VTI Services was the first company in Australia to obtain NATA accreditation for the “Review of in-field testing of LAN and telecommunication cabling covering optical fibre and copper cabling systems (balanced pair systems)”.
VTI Services obtained the status of a Type “A” Inspection Body which reflects the highest level of Independence obtainable under the NATA System.
In order to obtain and keep the NATA Accreditation, VTI Services is required to demonstrate its ongoing technical competence to operate in accordance with AS/NZ ISO/IEC 17020 (2012).
NATA stands for National Association of Testing Authorities, Australia and is:
- Australia’s Government-endorsed provider of accreditation for laboratories and similar testing facilities
- a peak authority in Australia for the accreditation of inspection bodies
- Australia’s GLP compliance monitoring authority for Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) and represents Australia on the OECD GLP Working Group
- the national body for accreditation of producers of certified reference materials
- the largest association of accredited laboratories in the world
- the world’s oldest comprehensive laboratory accreditation provider
- independently evaluated on a regular basis by its international counterparts to ensure that its operations remain in-line with international practices
- a private, not-for-profit company, owned and governed by its members and representatives from industry, government and professional bodies.
Independence criteria for Type A inspection body
The inspection body referred to in 4.2.1 shall meet the following criteria:
A.1 The inspection body shall be independent of the parties involved.
The inspection body and its staff responsible for carrying out the inspection shall not be the designer, manufacturer, supplier, installer, purchaser, owner, user or maintainer of the items which they inspect, nor the authorized representative of any of these parties.
A.2 The inspection body and its staff shall not engage in any activities that may conflict with their independence of judgement and integrity in relation to their inspection activities. In particular they shall not become directly involved in the design, manufacture, supply, installation, use or maintenance of the items inspected, or similar competitive items.
A.3 All interested parties shall have access to the services of the inspection body. There shall not be undue financial or other conditions. The procedures under which the body operates shall be administered in a non-discriminatory manner.