NABL 201
National Accreditation Board for Testing
and Calibration Laboratories (NABL)
Procedure for dealing with Changes in Accredited
Conformity Assessment Body’s Operations
ISSUE NO. : 01 AMENDMENT NO. : 02
ISSUE DATE : 13-May-2016 AMENDMENT DATE : 09-Mar-2017
AMENDMENT SHEET
Sl. Page Clause Date of Amendment Reasons Signature Signature
No. Amendment QM Director
No.
1 6/9 IV – 1.1 08.06.16 Reworded Typo error Sd/- Sd/-
& 1.2
2 7/9 VII – 09.03.17 Once accreditation
1.4 & certificate to one
1.5 CAB
deleted
3
10
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories
Doc. No: NABL 201 Procedure for dealing with Changes in Accredited Conformity Assessment Body’s Operation
Issue No: 01 Issue Date: 13-May-2016 Amend No: 02 Amend Date: 09-Mar-2017 Page No:1/9
CONTENTS
Sl. Title Page
Amendment Sheet 1
Contents 2
Introduction 3
I. Dealing with change in Name / Legal Identity 4
II. Dealing with Acquisition, Merger, Take over and purchase / 4
selling of CAB
III. Dealing with change in CAB’s premises 5
IV. Dealing with change in CAB’s authorized signatory 6
V. Dealing with change in CAB’s key personnel 6
VI. Dealing with change in CAB’s equipments 6
VII. Dealing with change in CAB’s scope 7
VIII. Dealing with Scope extension during reassessment 8
IX. Dealing with change in accreditation Standard 8
X. Dealing with change in NABL requirements 8
XI. Dealing with Natural disaster impacting CAB’s operations 8
XII. Dealing with voluntary withdrawal of accreditation 9
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories
Doc. No: NABL 201 Procedure for dealing with Changes in Accredited Conformity Assessment Body’s Operation
Issue No: 01 Issue Date: 13-May-2016 Amend No: 02 Amend Date: 09-Mar-2017 Page No:2/9
INTRODUCTION
Accredited CAB may undergo certain changes which may affect its operations / functions. This
procedure addresses the procedure to implement the various changes in a CAB and also
specifies the process by NABL on such matters. These changes may include change in
ownership / legal identity, premises, authorised signatory, key personnel, scope of accreditation,
change / addition of major equipment within the valid accreditation period etc.
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories
Doc. No: NABL 201 Procedure for dealing with Changes in Accredited Conformity Assessment Body’s Operation
Issue No: 01 Issue Date: 13-May-2016 Amend No: 02 Amend Date: 09-Mar-2017 Page No:3/9
I. Dealing with change in Name / Legal Identity
1. If an accredited CAB desires to change its name under the same ownership; the
following procedure shall be followed.
1.1. Inform NABL about the name change in writing along with relevant documents
(such as legal identity / resolution etc.) and applicable fee for name change (refer
NABL 100 for information on applicable fee). If the documents are found
satisfactory; NABL will issue the accreditation certificate with new name but with
same accreditation certificate number. The effective date of issue of certificate will
be the date of approval from the competent authority and the validity of
accreditation shall remain the same as that of the previous certificate. CAB shall
return the existing accreditation certificate to NABL.
1.2. CAB will not claim to be NABL accredited and will not use NABL symbol till the new
name is approved by NABL.
II. Dealing with Acquisition, Merger, Take over and purchase / selling of CAB
1. In cases of acquisition, merger, take-over, purchase / selling of an accredited CAB to a
different firm / company / entity the following procedure shall be followed.
1.1. During the process; the accredited CAB shall inform NABL in advance about such
matter.
1.2. On completion of acquisition or merger, the CAB shall discontinue all claims related
to NABL accreditation and return the accreditation certificate.
1.3. The new firm / company / entity CAB, if desires to get get their CAB accredited by
NABL; they may apply a fresh. In such events NABL will process the application as
a fresh application.
1.4. In case, there are minimal changes in new firm / company / entity CAB, NABL may
conduct the assessment directly after the quality manual adequacy without pre-
assessment.
