The Laboratory Committee of the European Accreditation (EA) organization has chosen Belén Villamiel, head of the Laboratories section in ENAC's Environment Department and, since 2023, vice president of EA's Laboratory Committee, as its new president for a two-year term.

The European Accreditation Laboratories Committee plays an essential role in the technical coordination of laboratory accreditation in Europe, acting as a forum for collaboration between national accreditation bodies to ensure international standards are consistently applied.

Among its main tasks is to develop and harmonize technical criteria for accreditation of testing, calibration, and clinical laboratories, as well as proficiency testing providers and reference material producers, promoting a consistent interpretation of the ISO/IEC 17025, ISO 15189, ISO/IEC 17043, and ISO 17034 standards in all member countries. Likewise, the committee drives the development of common guides and technical documents, investigates emerging issues related to technological and methodological advances in laboratories, and promotes the exchange of experiences and best practices among accreditation bodies. Its work is also key to strengthening international cooperation, coordinating the European position with organizations like GLOBAL ACI (formerly ILAC) and ISO, and helping maintain multilateral recognition agreements that make it easier for accredited results to be accepted internationally.

Belén Villamiel, with over two decades experience at ENAC, has been attending EA's Laboratory Committee on behalf of ENAC since 2017, as well as the Global ACI Accreditation Committee and the different working groups of these two organizations.

Beatriz Rivera, ENAC’s General Director, emphasized the importance that this appointment has for the laboratory sector:

“The appointment of Belén Villamiel as president of the European Accreditation Laboratory Committee is great news that shows ENAC’s commitment to EA and, of course, recognizes Belén's excellent work in her career within the Committee, where she was already vice president.

The EA Laboratories Committee’s work has a direct impact on key aspects for laboratories, such as the harmonized interpretation of standards, the development of new technical approaches, or accreditation’s adaptation to emerging areas. In this context, having an ENAC representative as chair helps strengthen Spain's presence and participation in the strategic discussions that will shape the future evolution of the sector in Europe.”.

From the laboratory field, Julio Hernández Pérez, president of FELAB (AELI / EUROLAB Spain), also wanted to express his recognition of Belén Villamiel’s appointment, highlighting the importance it represents for the sector to have Spanish representation at the head of this European technical committee:

“From FELAB, we want to send our congratulations to Belén Villamiel on her appointment as President of the European Accreditation (EA) Laboratories Committee. It is a recognition of both her professional worth and her human quality. Her approachability, ability to communicate, and experience at ENAC will undoubtedly enable her to face the challenges ahead at EA, especially moving toward a more consistent application of accreditation criteria. An essential step in a Europe with a single market for our sector and in an increasingly global world, where we must stay connected so that Spanish conformity assessment remains competitive”.