What is JAC?

1.Purpose of Establishment
2.Activities
3.Membership
4.Organizatioal Structure

1.Purpose of Establishment

In response to the 2005 recommendation of Japan Industrial Standards Committee (JISC),
Japan Accreditation Council (JAC) was launched.
The purpose of this council is to contribute to increase the reliability of all conformity assessment systems in Japan, by means of
a) sharing the experience of accreditation among accreditation bodies,
b) improving technical competence of accreditation bodies, and
c) cooperating to promote accreditation systems to the market.

2.Activities

(1) Establishment of common infrastructure and attainment of solution of common issues
to improve the reliability and technical competence
(2) Research and exchange of domestic/international information on Conformity Assessment and Accreditation
(3) Dissemination and promotion activities on Accreditation System and Conformity Assessment System
(4) Other issues necessary to achieve to the purpose of the council.

3.Membership

The council consists of voluntary participants who agree with the purposes and are relevant to the following conditions;

(Note) Here, “CABs” include testing and calibration laboratory, product certification body, management system certification body, inspection body, personnel certification body, Greenhouse Gas Validation and Verification Bodies etc.

(1)Member

Accreditation bodies of CABs within Japan and its collaborators

• International Accreditation Japan (IAJapan)

• ISMS Accreditation Center (ISMS-AC)

• The Japan Accreditation Board Conformity Assessments (JAB)

• Japan Accreditation Service for agriculture, forestry and fisheries（JASaff）

• Voluntary EMC Laboratory Accreditation Center (VLAC)

(2)Observer

Bodies planning to accredit CABs within Japan and its collaborators. Or bodies whom Members agree with to participate.

• Medical Device Evaluation Division, Pharmaceutical Safety and Environmental Health Bureau, Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare ( MHLW)

• New Business and Food Industry Department, Minister's Secretariat, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan ( MAFF )

• Electromagnetic Environment Division, Radio Department, Telecommunications Bureau, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications ( MIC )

• Technical Regulations, Standards and Conformity Assessment Policy Division, Innovation and Environment Policy Bureau, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI)

• Product Safety Division, Industrial Saftey Group, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI)

• Shipbuilding and Ship Machinery Division Maritime Bureau, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT)

• Sewerage Planning Division, Sewerage and Wastewater Management Department, Water and Disaster Management Bureau, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT)

• Office of Manufacturing Quality for Drugs, Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA)

4.Organizatioal Structure

【Governing Board】
The mission of the board is to discuss and decide the whole policy of the council on direction, activities, establishment of working group, and other relevant issues.

【Member committee】
The mission of the committee is to perform practical activities to the objectives of JAC, the referral and decision of Governing Board. The committee consists of JAC member.

【Working Group】
The Working Group is established for each issue to achieve the objectives of JAC. The member organizations that are relevant to each issue join each WG. Currently, there are three Working Groups (April 2024)

■TC1 WG
The WG is to discuss about fundamental issues concerning the accreditation and the adaptation and clarification of conformity assessment to testing laboratory, calibration laboratory, reference material producer, medical laboratory, inspection body, and proficiency test provider in Japan.

■TC2 WG
The WG is to discuss about fundamental issues concerning the accreditation and the adaptation and clarification of conformity assessment to management systems certification body, product certification body, personnel certification body, and validation and verification body in Japan.

■Strategy WG
The WG is to discuss about common issues and strategic activities concerning, such as the policy to extend the use of accreditation, conformity assessment and standardization in Japan.

Contact us

JAC Secretariat, National Institute of Technology and Evaluation: Phone number:+81-3-3481-1946
Fax number:+81-3-3481-1937
Address:c/o IAJapan,National Institute of Technology & Evaluation 2-49-10 Nishihara, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 1510066, Japan MAP
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