The ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board (ANAB) has acquired Accreditation Services Bureau, doing business as Laboratory Accreditation Bureau (L-A-B).
Like ANAB, L-A-B provides accreditation based on international standards for testing and calibration laboratories. The acquisition will allow ANAB to better serve a broader base of customers and meet growing market demand for accreditation services, while providing uninterrupted service to customers.
“L-A-B is a like-minded accreditation body focused on customer service and technical prowess,” John Knappenberger, ANAB president and CEO, said. “This acquisition brings valuable, trained human resources to ANAB and will allow us to better meet the needs of our customers.”
ANAB will retain all employees of L-A-B and they will continue to work at L-A-B’s offices in Fort Wayne, Indiana. ANAB will maintain the L-A-B brand, and current L-A-B customers will continue to be accredited under the L-A-B symbol.
Doug Leonard, who served as L-A-B’s president and chief operating oOfficer, will become vice president of the combined laboratory-related business for ANAB.
Keith Greenaway will move from the position of vice president to become chief operating officer for ANAB. In this newly created role, Greenaway will oversee ANAB’s three strategic accreditation business units: laboratory-related, forensics, and management systems.
Formal recognition from and membership in national and international oversight groups is important to enhancing credibility in the accreditation industry, and L-A-B has maintained recognition and memberships equivalent to that of ANAB.
“The acquisition brings ANAB valuable human resources that, among other things, will allow greater participation in industry groups whose work benefits our customers and their customers,” Greenaway said. “In addition, our relationships with our owners, ANSI and ASQ, will help us continue to advance our collective businesses.”
ANAB provides accreditation for ISO/IEC 17025 testing and calibration laboratories and forensic testing agencies, ISO/IEC 17020 inspection bodies and forensic inspection agencies, ISO Guide 34 reference material producers, ISO/IEC 17043 proficiency test providers, ISO 15189 medical test laboratories, ISO/IEC 17021 management systems certification bodies, and industry-specific programs. ANAB is a member of the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) and the International Accreditation Forum (IAF), and is a signatory of the ILAC and IAF multilateral recognition arrangements. Through these arrangements, ANAB cooperates with other accreditation bodies around the world to provide value to the organizations it has accredited and their clients, ensuring that accredited certificates and test results are recognized nationally and internationally. The global conformity assessment system ensures confidence and reduces risk for customers engaging in trade worldwide. For more information, visit www.anab.org.