CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

University laboratories are mainly involved in research projects that strengthen and complement teaching activities. These laboratories are progressively offering formal, qualified analytical services to regional production systems. This fosters the relationship between universities and society and, as an added benefit, yields laboratory financial support. Our laboratory provides public agencies and private customers with analytical services for the determination of pesticide residues in environmental matrices. In order to demonstrate our technical competence we decided to set up a Quality Management System through the UNILAB System according to ISO/IEC 17025. UNILAB is aimed at laboratories belonging to the public universities of Argentina and can be defined as a committee integrated by academics that acts as a guide for continuous improvement at three progressive levels: initial, intermediate and advanced. The ultimate goal for our laboratory is to attain the ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation. We drafted the quality manual, technical records, standard operating procedures, proficiency tests and internal and external audits, among other documents. Throughout this process the laboratory staff, including researches and undergraduate fellows, became acquainted with the advantages of gaining accreditation and got involved in the procedures adopted. Our analytical services and research activities use mostly the same analytical methods, thus we can presently ensure that research performed at our laboratory is conducted according to quality standards. This is significant given that research agencies are promoting the implementation of quality management systems in research laboratories. This study shows how the accreditation process was addressed by the Analytical Services Area and how this improvement was extended to research activities, setting a precedent in this field.