Southwest Research Institute^® (SwRI^®) News

SwRI Analytical and Environmental Chemistry Department achieves NELAP certification

San Antonio, Texas -- February 3, 2003 -- The Southwest Research Institute^® (SwRI^®)Analytical and Environmental Chemistry Department in the Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Division has earned National Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (NELAP) certification.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, NELAP implementation adds comprehensive standard inspections, improves data acceptability, enhances a laboratory's international competitive status, and reduces the cost of redundant accreditations.

"NELAP certification provides clients an instant understanding of our laboratories' quality standards and capabilities," said Jo Ann Boyd, manager of Quality Systems in SwRI's Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Division. "This certification gives us the opportunity to be certified with a centralized, national program that allows clients in other states to know we can meet their requirements. This program will prove to be cost-effective and efficient by reducing the number of audits that must be performed for multiple state and federal certification."

"This is a great accomplishment for us to have earned NELAP certification," said Dr. Reza Karimi, director of the Analytical and Environmental Chemistry Department. "With this certification, our U.S. clients can be assured that we are following a nationally accepted quality assurance program."

The Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Laboratories, one of 12 approved authorities for NELAP auditing and certification, audited the division and issued the certification.

NELAP implements a set of national standards established under the National Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Conference (NELAC), a voluntary state and federal agency association for environmental laboratories. NELAC was founded in 1995 to help create a national set of acceptable standards for environmental laboratories. These standards are based on guidelines from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The department began working toward NELAC standards in May 2002 and was awarded certification Oct. 1, 2002.

The SwRI Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Division also has been certified to ISO 9002, an internationally recognized quality standard.