Why Choose Eurofins ?
Compelling reasons to choose Eurofins Laboratories as your Public Analyst partner
Your Quality Partner
The accuracy of test results produced by our laboratory network is fundamental to our business. Without the assurance of precision analysis undertaken to reputable and internationally recognised standards of accreditation our service would be worthless. We fully appreciate that our Local Authorities rely upon this accuracy of results to assist their enforcement role.
Our Quality System is ISO 17025 equivalent and in the UK this entails UKAS accreditation. First offered by UKAS in 2000, we were one of the first laboratories in the UK to gain Group accreditation for our range of test procedures and testing facilities. Local Authority clients now have the added confidence that samples sent to any of our facilities across the country attract the same high level of testing accuracy and reproducibility, with the stamp of independent accreditation under the direction of a Public Analyst.
Our size allows us to invest heavily in the latest technology to provide our Authorities with the most accurate and specific analytical determinations.
Our quality is also in our staff. We have a focussed programme of personal development in place that ensures that we retain good scientific personnel and support staff, whom we recognise as the bedrock of our business. All laboratories are open for inspection and audit, either before any samples are submitted or whilst samples are in progress. We believe that our Authorities should be able to walk into any of our laboratories and be pleased that they chose us to conduct their analysis. Regular progress meetings are therefore encouraged and we like to use these opportunities to ensure that we continue to deliver our promises and meet the evolving requirements of our Local Authority clients.
We understand that our Local Authorities are progressive and need to meet the demands of new legislation, EU Directives and the influence of the Food Standards Agency. We are aware of the need to be flexible to maintain the high benchmark that we set with each of our Local Authorities by agreeing Key Performance Indicators to maintain an effective partnership.
- Eurofins Quality Policy and Schedules of Accreditation (opens in new window)
What do we offer our Local Authority customers?
Our system is designed to provide our Local Authority clients with smooth delivery of test results and prompt lead times.
All samples are assessed locally and directed by the Public Analyst to the appropriate Eurofins facility for analysis. Provision for tracking the progress of samples is effected by our own software, which is common to all our laboratories. The recipient laboratory is immediately aware of any samples in transit and likewise, the local laboratory is progressively updated with all test results as they become available.
Members of our Public Analyst Team visit the Competence Centres where analyses are performed on behalf of our Local Authorities. Analysis of formal and informal (official) samples is undertaken under the direction of a Public Analyst to fully comply with the requirements of the Food Safety Act. Your samples and potential legal proceedings remain safe in our hands.
Best Value for Money
Achieving best value for money is a common goal for all of our Local Authority Clients. This is demonstrated by our high quality, our added value services and our competitive price list for analysis.
Technical Seminars
Our Technical Seminars and Workshops are regular events and we arrange several throughout the year on a wide range of different subject areas including topical food safety alerts. These forums allow Local Authority Officers to meet colleagues from other Authorities working in the same field and become up to date on the latest developments in their sectors so that we can collectively extend our knowledge. All seminar attendees qualify for Continued Professional Development (CPD) and all Officers receive signed Certification to add to their personal professional training file.
The real benefit of a partnership is learning from each other and we actively promote events and meetings to foster this relationship. External speakers are invited to present on a variety of key topics and subject specialists from the Food Standards Agency and LACORS are regular guests.
News Feeds Service
Our RSS News Feeds service gives you direct links to a range of news feeds we have selected as amongst the most useful available. Continually updated by their providers, these feeds keep you in touch with the latest issues.
Collaborative Surveys
The power of the Internet has also been harnessed to deliver best value for money as demonstrated by our Collaborative Survey Programme. We canvas opinion on sampling plans and topical areas that concern our Local Authority clients and then devise Collaborative Surveys so that all our Authorities can benefit from each other’s contribution. Fixed budgets can be stretched to provide each Authority with access to many times more data than they could otherwise afford to generate by acting on their own.
When a survey topic has been agreed we develop a sampling protocol and proceed with the survey exercise across the UK. All results are posted to secure web pages, for which all participating Authorities have their own password and where all data can be reviewed. The multiplier effect of submitting, say, five samples and gaining access to results from over three hundred samples is of real benefit for day to day information on food safety problems.
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