Are Calibrations Worth the Money?
Breaking news! The Guardian says “The only uncertainty is how long we’ll last”. Clearly they have not heard about the MAS MU for Testing Labs workshop. Register now as places are filling fast!
News
Can you risk not taking the meeting?
Risk management. It’s a hot topic right now. There are 1.3 billion (that’s 1,330,000,000) entries on risk management that appear in a simple Google search. Risk can be anywhere, from the minute we wake up in the morning until our eyes close at night, we inhabit a world full of risk and uncertainty and have …read more »
7 tips for choosing the Right Consultant
As I sit here watching the British Conservatives announce their next leader, I got to thinking, how do you know you are choosing the right person for the job? It’s a very important task and one that requires a lot of consideration. Choosing the right consultant to help you realise your objectives and dreams for …read more »
5 tips for negotiations
Summer time is now officially ended in Australia. Over the summer, I had some time to reflect on what summer means. For me, it means holidays, sun, sand, surf, family time, different surroundings and new neighbours. As we normally do, we had a camping trip down the coast and so summer also means negotiating over …read more »
Your Guide to Reading Standards and Finding Loop Holes
The laboratory shall, if relevant, to the extent necessary, maintain records of competence to read standards. Understood? Deciphering these kinds of phrases in standards is not easy. Learning to read and understand them is like learning a new language. But once you get the hang of it, a whole new world of interpretation opens up. …read more »
Solving the NATA Accreditation maze with a little help from your friends
Finally achieving “the holy grail” of NATA accreditation might be your resolution for 2018. Problem is, you don’t know where to start. You might have even started down the path of NATA accreditation and are stuck. And now you’ve heard there’s a new version of ISO 17025 and are worried you’ll have to start over! …read more »
ISO 17025:2017 transitions made easy
ISO 17025:2017. You can see it looming ahead of you. You vaguely know that there’s some change you have to grapple with. Or you might have already been through an assessment to the new standard. The question is, how do you conquer the NATA ISO 17025:2017 beast? You know, the Titanic hit the iceberg not …read more »
Preparing for your NATA audit: Tips to help you show off how good you are
When you have done hundreds of NATA audits, you get to know what the issues are that get laboratories stuck. One question a NATA auditor asks is, what evidence do you have that your staff are competent? Here are some helpful tips for how to respond! The scenario: You have just hired someone with …read more »
Designing your Lab to be Future-Ready!
In my work, I come across lots of laboratories wanting to improve the space in which they work. Let’s face it, improvement is not just about documents! Where do you go to get some professional advice on this important improvement project? ‘Laboratory Architect’ is a very niche profession. It makes sense though – there …read more »
3 more ways to make your management system work for you
In my last article, I talked about how you can take steps to simplify your management system. But as a true systems expert, I like to deal with the root cause of a complex problem. The other cause of the creation of a management system is a failure to critically analyse feedback from auditors and …read more »