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2003-01-14 Accreditation for the Experimental Compliance Sampling of Electronic Electricity Meters
The purpose of this communique is to provide guidance to organizations interested in seeking accreditation under the experimental compliance sampling program for electronic electricity meters.
Compliance sampling is considered a major expansion of scope of accreditation, however, for the purposes of the experimental program, Measurement Canada will process some applications as minor expansions. At the conclusion of the experimental program, all applications will be considered major expansions.
Organizations that have not previously been accredited for compliance sampling of electricity meters will be considered to be making a major expansion of scope of accreditation. These organizations will be required to submit the applicable documentation, have the documentation accepted by Measurement Canada, and be site audited to verify implementation prior to being granted accreditation for experimental compliance sampling of electronic electricity meters.
Organizations that have been previously accredited for compliance sampling of electricity meters will be considered to be making a minor revision to their quality system. These organizations will be required to submit documentation and have the documentation changes accepted by Measurement Canada at the regional level. A site audit by Measurement Canada will not required prior to the granting of accreditation, but a site audit should be conducted within six months as part of normal surveillance activities.
The Program Development Directorate of Measurement Canada is finalizing administrative and technical requirements for the experimental compliance sampling of electronic electricity meters which will be posted on the MC web site within the next few weeks. Organizations seeking accreditation under the experimental program, must submit documentation in accordance with the latest requirements on this subject issued by the Program Development Directorate. In addition, under the experiment, the sampling and acceptance criteria are established and applied by the Program Development Directorate. Therefore, organizations seeking accreditation do not need to incorporate these criteria in their documentation. They need only mention that the sampling and acceptance criteria are as defined by Measurement Canada (Program Development Directorate).
Once inspected, meters sampled for the purpose of the experiment are to be quarantined until the Program Development Directorate has completed the evaluation of the test data and has approved the release of the meters. The inspection certificates are to be signed by the accredited organization once the approval from Program Development Directorate has been received.
At the conclusion of the experimental program, all participants wishing to retain accreditation must incorporate the necessary policies and procedures in their quality management systems, based on the finalized requirements. Applicants are also expected to update their documentation should technical requirements change as the experiment progresses.
For additional information regarding this communique, please contact Mr. Bruce Lyng for technical questions and Ms. Sonia Roussy for accreditation related questions.
Alan E. Johnston
President, Measurement Canada
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Measurement Canada
