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1. What is the MAA?
The MAA is a framework document which establishes the
rules for signing Declarations of Mutual Confidence (DoMC) related to
categories of measuring instruments.
2. What is a Declaration of Mutual Confidence (DoMC)?
A Declaration of Mutual Confidence is a declaration signed
by various bodies in charge of legal metrology activities in different
countries, by which they declare that they will voluntarily accept test
results of type evaluations conducted according to the OIML specifications
and possibly additional specifications. A DoMC concerns a specific category
of instruments, therefore there will be different DoMCs for the various
categories.
3. What is an OIML Test Report?
An OIML Test Report is a report drawn up according to
the Test Report Format specified in the relevant Recommendation. This
report gives:
-
the results of the tests carried out during the
type evaluation,
-
the results of the examinations conducted during
the type evaluation,
-
a conclusion as to whether the instrument tested
complies with the requirements.
The OIML Certificate of Conformity is issued on the
basis of this OIML Test Report.
The OIML Test Report is issued under the responsability
of the Issuing Authority since it includes the conclusions of the type
evaluation (whether the type meets the requirements or not ).
In the revision of OIML B3 OIML Certificate System
for Measuring Instruments, the "OIML Test Report" will
be renamed "OIML Evaluation Report".
This Evaluation Report may include several test reports
issued by different laboratories if several laboratories have participated
in examining and testing the measuring instrument.
If issuing a national type approval requires additional
tests and examinations, an additional report may be established. This
additional report is called a "Complete Evaluation Report".
It includes the OIML Evaluation Report and the test reports related
to the relevant additional tests and examinations.
4. Who are the participants in a DoMC?
There are Participants (Member States) and Associates
(Corresponding Members).
Two types of participants may be distinguished:
-
a Utilizing Participant,
-
an Issuing Participant.
An Issuing Participant is an OIML Issuing Authority
which issues OIML Certificates. These Certificates validate OIML Test
Reports. An Issuing Participant is also a Utilizing Participant.
A Utilizing Participant will accept OIML Test Reports
validated by OIML Certificates but will not issue any OIML MAA Tests
Report or OIML MAA Certificate under the DoMC.
A Utilizing Participant may be either a National Issuing
Authority, or a National Responsible Body, or an OIML Issuing Authority.
Associates (from OIML Corresponding Members) are similar
to Utilizing Participants but do not participate in the Committee
on Participation Review (CPR).
5. Who will pay the participation fees?
The participation fees are due by the Issuing Participants
in a DoMC, when they have submitted an application (accompanied
by a complete file) according to 4.9 of OIML B 10. These fees
are due for the examination of the candidacy of an Issuing Authority.
Utilizing Participants will not have to bear these participation
fees.
These fees were approved at the 12th International
Conference of Legal Metrology. For the amounts, please refer to
the synthesis of CIML decisions related to the MAA, available under
the heading "General Documentation".
6. What will be the binding character of participants' signatures?
There is no legally binding obligation to respect
such a signature, and no dispute on this matter will be ever brought
before a court of law.
But one can be relatively confident that no one
will sign if he does not intend to respect his obligations. A
signatory who did subsequently not accept test results without
serious reasons would be expelled from the DoMC and his reputation
would suffer from this.
This system is voluntary; nobody is obliged to
sign DoMCs, but this is a guarantee of good cooperation.
7. Is it legal for a national body to sign a DoMC?
Yes, it is legal in all countries, as far as
is known.
When a national body declares that he intends
to accept other bodies' test results, this does not give other
bodies legal authority in the country. When serious reasons
arise which lead to rejection of the results of a given test
report, then it is acceptable that the participant does not
accept them. The test reports and Certificates issued by other
countries' participants have no legal status in the country.
Each participant maintains his legal authority
and responsibility at national level.
8. Will legal metrology bodies be obliged to participate?
Of course not: as mentioned above, this is
a voluntary system.
This being said, all national legal metrology
bodies are encouraged to participate in this system. Several
reasons may be put forward to show the importance of participating:
-
For countries who signed the Technical
Barriers to Trade Agreement (World Trade Organization),
this Agreement urges them to participate in such systems,
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Participants in a DoMC will benefit from
being permanently informed of the latest technologies
and from being made aware of the technical knowledge of
other participants,
-
Participants in a DoMC will indirectly
benefit from the availability of other participants' facilities,
especially when they do not have such facilities themselves,
-
For bodies who operate in
a competitive market, it would be a commercial handicap
not to participate in DoMCs.
9. What does the application file have to contain?
- An official letter confirming participation
in the MAA and the type of participation (Issuing Participant
or Utilizing Participant for each category);
-
The most recent internal audit report
according to ISO/EIC Guide 65 using the Checklists (OIML
B 10);
-
A certificate of accreditation covering
the scope of the DoMC, if applicable;
-
Evidence, if applicable, that this accreditation
has been delivered by a National Accreditation Body which
an ILAC-MRA signatory;
-
Information about the type testing capabilities
(Annex C of OIML B 10);
-
A list of subcontracting testing laboratories
indicating, for each one, which tests it performs;
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The certificates of accreditation of the
subcontracting testing laboratories, if applicable,
-
The most recent internal audit report
of each subcontracting testing laboratory according to
ISO/CEI 17-025 using the Checklists (OIML B 10),
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The results of intercomparisons, if applicable,
-
Information about additional tests and
examinations required for national type approval, if applicable,
-
A copy of the most recent
OIML Test Report(s) issued for the considered category(ies).
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10. What do "Accreditation" and "Intercomparisons"
mean in Annex C of OIML B 10?
Annex C of OIML B 10 is a questionnaire
about testing capabilities.
These testing capabilities and, more generally
Accreditation and Intercomparisons, are related to type
evaluation tests according to the relevant OIML Recommendations.
11. Will sending an application mean that the applicant
commits itself to signing a DoMC when finalized?
We must remain very flexible about this
process. Sending an application means that the Issuing
Authority envisages signing a DoMC, but is not a commitment
to sign it.
In the process of development of a DoMC,
a number of issues will be discussed. A potential participant
can disagree with the conclusions of the CPR and decide
to remain outside the DoMC at least for the time being.
The CPR set up before the signature of
a DoMC will be a provisional CPR, and any Member of it
may decide to withdraw once the DoMC is finally signed.
The "final" CPR will be composed of representative of
signatories after the DoMC is signed.
However, we can assume that sending in
an application means that the potential participant does
wish to sign the DoMC, and moreover that hopefully he
will sign it.
12. Who shall be assessed by peer assessment?
An Issuing Authority (Issuing Participant
in the DoMC) and/or a subcontracting Testing Laboratory
which performs type evaluation examination and/or testing,
and which is not accredited for those type evaluation
tests and examinations as specified by the identified
clauses of the applicable OIML Recommendations, shall
be assessed by peer assessment.
The CPR will examine the scope of peer
assessment when an Issuing Authority or a subcontracting
Test Laboratory is accredited only for one category
(e.g. NAWI type evaluation tests) and applies to be
an Issuing Participant in the other category too (e.g.
Load Cells). The type of tests and the metrological
characteristics (e.g. measuring range) under the scope
of the accreditation and the similarity of tests and
of testing facilities between the two categories will
be taken into account.
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