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Applause
September 2002

NSL Analytical Services Earns ISO/IEC 17025 Certification

NSL Analytical Services, Inc., received its ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation, becoming one of the first independent testing labs in the United States to achieve this status. Lab Manager Dave Kluk (left) and Quality Assurance Manager Lisa Potoma (center) were congratulated for their role in the accreditation process by NSL President Lawrence A. Somrack (right).

NSL Analytical Services, Inc., Cleveland, an independent commercial testing laboratory specializing in elemental and chemical analysis, received accreditation for ISO/IEC 17025, a prestigious designation for the quality and competence of its services.

ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation is a formal recognition of the company’s competency to conduct “specific tests or types of tests.” The Performance Review Institute, an affiliate of the Society of Automotive Engineers, conducted the audit. The accreditation affirms that NSL has a quality assurance system that is fully operational, documented and conforms to all elements of ISO/IEC 17025, and also covers several technical-competence requirements that are not covered by ISO 9001 and ISO 9002.

“This accreditation recognizes the testing and calibration competence of NSL for general manufacturing, automotive and aerospace. NSL has been ISO/IEC Guide 25-accredited since 1999. Our commitment to quality and continuous improvement has made it possible to be awarded accreditation for ISO/IEC 17025,” said Lawrence A. Somrack, president of NSL.

Operational guidelines examined during the audit covered 25 different areas of laboratory operations and responsibility, including lab organization and management, quality assurance systems, document control, service to customers, lab records, internal audits, management reviews to ensure continuing effectiveness, test methods, measurement traceability, and reporting of results.

Since it was founded in 1945, NSL has been a national leader in chemical analysis for all types of inorganic materials, including metals, non-metals, powders, solids and liquids. Analytical techniques include ICP-MS, ICP-OES, Classical Wet Chemistry, X-Ray Fluorescence, Direct Reader-OES, AA Graphite Furnace, LECO Combustion Units, Photo Emission, DC Arc, Ion Chromatography and Sieve Analysis.

For more information about NSL’s accreditation, instrumentation or testing methods, call 216-447-1550, or e-mail lsomrack@nslanalytical.com.