Oxford Gene Technology this week announced that its Genefficiency and CytoSure array comparative genomic hybridization services have been accredited as meeting the International Organization for Standardization's 17025:2005 standard.
The 17025 standard relates to laboratory testing, including the competence of laboratory staff, validity and traceability of technical results, and proficiency in testing using standard and laboratory-developed methods, according to the ISO.
CEO Mike Evans said in a statement that the certification "proves that the company can provide the necessary structure and skills to offer its specialist services as part of a clinical diagnostic workflow."
Evans told BioArray News in an e-mail this week that the ISO 17025 accreditation is "one of the highest accreditations that can be attained by an analytical genomic services laboratory," and said it "complements" OGT's status as the first high-throughput certified service provider for Agilent Technologies microarrays.
The United Kingdom Accreditation Service awarded Oxford-based OGT the accreditation after an audit by UKAS that covered sample tracking and processing, data analysis, quality control, traceability, business continuity, staff training, as well as OGT's general quality and security policies, the firm said.
The accreditation is among a trio of ISO certifications that the UK company has gained in the last year. OGT achieved compliance with ISO/IEC 27001:2005, an information security management standard, in September 2010. It also received certification with the ISO 9001:2008 standard, which relates to quality management systems, in June of last year (BAN 9/14/2010).
Santa Clara, Calif.-based Agilent certified OGT as a high-throughput service provider last year (BAN 3/2/2010).
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