Accreditation

Accreditation

The quality system and quality control of our testing operations have been integrated into Labtium's overall operating system. The quality system is the basis of accreditation: accreditation means ascertaining the competence of the analysis and testing operations. Third party accreditation ensures that the services of the accredited body are acknowledged and approved, both nationally and internationally. The predecessor of Labtium Oy, Chemical laboratory of Geological Survey of Finland, got the accreditation as early as 1994.

Labtium Oy is a FINAS-accredited testing laboratory T025 and calibration laboratory K056 meeting the requirements of standard SFS-EN ISO/IEC 17025:2005

Regular internal and external audits are used to assess our procedures to maintain and demonstrate the competence and the suitability of the methods. This helps us to improve our operations and increase customer confidence. Most of our of our methods have been accredited.

Labtium Oy follows the following quality control practices:

• The methods and practices used are documented.
• Our personnel are continuously trained, as required by the operations in question.
• There is a servicing and calibration plan for our measuring equipment.
• The capacity and fault tolerance of analytical methods for individual sample types is checked, both prior to introduction and when changes are made in a method (= the validation procedure).
• Analytical processes are monitored by statistical methods. Comparative samples are regularly analysed, and at least 5% of samples are reanalyzed.
• Adherence to the quality system is continuously monitored by internal and external inspections and assessments.
• In order to secure testing activities and verify the quality level, we participate in several national and international comparative measurement programmes. These have been chosen in accordance with the sample materials of our clients.

Comparative tests include:

• Water analysis programme: Aquacheck , WRc, SYKE
• Soil samples: ISE (International Soil-analytical Exchange Programme); Wageningen Evaluating Programmes for Analytical Laboratories
• Organic plant samples: IPE (International Plant-analytical Exchange Programme); Wageningen Evaluating Programmes for Analytical Laboratories
• Geological samples: Geostats Laboratory Survey; Geostats Pty Ltd
• Geological samples: GeoPT (International Proficiency Test for Analytical Geochemistry Laboratories)
• Geological samples: PTP-MAL (Canmet)
• Solid fuels: ofi Technologie & Innovation GmbH, Austria
• Characterization samples of waste materials: SYKE

Labtium's experts continuously participate in interdisciplinary standardization work, including the activities of CEN's working groups for method and measuring device development. We also act as experts in technological committees and national working parties.