The New ISO 17034 and Reference Material Producer Accreditation

Abstract

The paper is an introduction to the newly published ISO 17034 standard for Reference Material Producers and briefly describes the changes from ISO Guide 34 which it replaces. The paper includes a brief summary of the supporting guides associated with ISO 17034 which includes the definitions in ISO Guide 30, the requirements for statistical methods in ISO Guide 35, and the requirements for descriptive information in ISO Guide 31 related to reference material certificates, labels and supporting documentation. The paper will explain the accreditation process for Reference Material Producers and emphasize the importance of the requirements of the standard in regards to elements such as establishing metrological traceability, ensuring homogeneity and stability of the reference material, and assigning the values and associated uncertainties of the reference material. The paper also describes what a user of reference materials should consider when choosing an appropriate reference material and reviewing the supporting documentation. For example, is a certified reference material needed or is a reference material needed? What is the difference, and what sort of documentation should I expect for the different types of reference materials? In the end, the reader will walk away with a better understanding of the requirements associated with reference material producer accreditation to ISO 17034 and a better understanding of what to look for when choosing and using reference materials.