International keynote to headline Accreditation Matters 2024

The National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) has announced its initial speaker line-up for Accreditation Matters 2024, headlined by an international keynote from the World Trade Organization (WTO).

A landmark two-day conference, Accreditation Matters 2024 will focus on the crucial role accreditation and conformity assessment play in trade, construction, health and ensuring Australians can live their lives safely. Devin McDaniels, Deputy Secretary of the WTO Technical Barriers to Trade Committee, will speak at the conference highlighting the importance of accreditation and conformity assessment, standards and regulations to global trade.

Speakers from industry heavyweights the National Measurement Institute (NMI), Standards Australia, CSIRO, Joint Accreditation System of Australia and New Zealand (JASANZ), The University of Sydney, the Royal College of Pathologists Australasia (RCPA), SafeWork NSW and the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) are also confirmed to present at Accreditation Matters 2024, billed as Australia’s largest ever accreditation conference.

Organisations including Australian Sports Drug Testing Laboratory (ASDTL), Proficiency Testing Australia (PTA), GS1 Australia, Racing Analytical Services Limited (RASL) and companies including Sealy, Coregas and leading laboratory trainer LTT will also present at the conference.

Accreditation Matters 2024 will take place at ICC Sydney from 25–26 June, with over 400 industry leaders, technical experts and quality champions expected to attend. More than 30 sessions are already confirmed in the multi-choice program, putting the spotlight on the role accreditation plays in the quality and safety of all aspects of our daily lives, and highlighting the importance to global trade for Australian companies.

Conference themes include Future Focused, Accreditation Matters, Health, and Trade and Supply Chains, as well as a stream for People Development within Australia’s conformance community. On top of McDaniels, confirmed speakers include NATA CEO Jennifer Evans and NMI CEO and Chief Metrologist Dr Bruce Warrington, as well as:

• Olivier Salvado — Lead AI for Mission, CSIRO
• Dr Sandra Peter — Director of Sydney Executive Plus, The University of Sydney
• Adrian O’Connell — CEO, Standards Australia
• Tracey Gramlick — Deputy Director of Growth and Strategy for Infrastructure Technologies, CSIRO (also Chair of the Board of Standards Australia)
• Karen Eck — Publicity & Brand Strategist; Founder, The Power of Visibility
• Peter Carter — General Manager Public Policy and Government Engagement, GS1 Australia
• Christopher Bourke — Director, TestSafe Australia, SafeWork NSW, NSW Government
• Judy Edmonds — Quality Manager, Australian Sports Drug Testing Laboratory, National Measurement Institute
• Wodek Jakubik — Innovations Manager, Coregas
• Karen Cividin — General Manager Proficiency Testing Australia
• Professor Tony Badrick — CEO, the Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia Quality Assurance Programs (RCPAQAP)
   

Speaking about the conference, Evans commented: “For more than 77 years, accreditation has been the secret safety net for all Australians. In 2024, we want to showcase the role accreditation plays in all our lives by bringing all participants of Australia’s accreditation and conformity assessment industry together in one place.

“We will explore the future of accreditation and discuss important topics around global trade by bringing together domestic and international experts to offer insights into the workings of our National Standards and Conformance Infrastructure. Accreditation Matters 2024 will look to the future, but also provide upskilling and professional development opportunities for those in the science community looking to implement change today.

“We will also look at the advent of generative AI and increasingly complex automation used in laboratories, the governance required for these new technologies and how standards (like the recent ISO/IEC 42001), conformity assessment and accreditation will be vital to securing the confidence of the wider Australian public in these emerging technologies.”

Some of the session topics have also been released and include:

• Australia’s national technical infrastructure
• Future of AI standards
• Introverts vs extraverts in the laboratory
• Metrology and traceability
• Proficiency testing
• Quality/climate change
• Accreditation in action
• Regulations vs infrastructure
• Hydrogen future
• Upskilling staff and recruiting laboratory staff of tomorrow
• Non-conforming building projects
• Accreditation 101
• Visibility and communications
   

More speakers and sessions will be announced in the lead-up to the event. For more information and to secure your seat at Accreditation Matters 2024, visit https://nataevents.nata.com.au/am2024.

Top image credit: iStock.com/brazzo