meet can be defined by the institution itself, but more often it will be tested against a national or international standard. Inspection institutions that are accredited have the required competence to carry out inspections.
In the Dutch laboratory and inspection world there is a rapidly growing interest in applying systematic quality assurance in their own practice. As a result there is an increasing demand for official accreditation of the quality system.
The standard contains all the requirements that inspection bodies need to be able to demonstrate that they:
