FAQ 50

A large company supplies services and products to many industrial and retail clients. Can they also supply inspection services to these clients as a type b inspection body? They have a financial interest in that it is based on the outcome of these inspections whether the supply of product can be done or not. The installation and equipment remain the property of the company and the client only pays for the gas that the receive. The company designs the installations and also submits to the local authority for approval along with their report that is done as per the Type B inspection body. The body is accredited as per ISO/IEC 17020.  

STANDARD: ISO/IEC 17020  ·  CLAUSE: Annex A.3  ·  TOPIC: Independence

Answer:

Yes. A Type B Inspection Body is for an “In-House Inspection Body” per 4.1.6b. The scenario provided would indicate that this would be a Type C Inspection Body per 4.1.6c. In order to become an accredited Type C Inspection Body, the IB would have to meet all of the requirements of ISO/IEC 17020, and would be evaluated against the requirements for a Type C IB as outlined in Annex A.3