ISO IEC Guide 25-1990 PDF

Full title and description

ISO/IEC Guide 25:1990 — "General requirements for the competence of calibration and testing laboratories". This joint ISO/IEC Guide (3rd edition, 1990) defined the general criteria and requirements used to assess and demonstrate the technical competence of laboratories performing tests and calibrations.

Abstract

Guide 25:1990 set out both management and technical requirements for laboratory competence (personnel, equipment, methods, traceability, quality systems and reporting). It provided the basis for national accreditation schemes and for later conversion into a full International Standard for laboratory competence.

General information

• Status: Withdrawn / Replaced (withdrawn as an international guide and superseded by a formal standard).
• Publication date: December 1990 (3rd edition, 1990-12).
• Publisher: ISO and IEC (joint publication under the CASCO technical committee).
• ICS / categories: 03.120.20 (Conformity assessment; product and company certification).
• Edition / version: Edition 3 (1990).
• Number of pages: 6 (technical guide document length as published in 1990).

Key bibliographic and lifecycle metadata (status, edition, ICS and page count) are recorded by the ISO and IEC bibliographic entries for Guide 25:1990.

Scope

Specifies general requirements intended to establish confidence in the operation and results of calibration and testing laboratories. Scope includes requirements for laboratory organization, personnel competence, equipment and measurement traceability, validated methods, quality assurance and the form and content of test reports and calibration certificates. The guide was intended to enable mutual acceptance of laboratory results between jurisdictions and to support national accreditation systems.

Key topics and requirements

• Laboratory organization, responsibilities and management structure.
• Competence, training and qualifications of personnel.
• Quality system elements and documentation (management and technical requirements).
• Equipment, calibration, maintenance and measurement traceability.
• Validation and verification of test and calibration methods.
• Sampling, handling of test items and prevention of contamination or mix-ups.
• Reporting of results, calibration certificates and record keeping.
• Assessment of measurement uncertainty and its communication.
• Impartiality, confidentiality and use of subcontracting.

These topics form the technical and management backbone that later became formalized and expanded in ISO/IEC 17025.

Typical use and users

Used by testing and calibration laboratories, accreditation bodies, regulators, conformity assessment bodies, procurement specialists and quality managers to define or assess laboratory competence and to support accreditation programmes. National accreditation schemes used Guide 25 as a reference when establishing criteria for accrediting laboratories prior to the publication of ISO/IEC 17025.

Related standards

Directly superseded by ISO/IEC 17025:1999 (the first edition of ISO/IEC 17025 cancelled and replaced ISO/IEC Guide 25:1990). Subsequent revisions of ISO/IEC 17025 were published in 2005 and 2017. Related and historically linked documents include earlier editions of Guide 25 (1978, 1982), regional standards such as EN 45001 (1989) and various ILAC/EA accreditation guidance documents that reference the Guide and its successor standards.

Keywords

laboratory competence, calibration, testing, accreditation, quality system, measurement traceability, measurement uncertainty, ISO/IEC Guide 25, conformity assessment

FAQ

Q: What is this standard?

A: ISO/IEC Guide 25:1990 is a joint ISO/IEC guide (3rd edition) titled "General requirements for the competence of calibration and testing laboratories" that established general technical and management requirements for laboratories.

Q: What does it cover?

A: It covers management and technical requirements needed to demonstrate laboratory competence: organization, personnel, equipment and calibration, validated methods, sampling, reporting and quality assurance, including provisions on traceability and uncertainty.

Q: Who typically uses it?

A: Testing and calibration laboratories, accreditation and certification bodies, regulators and purchasers of laboratory services used the guide as the basis for assessment and accreditation activities. National accreditation bodies relied on it when evaluating laboratories before the adoption of ISO/IEC 17025.

Q: Is it current or superseded?

A: Guide 25:1990 is withdrawn and superseded. It was replaced by ISO/IEC 17025:1999; the guide was formally withdrawn in the late 1990s (the IEC bibliographic record shows a withdrawal date of 16 December 1999). Users should reference the current edition of ISO/IEC 17025 for up-to-date requirements.

Q: Is it part of a series?

A: Yes — Guide 25 was part of the lineage of ISO/IEC guidance and standards on laboratory competence (earlier Guide 25 editions and later the ISO/IEC 17025 family). It is associated with ISO CASCO work on conformity assessment and links to other conformity and quality standards such as ISO 9001 and regional EN documents.

Q: What are the key keywords?

A: Laboratory competence, calibration, testing, accreditation, quality system, traceability, measurement uncertainty, ISO/IEC Guide 25, ISO/IEC 17025.