Ans. NCB is the first NABL accredited PT Provider Chemical and mechanical field) in the country. The scope of accreditation includes, cement, clinker, fly ash, limestone, coal/coke, granulated slag and water in chemical field and cement, fly ash, aggregate in mechanical field. NCB has completed 35 PT schemes till date.

Ans. It is accredited by NABL for calibration of equipment in mechanical and thermal field. A large number of areas: force, pressure, dimension, revolution,. Temperature and RH are covered.

Ans. Certified Reference Materials are used for the calibration of equipment, preparation of standard solutions, validation of a test procedure and checking proficiency of a chemist/operator. NCB is the sole provider of CRMS for cement and construction materials sector. Many of these CRMS are mandatory for calibration of equipment under BIS scheme of testing and inspection (STI) for cement industry.

Ans. It is a parameter associated with the result of measurement that characterizes the dispersion of the true values which could reasonably be attributed to the measurand.

Ans. Scope : Assessment of physical and chemical testing laboratory facilities vis-à-vis BIS requirements; Identification of areas needing improvement; Calibration of laboratory equipment and devices with reference standards and SRMs by NCB’s NABL accredited Independent Calibration Laboratories (CTM, VM, Physical Balance, Precision Balance, Muffle Furnace, Oven, Blaine Air-permeability Apparatus-one each); Interactive sessions including lectures on principal concepts of sampling, sample preparation and testing as per BIS methods; Laboratory demonstrations, practice sessions and parallel testing exercises as per BIS methods on raw materials, coal, fly ash, clinker and cement; Report including recommendations for continual improvement. Time Target : 3 months

Ans. Scope : Visit of physical and chemical testing laboratory of plant and assessment of facilities vis-à-vis BIS requirement; Identification of equipment and accessories for testing as per BIS norms; Checking the Calibration status of the laboratory equipment and devices; Assessment of competence of laboratory personnel; Review of sampling practices, testing methods and procedures; Assessment of Quality Assurance System of the cement plant; Submission of report on the overall assessment. Time Target : 3 months

Ans. Scope : Submission of 7 nos. representative samples of each material (limestone, clinker, OPC and PPC) to NCB by plant for development of standards (total 28 standards for 4 materials); Homogenization of 7 nos. samples of each material (limestone, clinker, OPC and PPC); Statistical check of homogeneity of samples; Packing of each homogenised sample in bottles, each containing 50g material; Drawing up of analytical programme (analysis as per relevant IS standard on predefined adequate number of sub-samples) for development of 7 standards (for each material) for the following constituents: LOI, SiO2, Fe2O3, Al2O3, CaO, MgO, SO3, Na2O, K2O, and Cl; Analysis of homogenised limestone (as per IS 1760:1991, 1992) and clinker & cement (as per IS 4032: 1985) samples in NCB laboratories as per analytical programme; Submission of 50 nos. sealed bottles of each standard (350 bottles of 7 standards, therefore total 1,400 bottles for 4 materials); Statistical evaluation of data; Assignment of true value with uncertainty in measurement as per ISO guidelines; Preparation of report with certificate of analysis of standards; Submission of certificates and report. Time Target : 3 months for each material.

Ans. Scope : Introduction to ISO 17025: 2005 requirements for top management; Awareness programme on ISO 17025: 2005 requirements for the core team; Training of laboratory personnel on ISO 17025: 2005 accreditation requirements; Assistance in preparation of quality manual and executive procedures; Guidance in preparing standard operational procedures for OPC 43, 53 and PPC (fly ash based) maintaining laboratory records; Training of laboratory personnel on measurement uncertainty calculation; Assistance in internal audit and management review; Assistance in submission of application for accreditation with assessing bodies; Assistance in preparation for final assessment; Guidance in resolving non-conformities raised during assessment. Time Target : 6 months for filing application for accreditation.

Ans. Scope : Basic quality concepts; NABL accreditation norms; ISO/IEC 17025:2005 laboratory management system; Management requirements of the standard; Technical requirements of the standard; Documentation structure for compliance and accreditation; Skill development in system documentation; Group and individual exercises on standard requirements; Specific criteria of accreditation; Equipment calibration, traceability and in-service checks; Internal audit process and procedure; Mock sessions on internal audit; Practical sessions on laboratory audit; Identification of non-conformities in management and technical system; Management review process and procedure for system improvement. Time Target : 4 Days.