Montana: Pine Creek LakeJuly 2014

SUSTAINING QUALITY: MONTANA’S STORY

Lab Accreditation Meeting San Diego, March 11th

Sustaining Quality: Montana’s Story

• Who are we?

• Why pursue accreditation?

• How we did it!

MT Department of Agriculture Lab

• Analytical Chemistry Testing Laboratory

• 8.625 FTE

• Montana State University

• Bozeman, MT

• ~2,500 samples per year

MT Department of Agriculture Lab

• ~1/2 Feed /Fertilizer samples

• ~1/2 Pesticide samples

• ISO 17025 Accreditation November 2014

• 2 Feed, 1 Fertilizer Method

• 0.5 FTE QAO position

MT Department of Agriculture Lab

• 2003-2013 USDA PDP Water Survey Program

• 3 methods for testing pesticides in water

• 2006-2008 : 2 years to complete accreditation

• 2008-2013: accredited 5 years

• 2013 Inactive Status

Why pursue accreditation?

• The HAPPENING: Accreditation Movement

• FSMA: LAB Accreditation critical

• 2 Tiers: Have and Have Not's

• Did we want to be part of the movement?

Why pursue accreditation?

• Wrestled with Decision over several months

• No FDA funding

• Customer: no accreditation needed

• No one was pushing or asking

Why pursue accreditation?• Better Data Quality

• Continual LAB Improvement

• Build Quality System to last

• Professional growth

• Adds value to customers

Why pursue accreditation?

• Time and resource drain

• It Costs

• Measure value? Not much value added?

• Is it worth it?

Why pursue accreditation?

• We care about data quality

• We care about lab processes

• We care about professional growth

• We didn’t just want to do a job…

• We wanted to do an A+ job!

Why pursue accreditation?

• Wave of the future

• It was going to be hard, extra work

• No funding or extra staff

• Management support

How we did it!

• We believed in the value of accreditation

• We knew we could do it!

• Prior experience with accreditation

• Enthusiasm and drive to complete it

How we did it!

• Team approach—4 of us helping.

• February 2014-November 2014

• 2 Feed drug methods

• 1 Fertilizer Nitrogen method

• Working on adding protein to scope

How we did it!

• Maintaining Accreditation

• QAO: 0.5 FTE ~$ 35,000.00

• Operating: ~$7,000.00

• TOTAL: ~$42,000.00

Accreditation Family

• Network of support

• Comradery

• Part of the ISO community

• Never be alone

Conclusions

• Accreditation is so doable!

• Many hand make for light work

• Formal recognition of lab technical capabilities

Acknowledgements

• Dan Singer

• Robin Johnson

• Cara Robertus

• Jona Verreth

 “Most people say that it is the intellect which makes a great scientist. They are wrong: it is

character.”Albert Einstein

MIDWEST AOAC meeting

• June 8-10th 2015

• Bozeman, MT

• SYMPOSIA:• Pesticides at work in the Agriculture LAB  • State AG FEED LABS going ISO-Say what?  • Veterinary Toxicology and Mycotoxins • NFTA technical presentations  • Food Safety:  Chemistry and Microbiology Applications • ICP workshop   • LIMS issues

 

• SPECIAL EVENTS:• Vendor expo and presentations• Tuesday evening social: Mountain Chalet surrounded by snowcapped mountains• Casper-Helfe Memorial Golf Outing