1.1 This practice provides a guide for the information to be obtained and provides specific recommended criteria for evaluating the capabilities of an agency to conduct inspections and tests and to report on tests performed in accordance with ASTM standards primarily on factory built components and assemblies.

1.2 The criteria in this standard describe the basic information used in judging the capability of an agency to perform its intended functions objectively and competently as well as to disclose possible conflicts of interest judged from the standpoint of the user of this standard. Testing, approval, and certification of a company's own products and services by its own testing agency does not necessarily constitute a conflict of interest.

1.3 The criteria presented herein are divided into three categories of endeavor, namely,

Part A—Standards and Criteria for Testing Agencies

Part B—Standards and Criteria for Quality Assurance Agencies

Part C—Standards and Criteria for Evaluating Agencies

1.4 The fundamental purpose of this practice is to provide criteria for evaluating an agency as denoted in 1.3 either by a user of that service or by an accrediting authority.

1.5 It is not the purpose of this practice to provide a basis for determining the quality of a product or service being evaluated.

1.6 This practice is not intended for the evaluation of those activities normally associated with the production and sale of products and the like, such as a manufacturer's internal quality program. However, any organization may request or perform an evaluation of its own in-house facilities under this standard if it so desires.

1.7 It is not the intent of this standard to be the basis for the determination of the type of agency to be selected by the user.

1.8 This practice can be used in conjunction with Specification E 541 and Practice E 651

1.9 Specification E 329 specifies minimum requirements for agencies testing and/or inspecting materials used in construction and which are primarily assembled on the jobsite.