December 10, 2018, Frederick, MD – A2LA is pleased to announce the renewal of accreditation of Phenovabased in Golden, Colorado. Phenova is A2LA’s first ISO/IEC 17043 accredited Proficiency Testing Provider for cannabis.
“Phenova has utilized A2LA accreditation services for over a decade and we are proud to be the first A2LA accredited ISO/IEC 17043 accredited Proficiency Testing Provider for Cannabis related testing in the United States,” said Ty Garber, Director of New Business Development for the Cannabis and Food and Beverage Markets at Phenova. “Our Cannabis Proficiency Testing products and services are experiencing high demand across North America and we are fortunate to offer our expertise in proficiency testing to client laboratories and regulatory agencies in their joint efforts to ensure cannabis product quality and safety.” According to Mr. Garber, Phenova works with laboratories, regulatory bodies, and accreditation agencies to develop Proficiency Testing Programs specific to the regulatory requirements of the region and to navigate distribution and logistical challenges. He added that, “by working with the laboratories and stakeholder agencies, we have been able to develop and operate Proficiency Testing Programs based on real cannabis matrices, especially where the matrix creates specific analytical challenges. This approach has proven to be very beneficial for everyone involved, and we are working diligently to expand these efforts.” In addition to the real cannabis matrix Proficiency Testing Programs offered in select states and countries, Phenova offers alternative matrix Proficiency Testing standards for laboratories who have obtained or are seeking ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation.
“A2LA is excited to announce the expansion of Phenova’s existing ISO/IEC 17043 Proficiency Testing Provider scope of accreditation to become the first A2LA accredited Proficiency Testing Provider for cannabis,” said Trace McInturff, Senior Director of Accreditation Services at A2LA. “This fills a significant need and will provide a value-added piece to the conformity assessment process for our accredited cannabis laboratories. This milestone adds to the positive historical relationship between Phenovaand A2LA that dates back to 2005 when A2LA implemented a new TNI SSAS program for Proficiency Testing Providers and A2LA performed one of the first assessments of its kind at Phenova. This past May,Phenova also served A2LA well by graciously agreeing to allow the APLAC/IAAC regional evaluation team, along with an ILAC PTP observer, to witness their A2LA reassessment.”
Achieving ISO/IEC 17043 accreditation by A2LA is the pinnacle in third-party laboratory accreditation, as it confirms that laboratories have management, quality, and technical systems in place to ensure accurate and reliable analyses, as well as proper administrative processes to ensure that all aspects related to the sample, the analysis, and the reporting are standardized, measured, and monitored. “A2LA has a wealth of Proficiency Testing Provider accreditation expertise and was very instrumental in establishing the initial ILAC Proficiency Testing Provider accreditation requirements which ultimately became the basis for ISO/IEC 17043,” said Trace McInturff. “Proficiency Testing Providers looking to expand their scheme offerings into new areas have confidence in A2LA providing an assessment team with the necessary technical competence to perform a robust assessment and identify any issues before accredited samples are released to the public.”
About A2LA
A2LA is a non-profit, non-governmental, third-party accreditation body, offering internationally-recognized accreditation services and training to testing and calibration laboratories, inspection bodies, proficiency testing providers, reference material producers, and product certifiers.
About Phenova
Phenova, located in Golden, CO, is a leading ISO/IEC 17043 accredited provider of proficiency testing products and services, an accredited ISO/IEC 17025 laboratory, and an ISO 17034 accredited manufacturer of certified reference materials. Phenova offers proficiency testing programs and calibration standards for water quality, environmental monitoring, and cannabis testing laboratories. As a subsidiary of Phenomenex, Inc., we are passionate about analytical chemistry, and we pride ourselves on providing unique products and services that directly benefit our customers worldwide. For more information please visit www.phenova.com. For inquiries related to Phenova Cannabis Proficiency Testing, please contact Ty Garber at tyg@phenova.com.
