ISO/IEC 17025 Accreditation · 5 min read
How to Read an A2LA Scope of Accreditation
The scope of accreditation is the document that turns "we’re accredited" into something you can actually verify. It is public, and reading it takes five minutes once you know the columns.
Part of our guide to ISO/IEC 17025 Accreditation, Decoded.
What a scope contains
A scope lists, by discipline (dimensional, electrical, pressure, and so on), the parameters the lab is accredited for, the measurement ranges, and the lab’s Calibration and Measurement Capability (CMC) — essentially the smallest uncertainty the lab can achieve for that measurement under ideal conditions. It is measurement-by-measurement, not a blanket statement.
How to confirm your measurement is covered
Find the discipline, then the parameter (e.g., "gauge blocks, steel"), then confirm your range falls inside the accredited range and that the CMC is small enough for your tolerance. If your measurement is not listed, a calibration the lab performs for it may still be traceable but will not be accredited. Always match the scope to the specific instrument and tolerance.
Common questions
Where do I find a lab’s scope?
In the accreditation body’s public directory. American Gage’s A2LA scope is linked from our accreditations page and available in the A2LA directory under certificate 4296.01.