qc

Quality Assurance and Control

TEAM Services is accredited by the American Association of Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA) and validated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. TEAM Services undergoes extensive inspections, evaluations, assessments and surveillance by A2LA and Army Corps assessors and their accreditation councils. The Quality System is ISO 9001 compliant and meets A2LA Guide 25 requirements. TEAM Services is certified to perform material tests on U.S Army Corps projects and other projects which require an accredited testing laboratory.

A2LA Accreditation Certificate	A2LA Scope of Accreditation
U.S. Corps of Engineers Validation
TEAM Services is accredited in accordance with the recognised International Standard ISO/IEC 17025:2005. This accreditation demonstrates technical competence for a defined scope and the operation of a laboratory quality management system (refer joint ISO-ILAC-IAF Communique dated January 2009).

To meet the requirements of A2LA and to provide the best quality possible to ours clients, TEAM Services has implemented and maintained a Quality System that encompasses all testing and related functions.

TEAM Services has developed a comprehensive Quality Manual to establish the framework and to assign responsibilities for the Quality System to ensure that testing services conform to this system. The manual formalizes the quality system that has been established and that is in operation. A further purpose is to inform users of this laboratory's services of the quality practices in place. Review of the Quality Manual is available upon request.

TEAM Services participates in interlaboratory proficiency testing conducted by the AASHTO Materials Reference Laboratory (NIST)
and the Cement and Concrete Reference Laboratory.
Samples of soils, concrete and asphalt are regularly sent to and tested by the TEAM Services laboratory, then compared to test results on the same samples by other labs throughout the world.
All results are compiled and a standard deviation is established. Any test method's result that deviates past a specified range is formally audited by TEAM Services' quality management staff until suspect procedures are corrected.
Results of the audits are submitted to A2LA.

QUALITY POLICY OF TEAM SERVICES

TEAM Services shall provide testing services that
-conform to customers' legitimate needs, requirements, and intended use;
-comply with applicable government standards and regulations;
-generate high quality data that is accurate, reliable, and adequate for the intended use.

All tests are performed under the methods and specifications of national, international, or state published standards.

Newly issued specifications are reviewed for possible revisions of procedures.

TEAM Services provides the trained personnel, equipment, and environment required for the correct performance of tests.

The Quality Manual applies to all testing activities performed by TEAM Services. It applies to all employees within the laboratory and not just the quality assurance/quality control staff. Everyone has an important role to play in the attainment of quality.

The laboratory regularly undergoes national inter laboratory correlation and proficiency testing to verify the accuracy of test procedures and equipment.

All equipment used in testing is calibrated on schedules set forth by national standards using certified calibrating instruments that are traceable back to NIST standards.

All test documentation includes the identification of equipment used.

The quality of results provided to clients are verified by periodic quality checks that include internal quality control schemes using statistical techniques, replicate testing using the same or different methods, re-testing of retained items, and correlation of results for different characteristics of an item.

"Controlled" departures from in-place standard operating procedures are fully documented and statistically validated. The resulting documentation is made available to the client and other report recipients, and shall be in full agreement with the client.