Labels identifying accredited standards - Considering making labels with A2LA Logo

ScottBP

Involved In Discussions
We are considering making some labels with the A2LA logo on them to affix to our calibrated equipment that is A2LA accredited (in addition to the normal cal. sticker showing the date due), in order to distinguish them from equipment that is not accredited. Does anyone else do this? Is it even OK to put the logo on equipment? In addition to the A2LA logo, we would like to make labels of some sort to identify which are primary standards, reference standards, working standards, limited use calibration, no calibration required, etc. Obviously, we could use a Dymo tape printer to do this, but we want to know what others are doing to distinguish the different levels of traceability of their equipment, such as color coding, etc. Are there any guidelines to follow?
 

Hershal

Metrologist-Auditor
Trusted Information Resource
ScottBP,

I STRONGLY suggest that you obtain and read the rules for use of the A2LA logo. Then talk to A2LA.

No other AB that I am familiar with (including ours) allows the use of the logo on a calibration sticker that goes on a piece of equipment. The reason is very simple: putting it on the sticker can be misleading in that the user may think that the product (equipment) is accredited, or that the specific calibration is accredited apart from the laboratory. In reality, the laboratory is accredited to perform specific types of calibrations. It is not the specific calibration that is accredited, it is the laboratory.

Hope this helps.

Hershal
 

Hershal

Metrologist-Auditor
Trusted Information Resource
Oh, stickers to denote reference and working standards and similar catagories is fine.

Hershal
 

ScottBP

Involved In Discussions
We've already talked to the A2LA auditors before about putting the logo on accredited equipment we send out to the customers and they told us not to, and we don't, even though we have seen others do it. But many of our customers who want accredited calibrations specify that they have to have a certificate showing the A2LA or NVLAP logo on it, which we do provide for them.

What I meant is that we would use the logo on our own in-house standards to identify which items have the uncertainties that are reported on our scope. Example: Standard A has it's uncertainties listed on our scope. Standard B tests the same parameters, but is not quite as accurate. A customer requests an accredited calibration on a unit that is normally calibrated by standard B, therefore we'll use standard A instead. Having a logo on Standard A would be a quick way for the technician performing the calibration that it is listed on our scope. Maybe to avoid confusion, we should just use a big "A" sticker instead. But then it goes back to denoting reference and working standards as well as ones used to perform accredited calibrations, and wanting to know what others are doing, in order to get some ideas on a similar identification method for ourselves. For instance, a nuke plant I worked at one time used white labels for routinely calibrated standards, yellow for limited use calibrations, blue for no calibration required, red for calibrate before use, etc., and then I thought we could further that by using separate labels to denote primary standards (by primary, I mean our highest level in-house standards), working standards, which ones are listed on our scope, etc., but didn't want too many messy stickers all over our equipment.
 

Wes Bucey

Prophet of Profit
I don't mean to be your attorney here, but you are proposing an illegal use of the "logo" of another company. You are within your rights to use the "name" or some other identifier to indicate which of your instruments was "traceable" to an individual organization, just not the "logo." For example, you could use "ibm" in lower case letters (any font) to indicate an instrument was to be used on products for IBM, the company, but you could not use the IBM logo (see thumbnail) except in the explanatory work instruction "use instruments marked "ibm" on products intended for IBM" because it would fall under "fair use" rules. Same goes for all companies with registered trademark logos, unless and until you have a written authorization from the organization whose logo you plan to use.
 

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