“The customers what need is to have the hygiene that the results that provide them are reliable”

The Technological Institute of the plastic, Aimplas, is the Spanish centre with the greater offer of essays accredited by ENAC for plastic. From profiles for the sector of the construction, pipes or small debuggers, until stock exchanges, tanks of fuel or prefabricated swimming pools, like this until completing the long relation of essays accredited by ENAC according to the norm JOINS-IN ISO/IEC 17025. This no only benefits to the companies to the hour to position his products in external markets, in general, this accreditation always elevates the confidence of the customers because it guarantees that the realisation of the essays and analysis has been effected by qualified personnel.

Concha Sanz, responsible of Technical Area of Aimplas.

In Aimplas whenever we tackle a new project, was to explore a new line of R&D, endow us again equipment or review our wallet of Technological Services, launch the look to to our surroundings, to the industry, to our customers, study in depth which value goes to contribute to the companies this new equipment or new capacity that purchase.

With the accreditations the process is exactly the same. During the more than 20 years that carry offering our technological services have gone reviewing constantly our scope of accreditation to adapt us to the needs of our sectors users. And the companies value it because the accreditation gives them a guarantee on our technical competition, know that we put to his disposal a qualified human team that has the suitable equipment, ensure that we carry out our work applying methods of appropriate work and something very important, know that his reports go to have validity further of our borders.

Of course that have realizar big investments, although well it is true that, excepting the first years of life of Aimplas in which there was a big support to the investment by part of the public servicys, the investments have produced of progressive way, attending always to the needs of the business surroundings. Also it is necessary to take into account that no necessarily the services that require the companies require big investments in equipment, in a lot of occasions what need is to set up new procedures of work what comports a very elevated dedication of qualified personnel. Said of another way, the have a magnify equipment is necessary condition, but no sufficient to fulfil the requirements of accreditation and, of course, the ones of the customers. The customers what need is to have the hygiene that the results that provide them are reliable.

Yes, can say that our speciality are the plastics, like this likes us recalcarlo, but this does not mean that we only are present like collaborators of the industry of the plastic, if it is that we understand like such to the manufacturers of raw materials and transformers.

Of the same way that Aimplas is a technological centre that directs his activities to all the chain of value that goes from the manufacturers of raw materials until the final users of plastics; the activity of the laboratories, the essays and analysis, extends in the same field. We can find customers placed in the petrochemical industry, or companies users of plastics, like the envasadores of foods or also importing that have the need to evaluate the characteristics of his products previously to his distribution. The fan is very wide because the utilisation of the plastics extends practically to any sector of application or field of activity and the needs of essays and analysis can be very different in each case. The own typology of customer is different because we can find from experts until those that at all are it, but that find in our laboratories a big ally for the interpretation of requirements and resolution of problems.

Yes, is true that exist sectors with a greater tradition in the control of quality and hygiene and, therefore, more demandantes of essays or analysis accredited, but also the legislative pressesure is definitely a motivation. The sector of automotive sector or the aeronautical sector component manufacturing sector component manufacturing are leading by his technological level and have of requirements of own quality of each company what carries them to demand to his providers essays predetermined on pieces or components. Some of these essays or analysis can realizar them the own provider, but is usual that the manufacturer require the intervention of a third independent part, a laboratory accredited.

In our field, of the most subjected sectors to legislation, that is to say, that have to fulfil obligatoriamente determinate requirements, would stand out by his economic importance the sector of construction or the electrical electronic that require marked CE compulsory to commercialise his products. By the importance that gives him to the hygiene of the product would stand out the sector of container for foods. It exists a specific European legislation for materials, plastics in our case, in contact with foods that forces to show the suitability of the container realizar a series of essays that have to be surpassed.

Concha Sanz, responsible of Technical Area of Aimplas.

If we speak directly of the cost of the essays of the laboratory, whereas the Spanish laboratories can be more competitive that the laboratories of other countries, like this is. For example, for determinate products contemplated by the Regulation of Products of Construction have to realizar essays by part of an Organism of Control that has to be a laboratory accredited. Each country member accredits to his organisms of control, but the validity of the certificates issued by an organism of control is of European field. That is to say, that can result more economic use the services of an Organism of Control of a country that of another, but in any case is equally valid.

In general, the use the services of a laboratory accredited repercute positively in the costs that has to contabilizar the exporting company to put his product in any market, since it avoids the repetition of the essays that has to realizar to commercialise in other countries.

Do not have reason exist accreditations of different category because all the laboratories accredited fulfil with the international norm ISO/IEC 17025 and have been accredited by National Organisms of Accreditation, ENAC in the case of Spain, and other organisms in other countries. Besides the national organisms of accreditation of the states members and the EFTA have established Agreements Multilaterales of Recognition (MLA) what in the practice ensures the equivalence of his systems of accreditation and, therefore, the one of the activities of the organisations accredited, essays in the case of Aimplas. Of this way promotes through the borders the confidence and acceptance of the information that provide like evaluadores of the compliance.

So that we do us a clearer idea: if a company has of reports of essay or analysis associated to his product and asks if they can have validity in any field the first that it has to averiguar is if the laboratory that has realizar the essays and issued the reports is accredited for this activity. If the answer is yes, can begin to despreocuparse. What do not have to confuse and yes does often is the certification (ISO 9000) with the accreditation (ISO/IEC 17025) because they exist differences very deep when we speak of laboratories of essay. The certification is headed to all type of companies and realizar it certifier companies in free competition, whereas the accreditation is an activity of general interest directed exclusively to the organisms of evaluation of the compliance, and realizar it an only organism of accreditation, ENAC in the case of Spain.

Although I already have commented that they do not have reason exist differences between laboratories accredited yes can have cultural traces or of protection of the own that carry to value more some laboratories or some countries of origin that others; but the truth is that this is disappearing with a lot of rapidity. The companies value increasingly the guarantee that the results are reliable and that the service is efficient, without mattering them other additional questions. Our experience in this sense is very positive to international level.

Fortunately already does time that in the professional field of the laboratories of essay remained backwards the “recognised prestige” and substituted by clear criteria and aims. The suitable is to put by in front the accreditation and win afterwards the prestige.