Certification bodies are organizations that have received the right to engage in their activities through accreditation. Its area is established in accordance with regulatory documents and the product range. We study the activities of these organizations in more detail.
general information
Organizations claiming to be engaged in this activity may be private, municipal, state or other forms of ownership.
A special requirement that future certification bodies must comply with is indivisible property and the impossibility of its shared distribution. Therefore, for example, business partnerships cannot be considered as applicants.
Requirements for Certification Bodies for Accreditation
To be accredited, an organization must:
- be a third party;
- be competent in their field;
- have qualified personnel;
- to have a fund of standards and other necessary legal acts;
- in addition to certification and testing, be able to provide for inspection control.
Main tasks and functions
Certification bodies are required to carry out the following actions.
- To carry out certification within the established accreditation.
- Issue a license.
- Suspend or terminate certificates if necessary based on the results of inspection control.
- Inform the accrediting body of their work.
- Maintain confidentiality of information.
At the same time, the functions of the organization include:
- distribution of duties and responsibilities;
- development of manuals;
- regular acquisition and updating of the regulatory framework;
- certification activities;
- registration of permits ;
- implementation of inspection control;
- providing interested parties with information;
- informing the applicant without hindrance.
Staff requirements
Let us now consider what qualities and characteristics the staff working in this organization should have, as well as what actions should be taken in relation to it.
- The manager is appointed by agreement with the accreditation body.
- The staff should be permanent. Pressure on it from both the manufacturer and the consumer is completely eliminated.
- Certification bodies should update information on the qualifications of specialists.
- Each of them knows his duties, realizes responsibility and is improving in his work.
- Specialists must be experts in the claimed field.
Documentation Requirements
The document fund should have all the necessary facilities and be regularly updated. For this:
- make changes to the documents;
- specify the nomenclature for certification;
- Develop updated test methods
- if necessary, justify new standards, if they are not.
The fund consists of the following documents:
- Regulation on the certification body (with information on the accredited area, status, functions, responsibility, structure, interaction with various organizations).
- Certification procedure for products of the same type (if the organization adheres to a special order).
- Quality manual (a document describing the organization’s policy regarding quality, containing information about personnel, skill levels and conditions for its improvement, equipment used, etc.).
The fund also stores documents that must be kept confidential.
Accreditation of certification bodies
An organization wishing to conduct certification submits an application to the appropriate authority. It reports on the area that will be certified, awareness of the method, their own willingness to perform work and subsequent inspection control.
The package of documents is subjected to examination and draw up an expert opinion. If the accreditation of certification bodies passes with a positive result, certification is carried out.
This stage is implemented in the organization itself. At the same time, its condition is checked upon the fact and compliance with the documents. The ability to fulfill their duties is analyzed, and an act is drawn up for the accrediting body based on the results.
Based on all the information received, a decision is made. If it is positive, then the organization receives accreditation, but for a period of not more than five years. At the same time, it can be canceled if it becomes clear that the compliance with accreditation requirements is not clear or the certification body is liquidated.
When operating, an accredited certification body is subject to inspection control. Its terms and contents are agreed upon by the agreement between the parties. At the same time, they check:
- compliance with duties;
- relevance of the fund to the regulatory framework;
- qualifications of specialists;
- compliance with the rules of applications and appeals;
- the correctness of the tests;
- other information.
Upon receipt of accreditation, information about the organization is entered in the Unified Register of Certification Bodies. Currently, many procedures are carried out under the rules of the Customs Union. If appropriate activities are carried out, then, in addition to all of the above, it is necessary to be included in the Unified Register of Certification Bodies.