Issued in France by Cofrac, accreditation is both the cornerstone and the first link in the chain of confidence.
When undergoing health checks, or when we consume a product or a service, we want to be sure of the competence of the bodies responsible for inspection. A Cofrac accreditation recognises and certifies the competences and impartiality of the inspection bodies, nationally and even internationally.
To understand the role and responsibilities of each stakeholder, a definition of accreditation is required. Accrediting means certifying the competences of an inspection body, whatever the field in which it is involved.
In defining accreditation, it is important to remember that in our day-to-day lives all products or services that we consume are subject to inspections. These inspections are conducted by bodies which, when accredited, are themselves inspected. Their competences are then certified by an accreditation system with reference to the norms, standards, or regulations in force.
The definition and role of accreditation can be conceived as a means of providing reassurance about the inspections carried out. For example, this may involve assessing the impartiality and technical competence of the body that inspects the quality of the air that we breathe. In concrete terms, the accreditation issued by Cofrac to test, analysis, calibration and biomedical laboratories, and to certification and inspection bodies, serves to consolidate confidence and trust between the stakeholders: the inspection body, consumers or service providers, customers and partners, public authorities, etc.
In around half of cases, recourse to accreditation is a voluntary initiative. In other words, an inspection body may decide to invest in a process with Cofrac in line with its strategic imperatives. Not all inspection bodies are required to be accredited. However, in recent years this approach has been gaining ground in the regulatory field. The public authorities sometimes demand accreditation as a prerequisite for a future approval.
In France, only Cofrac is certified to issue accreditations. As an accrediting body, we inspect and certify the independence, impartiality and competence of bodies for a fixed period: 4 years for the first application, then 5 years. This process is punctuated by follow-up assessments, to verify and inspect compliance with the requirements. The cost of the accreditation process depends on the scope applied for, which determines the size of our team of assessors and the duration of our mission.
In France, Cofrac is the only national body designated and recognised by the government to issue accreditations. This activity therefore falls within the remit of the public authorities. Each accreditation has a specific scope, i.e. a well-defined perimeter depending on the sector and/or standards environment of the applicant body. Different from certification or approval, accreditation is comparable
