Accreditation provides independent assurance on the technical competence and integrity of organisations offering audit and inspection services, giving stakeholders confidence in the consistency and quality of the certificates being issued.
ISO 19650-2 does not in itself constitute a certification scheme so certification bodies that wish to be accredited need to develop a process certification scheme that takes into account ISO/IEC 17067:2013 Conformity assessment — Fundamentals of product certification and guidelines for product certification schemes.
LRQA’s BIM Level 2 certification scheme was the first in the market, launched back in 2012. LRQA’s scheme builds on PAS 1192-2 and introduced additional requirements that ensure consistency of delivery - a decision that was validated by their inclusion in the ISO 19650-2 requirements. LRQA’s scheme will be evaluated as part of the assessment.
Commenting on the pilot, Karl Miller, Service Delivery Manager at LRQA said, “We are pleased to take part in UKAS’s pilot programme for Accreditation of LRQA’s BIM Level 2 scheme because it will provide an additional level of confidence and trust within the market and demonstrates the expertise and credibility of the certification body.” He adds, “Working towards accreditation will strengthen our portfolio of products for the construction industry, which includes ISO 55001 for Asset Management and BOPAS, the Buildoffsite Property Assurance Scheme.”
UKAS, the national accreditation body for the UK, will run the pilot assessments against ISO/IEC 17065:2012, which are the requirements for bodies certifying products, processes and services. The aim of the programme is for UKAS to confirm the applicability of the relevant standards, identify any areas which need further guidance and to establish a proportionate and robust assessment approach. The timescales for the pilot programme are to be confirmed in light of the current COVID-19 restrictions and discussions are in progress to investigate the options for remote assurance for the BIM scheme and assessment programme.