International Accreditation Service has been designated as an approved
accreditation body by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for its WaterSense
Program. IAS is a nonprofit
public benefit corporation that has been a recognized accreditation body since
1975.
IAS already has accredited two certifying
bodies that have met the EPA WaterSense requirements and is currently accepting
applications from organizations that want to participate in the WaterSense
Program.
Pat McCullen, vice president of
IAS, said, “Through our Memorandum of Understanding with EPA, our job is to
ensure that EPA-licensed independent testing and certification bodies follow
the WaterSense Product Certification System.”
IAS is a leading
accreditation body in the United
States and a signatory to several
international mutual recognition arrangements (MRAs) worldwide. As an EPA
partner in the WaterSense Program, IAS will assess the competence of
certification bodies to certify WaterSense labeled products against the
requirements set forth in:
- International Standard ISO/IEC
Guide 65, General requirements for bodies operating product certification
systems;
- International Accreditation Forum – Guidance on application of ISO/IEC
Guide 65; and
- U.S. EPA’s own requirements as
defined in the WaterSense Product Certification System.
Similar
to the EPA Energy Star program for energy efficiency, WaterSense promotes
the development and use of water-efficient products such as faucets and
high-efficiency toilets. Under the WaterSense Program, qualifying products in
general must perform 20 percent more efficiently than traditional counterparts.
Manufacturers
must demonstrate through independent testing and certification from a
certifying body accredited by an EPA-recognized accreditation body that its
products meet the WaterSense efficiency and performance criteria and are
eligible for the WaterSense label.
For more information about how product certification
agencies can become IAS accredited to certify and label products that meet
WaterSense requirements, visit
www.iasonline.org.
Source: International Accreditation Service
