Accreditations:
DNA testing methods evolve at a rapid pace. Laboratory ensures top performance in all aspects of their testing services, they participate in several voluntary accreditation programs. These programs verify the reliability of equipment, the qualifications of the laboratory staff, and the soundness of the testing methods and standard operating procedures.

American Association of Blood Banks (AABB)
The AABB’s Parentage Testing Accreditation program is the gold standard for DNA paternity testing laboratories. The program establishes and promotes the highest standards of testing quality and care for patients in all aspects of parentage testing. Most courts and other government agencies require DNA tests to be performed by AABB-accredited laboratories. 

 

ACLASS Accreditation Services (ISO/IEC 17025)
ISO 17025 is the global standard for the technical competence of calibration and testing labs. As a laboratory accredited to ISO 17025:2005,

FQS-I Accreditation
FQS- I is an ISO/IEC 17011 compliant Accrediting Body, verified by independent external audits of the operation of its accreditation system. ISO/IEC 17011 is recognized internationally as the benchmark for the operation of accreditation programs. Compliance with ISO/IEC 17011 is your assurance of the quality of the accreditation services provided by FQS- I. All ISO accreditation programs provided through FQS- I require that the testing agency comply with ISO/IEC 17025. Wherever possible, FQS-I Forensic Requirements for Accreditation are based on ILAC guidelines. Specific criteria can be tailored to the needs of the individual jurisdiction.

College of American Pathologists (CAP)
The CAP Laboratory Accreditation Program is recognized by the federal government as being equal to or more stringent than the government’s own laboratory inspection program.

CAP accreditation also requires laboratories to participate in its Proficiency Testing Program, in which CAP sends samples to the laboratories for DNA testing and evaluates the laboratories’ results. Many laboratories participate in this program but do not obtain accreditation, which entails a more rigorous, on-site laboratory inspection. . 

ISO 9001
In light of the amendment of ISO 9001:2008, the International Accreditation Forum (IAF), the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC), and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) have issued a revised communiqué declaring that the management system requirements of ISO/IEC 17025 meet the principles of ISO 9001:2008.

A2LA
The A2LA is the largest multi-discipline laboratory accreditation system in the United States and is recognized by Accreditation Bodies in the European Union and other International Communities. A2LA accreditation imposes stricter requirements than ISO 17025: 2005 certification alone, particularly focusing on technical competence, traceability of measurements and the overall proficiency of the laboratory.

A2LA is a non-profit, non-governmental, public service, membership society whose mission is to: meet the needs of both laboratories and their users for competent testing; improve the quality of laboratories and the data they produce; and increase acceptance of accredited laboratory data to facilitate trade, based on internationally accepted criteria for competence (ISO / IEC 17025:2005).

Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA)
The CLIA accreditation issued by the U.S. Department of Health ensures laboratory results are timely, accurate, and reliable.

Texas DPS
The TXDPS Crime Lab Accreditation Program was created on September 1, 2003. Laboratories performing forensic DNA analysis of criminal evidence must be accredited by DPS in order for that laboratory’s results and testimony to be admissible in court or criminal proceedings. A laboratory may apply to the Director for statutory DPS accreditation if accreditation is required for evidence admissibility under Code of Criminal Procedure Article 38.35. Accreditation is part of a laboratory’s quality assurance program, which should also include proficiency testing, continuing education, customer liaison, and other programs to help the laboratory provide more effective overall service.

Food and Drug Administration
Our Lab’s paternity testing DNA kits contain sterile components specifically designed for collection of samples requiring analysis using current DNA profiling techniques. Swabs and lancets are sterilized in accordance with ANSI/AMMI/ISO Guidelines and are validated as “sterile” by third party FDA registered facilities. You may have total confidence in knowing that the products used to collect your samples are in compliance with the strictest requirements in the world, ensuring your safety and personal health.

ILAC-MRA
The International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) first started as a conference in 1977 with the aim of developing international cooperation for facilitating trade by promotion of the acceptance of accredited test and calibration results. In 1996, ILAC became a formal cooperation with a charter to establish a network of mutual recognition agreements among accreditation bodies that would fulfill this aim. The ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement (often referred to as the ILAC Arrangement) is the culmination of 22 years of intensive work.

The arrangement came into effect on 31 January 2001. The ILAC Arrangement provides significant technical underpinning to international trade. The key to the Arrangement is the developing global network of accredited testing and calibration laboratories that are assessed and recognized as being competent by ILAC Arrangement signatory accreditation bodies. The signatories have, in turn, been peer-reviewed and shown to meet ILAC’s criteria for competence. Now that the ILAC Arrangement is in place, governments can take advantage of it to further develop or enhance trade agreements. The ultimate aim is increased use and acceptance by industry as well as government of the results from accredited laboratories, including results from laboratories in other countries. In this way, the free-trade goal of “a product tested once and accepted everywhere” can be realized.

Fire And Crime Scene Advanced Continuing Education
FACS-ACE is a vital resource that provides Law Enforcement and Fire Investigators with the skills and training they need to perform their duties while exceeding minimal requirements for advanced training.

The Genetic Testing Laboratories, Inc. (GTL) is the founder and principal sponsor of the Fire and Crime Scene Advanced Continuing Education (FACS-ACE) conference held several times per year in Las Cruces, New Mexico. FACS-ACE offers world-class instruction and hands-on training for Law Enforcement, Firefighters and other first responders in the areas of crime and fire scene preservation and evidence handling and collection. This international conference includes training staff members at the top of their respective fields