As equipment ages and is subjected to daily wear and tear (temperature and humidity changes, vibration, mis-handling, etc), equipment performance gradually degrades.  At some point the equipment will become unfit for the purpose that it was intended.  When this happens, your test results become unreliable (without you realising) causing possible safety issues, product design faults, and lower production quality.

Calibration is the comparison of equipment against a standard of known accuracy.  This usually involves determining the deviation of the equipment from the standard values, and comparing these results to the equipment manufacturer's specifications or customer's requirements.

Regular calibration results provide a record of equipment performance over time, allowing informed decisions to be made on equipment suitability and repair/servicing/replacement schedules. 

Benefits Of Regular Calibration

Reduced Risk of costly mistakes and defective End Products

This is acheived by ensuring faulty or unreliable equipment is not used, providing the following benefits:

• Production costs reduced
  
• Resource use optimised
• Production output increases
• Product recalls reduced

Consistency of End Product or Service 

This is acheived by ensuring equipment calibration is included as part of the qaulity control process, providing the following benefits: 

• Wide acceptance of products and services by customers
• Confidence that products and services meet  stated specifications
• Compatibility of products and services with like standards or specifications (allowing for painless assembly of parts made by various manufactures) 

Calibration Interval

How long can you trust equipment performance once it has been calibrated?  Points to consider when making this decision include:

• The type of equipment, and how it is being used (temperature and humidity changes, vibration, mis-handling, etc).
• Requirements specified by standards associated to the product/service being provided.
• What level of risk is acceptable to you if the equipment is found to be faulty during calibration (the longer the period between calibrations, the larger the cost of product recalls or re-working a job, etc)
• Typical calibration intervals used by others with similar equipment (we can provide you with this informtaion on request)

Regular calibration of equipment is important, allowing you to make informed decisions and ensuring equipment is fit for the purpose intended.