Become an Assessor with INAB

Frequently Asked Questions

If your query was not answered in the below, please contact us for further information

How does my organisation become accredited?

INAB provides an online accreditation process guide – which outlines each stage from enquiry right up to the award of accreditation and maintenance thereafter. INAB P7 provides you with a Guide to the Accreditation procedures.

What are the fees involved to become accredited?

INAB charges fees for the operation of all its schemes. Fees are set annually and are subject to a yearly review. The Schedule of Fees are available online from the INAB website. The fees incurred will be based on the assessment effort (number of assessors and time on site) needed.

How long does it take to become accredited?

The INAB Accreditation process can take up to 18 months to complete, from receipt of application to award of accreditation.

What documents and forms do I need to fill in to become accredited?

All applicants are required to apply through the CRM Portal. INAB provides guidance, policy and mandatory documents which should be read in conjunction with your application. INAB documents are available on the INAB website

If there is only one person employed in the laboratory, can my organisation still be accredited? Are there are minimum requirements?

Accreditation is awarded to an organisation based on its ability to demonstrate that it is competent and impartial when complying with the relevant international and European standards. There are no minimum requirements with respect to number of personnel.

Do INAB provide consultancy on the implementation of quality management systems or technical issues?

INAB does not provide any consultancy service.

Can INAB provide contacts for consultancy?

INAB does not provide nor recommend contacts for consultancy services.

What is the difference between accreditation and certification?

Certification is the process whereby a system, product or process is confirmed, through audit, to meet specific requirements. Accreditation is the third party confirmation of an organisation’s competence and integrity to perform testing, calibration, inspection and certification services.

Can I use the services of an organisation that is accredited by another accreditation body, even though I am based in Ireland?

Yes

I am a company established in Ireland. Can I become accredited with an accreditation body other than INAB?

Under Regulation (EC) No 765/2008, which came into effect on 1st January 2010, accreditation is provided by the national accreditation body for each member state.

How do I check to see if an organisation is accredited by INAB?

The INAB Directory contains all scopes and certificates for all organisations accredited by INAB. The location of the organisation and contact details for the organisations are also contained within the INAB Directory. The INAB Directory is sub-divided into different accreditation and certification schemes to assist in retrieving the relevant information.

Can I purchase a standard from INAB? Where do I go to purchase a standard?

INAB does not sell standards. Standards are available from www.standards.ie

How can I check if an accredited organisation is accredited for the scope of activity I need?

All scopes of accreditation for organisations accredited by INAB can be found in the INAB Directory. The scope of accreditation can be found in PDF form in the ‘Download Schedule’ column.

If an organisation has resigned/withdrawn their accreditation with INAB does that mean the certificate is not valid or recognised in Ireland, even though it was issued when they were INAB accredited?

Accredited test or calibration or inspection certificates/reports issued by a laboratory or inspection body are valid if the laboratory or inspection body is accredited at the time of the testing/calibration/inspection. Accredited certificates issued by a certification body are only valid within 3 months of the date of withdrawal of the certification body from the INAB programme.

How do I become an assessor?

If you wish to become an assessor or expert with INAB, please submit an expression of interest to inab@inab.ie with ‘Assessor expression of interest’ and the related discipline (calibration, testing, certification etc.) in the subject line.

Glossary of Terms

Accreditation - Procedure by which an authoritative body gives formal recognition that a body or person is competent to carry out specific tasks.
Certification - Procedure by which a third party gives written assurance that a system, product, process or service conforms to specified requirements.
Inspection - Systematic examination of the extent to which a product, process or service fulfills specified requirements by observation and judgement accompanied as appropriate by measurement, testing or gauging.
Body - Legal or administrative entity that has specific tasks and composition.
Conformity Assessment - Any activity concerned with determining directly or indirectly that relevant requirements are fulfilled.
Notified body - A third party authorised to perform the conformity assessment tasks specified in the Directive, which has been appointed by a Member State from the bodies falling within it's jurisdiction, which has the necessary qualifications, meets the requirements laid down in the Directive and has been notified to the Commission and to other Member States.
Third party - A person or body that is recognized as being independent of the parties involved, as concerns the issue in question. Note: Parties involved are usually supplier ('first party') and purchaser ('second party') interests.
Calibration - Set of operations that establish, under specified conditions, the relationship between values of quantities indicated by a measuring instrument or measuring system, or values represented by a material measure or a reference material, and the corresponding values realized by standards.
Traceability - Property of the result of a measurement or the value of a standard whereby it can be related to stated references, usually national or international standards, through an unbroken chain of comparisons all having stated uncertainties.
Test - Technical operation that consists of the determination of one or more characteristics of a given product, process or service according to a specified procedure.

Contact us

(01) 614 7182

inab@inab.ie

Health and Safety Authority,
Metropolitan Building,
James Joyce Street,
Dublin 1,
D01 K0Y8