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories
Doc. No: NABL 201 Procedure for dealing with Changes in Accredited Conformity Assessment Body’s Operation
Issue No: 01 Issue Date: 13-May-2016 Amend No: 02 Amend Date: 09-Mar-2017 Page No:4/9
III. Procedure for change in premises at new address -
1. If an accredited CAB wishes to change its premises; the accredited CAB shall inform
NABL in advance about its planning to do so. Subsequently the following procedure
shall be followed -
1.1. If the CAB shifts its location within the same city, inform NABL in writing within 15
days along with evidence pertaining to the address change / legal identity and
applicable fess for name change / address (refer NABL 100 for information on
applicable fee). NABL will conduct an onsite visit to verify the adequate
infrastructure and implementation of management system at the new premises w.r.t
scope.
1.1.1. A new certificate will be issued to the CAB once assessment process is
completed and decision on grant of accreditation is taken. The certificate
number and validity of the certificate will be same as of the existing certificate
with issue date as date of approval of accreditation at the new premises.
1.2. If the accredited CAB shifts its location to another city, the existing CAB
accreditation status will be withdrawn and CAB file will be closed. If CAB wishes
accreditation in new city, they have to apply a fresh with relevant application fees.
The application will be treated as new application and new CAB ID will be given.
However Quality manual adequacy checks and pre-assessment may be considered
for wavier if CAB is operating the same management system and personnel as
earlier. NABL will conduct the complete on site assessment to verify the
implementation of the management system before grant of accreditation to the new
CAB.
1.2.1. A new certificate will be issued to the CAB once assessment process is
completed and decision on grant of accreditation is taken. The certificate
will be issued valid for a period of two years with new certificate number.
In both the cases, the CAB shall not claim NABL accreditation at the new
premises till decision on grant is communicated by NABL to the CAB.
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories
Doc. No: NABL 201 Procedure for dealing with Changes in Accredited Conformity Assessment Body’s Operation
Issue No: 01 Issue Date: 13-May-2016 Amend No: 02 Amend Date: 09-Mar-2017 Page No:5/9
IV. Procedure for change in authorised signatory
For any change in Authorized Signatory (s) the following procedure shall be followed.
1. Inform NABL about the proposal to change the authorised signatory(s) in writing along
with his / her bio data and applicable fee (refer NABL 100 for information on applicable
fee).
1.1. In case of change in only available authorized signatory, the on-site verification visit
by TA to be conducted to see the competence of the new proposed authorized
signatory.
1.2. In case of change / addition of new signatory to the existing list of approved
signatories NABL will conduct a telephonic interview of the proposed signatory by a
technical assessor / expert to judge the competence of the proposed signatory in
the specified discipline. In case the person is not found competent or a decision
could not be arrived at during the telephonic discussion, an on-site visit of technical
assessor to be conducted to verify the technical competence of the authorized
signatory.
V. Change in key personnel other than Authorized Signatories
1. The following procedure to be followed in case of changes in the key personnel (Head of
the CAB / Section, Quality Manager, Technical Manager) which affects the CAB
operations.
1.1. Inform NABL in writing about the change along with information in case of key staff
other than Authorized signatory.
1.2. For change the quality manager, CAB shall submit the training records of 4-days
training program on management system and internal audit based on applicable
standard as mentioned in NABL 131.
VI. Change / Inclusion of Equipment not affecting scope of accreditation
1. In case of change in equipment or addition of new equipment not affecting the scope of
accreditation, CAB shall inform NABL in writing about the change or addition of
equipment.
2. NABL may conduct the on-site verification visit only in cases, where there is a new
technology involved and an additional expertise is required to operate the equipment.
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories
Doc. No: NABL 201 Procedure for dealing with Changes in Accredited Conformity Assessment Body’s Operation
Issue No: 01 Issue Date: 13-May-2016 Amend No: 02 Amend Date: 09-Mar-2017 Page No:6/9
VII. Change in scope of accreditation
1. The CAB at any time while holding valid accredited status may apply for extension of
scope. The extension of scope may add test(s) / calibration(s) / PTP / RMP Scope to
existing accredited group(s) or add new group(s) to the existing discipline (s) or add a
new discipline(s) and/ or field(s).
