A coordinated proficiency testing round brought nine mass laboratories to comparable results for the first time, opening the way to wider recognition of their calibration certificates.
Mass is the measurement most industries ask for first: weighing in trade, dosing in manufacturing and portioning in pharmaceuticals all depend on it. Yet until recently, several laboratories in the sub-region had never compared their results with their neighbours.
Through the AFRIMETS proficiency testing programme, a travelling set of reference weights visited nine laboratories over eight months. Each laboratory calibrated the set with its own procedures and reported results with uncertainties, which were then evaluated against the reference values of the pilot laboratory.
The comparison showed us exactly where to improve, and the support that followed made the improvement possible.
Seven laboratories achieved satisfactory results in the first round. The two that did not were supported with a technical visit and a repeat measurement, and both reached agreement within a further three months. The documented evidence now supports the laboratories' claims in the regional peer-review process.
The round also produced a shared uncertainty budget template, which the technical committee has since adopted as guidance for the whole region.