First, since accreditation involves a third party assessment of a laboratory’s QA program and technical capabilities, it provides an impartial viewpoint of the competency of the laboratory. It also provides an unbiased assessment of the laboratory’s standards, procedures, personnel qualifications, and traceability to an appropriate national laboratory. In the United States, this means traceability of all standards to N.I.S.T. In short, accreditation offers a lab’s customers a high level of confidence in its quality and technical abilities.

Second, because ISO 9001 includes calibration requirements, many companies include accreditation for calibration suppliers as a mandatory part of their QA system. Often, accredited suppliers need only remit a copy of their accreditation scope in order to become an approved vendor. This eliminates the need for time-consuming, expensive audits and other supplier evaluation methods. Further, a customer’s own audits run smoother when accredited suppliers are used.

Third, accreditation has benefits, for international customers. All recognized accreditation bodies have adopted the ISO/IEC 17025 as the basis for accreditation of calibration and testing laboratories  Because these accreditations tend to be based on the same standards, countries may enter into Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs) whereby an accreditation body in one country recognizes the accreditations done by a fellow MRA signatory in another country. This has the effect of easing some of the barriers that have historically hindered the flow of calibrated instruments across borders.