Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
the laboratory interprets the speci
c requirements of the quality standard they are
working to. These policy statements are normally collected together as the organiza-
tion quality manual. Below the policy level are the speci
c procedures that describe
exactly how each of the policies is applied and the way the organization operates.
The lowest level in the quality system structure is that of records. The records provide
evidence that the quality system is being well maintained and the quality of the data
from the laboratory can be assured. These three levels should be linked and this can be
achieved very ef
ciently using electronic hyperlinking of the documentation.
3.1.2 Procedures
Procedures can be either quality system procedures such as how to carry out an audit
or operational procedures de
c analytical method is
performed. The procedures performed by the laboratory need to re
ning how, for example, a speci
ect exactly how
operations are carried out and need to be regularly updated to incorporate changes that
evolve with time. Procedures should be succinct and the use of
flow diagrams to
pictorially document the
flow of each operation is a very ef
cient way of documenting
the procedures.
3.1.3 Roles and Responsibilities
All quality standards are very clear that staff roles and responsibilities in an
organization need to be clearly de
ned. For ISO 17025, this includes the Technical
Management and Quality Manager roles. The de
ned roles and responsibilities
need to match the competencies described in the training records of the individual
staff.
3.1.4 Quality Manual
The quality manual describes the speci
c policies that relate to all the elements of the
quality standard. The quality manual should be concise, ideally with no more than 30
pages in length. Each of the policy statements should clearly reference the speci
c
procedure used to implement the policy.
3.1.5 Document Control
Critical to document control is the availability of the most up-to-date documentation
for the staff carrying out the various tasks of the laboratory. Document control can be
facilitated through hard copy and electronic means, but the burden of hard copy
control is such that for all but the smallest laboratories, electronic control should be
established. Off-the-shelf document control products are available but at a considera-
ble cost. However, freely available software, such as Google Docs, can be very
effectively used where resources are not available to buy a document control software
product.
