The latest EA Multilateral Agreement (EA MLA) report which provides statistical information on the number of signatories to the EA MLA, as well as an overview of the key activities completed in both 2013 and 2014 to further develop the MLA coverage and to strengthen the operation of the EA peer evaluation system, has just been released.

In 2013 and 2014, the EA MLA Council (MAC) held a total of 4 meetings at which decisions on EA MLA signature were made.

The MAC Secretariat was successfully transferred to the EA Secretariat in Paris after the retirement of Marga Zaffe on 21 March 2014. The MAC Secretariat is now composed of three persons: Martine Blum is the MAC Secretary; Lydie Mauger is responsible for the management and planning of peer evaluations; Elodie Lambert, as the new WG Training Secretary, is responsible for evaluator training and management.

EA MLA signatories and peer-evaluation activities: current overview in figures

During 2013 and 2014, a total of 28 EA Full Members signed for extension of activities covered by the EA MLA. Among those, 25 national accreditation bodies (NABs) became MLA signatories in the field of Greenhouse Gas Verification (ISO 14065) in combination with EU Regulation No 600/2012.

In 2014, 2 EA Associate Members signed for extension of activity covered by their Bilateral Agreement (EA BLA).

A total of 25 NABs were peer-evaluated in 2013 and 2014, when a total of 62 evaluation reports were considered during the MAC meetings, all types taken together (re-evaluation, initial evaluation, extraordinary evaluation, applications for new MLA activities, progress reports, reporting on compliance with the EA MLA requirements and conditions for signature).

One NAB was suspended in 2014 before being reintegrated into the EA MLA at the end of the year.

EA MLA development and improvement for the coming years

At its meeting in October 2014, the MAC agreed to develop the EA MLA for inclusion of ISO/IEC 17043 for accreditation in the field of proficiency testing providers (PTP). The development of the EA MLA for inclusion of accreditation of reference material producers (RMP) is also progressing. Harmonization training activities, targeted at both NAB assessors and EA evaluators already qualified for testing/calibration, are being planned.

The pilot program for enhancement of the EA peer-evaluation system has been progressing during the last 2 years:

– the peer-evaluation plan was reviewed and a few evaluations were redistributed to ensure better balanced annual plan and use of evaluator resources;

– an online survey was performed in June 2014 in order to enhance the reliability of evaluators’ data and to get a comprehensive and updated picture of the current evaluation resources in the MAC. Information was collected with a greater level of details in the description of competencies, which are to be used to support and improve the process for appointment of evaluation teams;

– a comprehensive analysis of peer-evaluation processes was completed, leading to transferring some tasks and responsibilities from the MAC Management Group to the MAC Secretariat with a view to boost efficiency and timeliness;

– an IT project started in 2013 aims to implement a tool for the daily management and administration of peer-evaluations and evaluators. Online services are expected to be developed by late 2016 for more friendly access and use of documents and templates;

– a new policy for the organization and planning of MAC training activities was endorsed to ensure regular and systematic refresher trainings for team members and team leaders, and to put an enhanced focus on the horizontal issues of peer-evaluation such as evaluation techniques, risks, documentation and statistical information. How to deal with purely technical issues and application of the standards for harmonization purposes remains a full responsibility of the EA technical committees.

Exhaustive information and statistics, including the list of Full and Associate Member signatories for each EA MLA scope on the date of 31 December 2014, are given in the EA MLA Annual Report 2014 which remains available on the EA website at: http://www.european-accreditation.org/promotional-information#3