1.1. Application: The request for scope extension within the accredited discipline can be
made by providing additional information to the already submitted application form
NABL 151 / NABL 152 / NABL 153 / NABL 190 / NABL 180. The applicable fees for
scope extension need to be submitted along with application. However for addition
of new field or discipline; a separate application form NABL 151 / NABL 152 / NABL
153 / NABL 190 / NABL 180 is required to be submitted.
1.2. Assessment Visit: The assessment for the scope extension may be clubbed with
the forthcoming scheduled on-site assessment, if the assessment visit is planned
within 3 months. If the planned visit is more than 3 months away or CAB wants to
add the scope on an urgent basis, NABL consider to organize a special
assessment visit in consultation with the CAB to assess the competence of the
CAB for the scope extension
1.3. Issue of Accreditation Certificate: On decision on grant of accreditation; for the
scope extension, NABL will issue revised annexures as amendment to the existing
accreditation certificate, to include the extension of the scope. The effective date of
scope extension is the date approval of competent authority of NABL. The date of
expiry of the extended scope will be the same as of the existing certificate
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories
Doc. No: NABL 201 Procedure for dealing with Changes in Accredited Conformity Assessment Body’s Operation
Issue No: 01 Issue Date: 13-May-2016 Amend No: 02 Amend Date: 09-Mar-2017 Page No:7/9
VIII. Procedure for Scope Extension during re-assessment
The extension of scope can be included in the application form NABL 151 / NABL 152 / NABL
153 / NABL 180 / NABL 190. It should explicitly be marked. However any scope extension
requested at the time of on-site assessment will not be considered.
IX. Dealing with change in accreditation Standard
If there is a change in the general accreditation criteria ISO/IEC 17025 or ISO 15189 or
ISO/IEC 17043 or ISO Guide 34 as applicable. The CAB will be informed about it and an
appropriate transition time shall be given for changeover. Once the CAB has implemented its
system in accordance with the changes, the same shall be assessed as per NABL policy at that
point of time.
X. Dealing with change in NABL requirements
If there is a significant change in any of the NABL policy or Specific requirements, the CAB will
be informed about it and an appropriate transition time shall be given for compliance. Once the
CAB has implemented the changes, the same shall be assessed as per NABL policy at that
point of time.
XI. Dealing with Natural disaster impacting CAB’s operations
The CAB will inform NABL about the impact on its operations in view of natural disaster like
flood, earth quake, fire, storm etc. The CAB will keep NABL informed and will not issue any
report till it is fully functional.
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories
Doc. No: NABL 201 Procedure for dealing with Changes in Accredited Conformity Assessment Body’s Operation
Issue No: 01 Issue Date: 13-May-2016 Amend No: 02 Amend Date: 09-Mar-2017 Page No:8/9
XII. Request for Voluntary Withdrawal of accreditation
1. Where a NABL accredited CAB intends to withdraw its accreditation, the CAB shall
apprise NABL in writing about its willingness to withdraw the accreditation. Till such
time, the request for withdrawal is processed; the accredited CAB will be bound by
NABL rules and regulations.
2. Voluntary withdrawal is not permissible if CAB is facing any kind of justified adverse
action due to malpractices. Please refer NABL 216.
The CAB once voluntary withdraws the accreditation and desires to get the accreditation again,
they may apply a fresh. In such events NABL will process the application as a fresh application.
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories
Doc. No: NABL 201 Procedure for dealing with Changes in Accredited Conformity Assessment Body’s Operation
Issue No: 01 Issue Date: 13-May-2016 Amend No: 02 Amend Date: 09-Mar-2017 Page No:9/9
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL)
NABL House
Plot No. 45, Sector 44,
Gurgaon - 122002, Haryana
Tel. no.: 91-124-4679700 (30 lines)
Fax: 91-124-4679799
Website: www.nabl-india.org
