Introduction
The efficient international trading of wool
requires:
IWTO Certificates are essential in achieving
these requirements. IWTO Testing Standards and
Regulations have been developed by the international wool trade to
specifically meet the needs of buyers and sellers. Both parties can
utilise IWTO Certificates with confidence, knowing that these
certificates are produced by impartial, independently audited test
houses and that they are recognised by the IWTO Arbitration process (the
“Blue Book”.)
Test Houses licensed by IWTO to issue IWTO
Certificates are provided with a unique Laboratory Number which must be
printed on the Certificates. (The logo can not be used on other
documents.)
IWTO Certificates –
The ‘Gold Standard’
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Test Houses licensed by IWTO to issue
IWTO Certificates are provided with a unique Laboratory Number which
must be printed on the Certificates. (The logo can not be used on
other documents.) |
Test Houses licensed by IWTO to issue IWTO
Certificates are provided with a unique Laboratory Number which must be
printed on the Certificates. (The logo can not be used on other
documents.)
IWTO Certificates have been designed to
provide maximum integrity to all trading partners.
This integrity begins at the very first stage
- Sampling - whereby all bales are weighed and sampled in strict
accordance with IWTO Regulations by, or under the supervision of,
independent sampling staff.
At the next stage - Testing – many
rigorous steps need to be followed:
-
Test
Houses must be Licensed by IWTO and undertake testing in strict
accordance with the published IWTO Testing Standards & Regulations.
-
The IWTO
Certificate must show all relevant test results, as well as detailed
reference information to allow verification and trace-back, should a
problem occur.
-
Independent Auditing by a internationally-recognised accreditation
body must have been successfully completed on at least an annual
basis, to ensure the test house meets the technical standards
required by IWTO.
-
IWTO
licensed laboratories must demonstrate their ongoing proficiency to
accreditation authorities by participation in interlaboratory
trials.
Only
test houses that meet all these standards can be licensed to issue IWTO
Certificates.
Fuller details can be found at
http://www.iwto.org/laboratories/rules.htm
Finally, should something go wrong, all IWTO
Certificates are backed by the IWTO Arbitration Rules that clearly
outline the rights and responsibilities of all concerned, including the
test house.
Other Types of
Documents -Test House Certificates or Test Reports
For a number of reasons, test houses (even
those licensed by IWTO) may issue its results on documents that
ARE NOT IWTO Test Certificates. Some test houses will issue its
own “Test House Certificate” whilst others will call the document a
“Test Report”. Some of the reasons for issuing these non-IWTO documents
are outlined below:
-
the test
house is not IWTO Licensed, either for any tests, or for the
specific tests reported;
-
the test
house was not able to meet all the sampling, testing or reporting
requirements for IWTO Certificates;
-
the test
house used an ‘in-house’ or other test method that is not recognised
by IWTO;
-
the
testing was conducted using modified or abbreviated IWTO methods; or
-
sampling
and bale weighing has not been supervised by independent sampling
staff or has not followed the IWTO Regulations.
(It should be noted that there are some cases
where IWTO-Licensed laboratories issue certificates against nationally
approved standards as opposed to IWTO standards. Two specific examples
are Bulk and Length After Carding (LAC) Tests. Test methods, that have
sampling Regulations, have been developed and endorsed by the NZ
National Council of Wool Interests and Standards Australia and New
Zealand. IWTO-Licensed laboratories in New Zealand routinely conduct
these tests and issue Test House Certificates to report the results.
These certificates cannot be issued as IWTO Certificates because the
test methods are not IWTO methods.)
Regardless of the reason, the trading
partners need to be aware that these documents carry no official
recognition from IWTO. There is much less certainty in using
test house certificates or reports than in using IWTO Certificates.
Commercial
Implications – What to Look Out For
IWTO Certificates:
make sure that the certificate includes the
title “IWTO Test Certificate”, the IWTO License Number and logo and
that the IWTO testing standards used are shown on the certificate. If
not, contact IWTO or refer to the published list of Licensed
Laboratories at
http://www.iwto.org/laboratories/laboratories.htm.
Test House Certificates or Test Reports:
Be aware of how the samples were taken,
what standards (if any) exists for testing, what data is included and
excluded, and whether arbitration is clearly defined. The document
could note that an IWTO test method was followed, but this does
not give it any official IWTO status. If in doubt, use IWTO
Certificates in trading where possible.
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