GLOSSARY OF TERMS
PART A (Certification)

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3

The following definitions apply in the context of the Rules of the lEC Quality Assessment System for Electronic Components (reproduced from annex A, Terms and definitions, of the Basic Rules of the IECQ-CECC, IEC Publication QC 001001, with the original numbering).

A.1
quality assessment
the totality of measures carried out consistently and systematically in order to ensure that a product conforms with the requirements of a stated specification

A.2
participating country
a country in which the National Committee of the IEC, or a body recognized by the National Committee of the lEC, has been admitted into the System through having met the participation requirements

NOTE - This term includes all categories of participation outlined in 10.1 to 10.4 of the Basic Rules.

A.3 specification a detailed statement of a set of requirements to be satisfied by a product, a material or a process, indicating, whenever appropriate, the procedure by means of which it may be determined whether the requirements are satisfied

A.4
standard
document, established by consensus and approved by a recognized body, that provides, for common and repeated use, rules, guidelines or characteristics for activities or their results, aimed at the achievement of the optimum degree of order in a given context

[ISO/IEC Guide 2: 1996, definition 3.2]

NOTE - Standards should be based on the consolidated results of science, technology and experience, and aimed at the promotion of optimum community benefits.

A.5
applicable standard, or applicable specification a standard, or specification, applicable to a component, group of components, material, or process and which has been written in accordance with the Rules of the System, or such reference standards, or specifications, as have been adopted for use within the System

A.6
provisional specification
a specification or part thereof, allowed for use temporarily under the System in the absence of an applicable specification

A.7
detail specification
a document which gives directly, or by making reference to other documents, all information necessary to completely describe a given component, range of components or material and to ensure conformance thereof with the requirements for quality assessment.

A.8
distributor
an organization contractually authorized by one or more manufacturers to store, re-pack and sell completely finished components from these manufacturers

A.9
independent testing laboratory
an organization wishing to make its services available to other organizations within the System, which has the facilities and capability to carry out tests and measurements on electronic components or materials in accordance with their specification(s) and which is independent of a manufacturer's production department

A.10
manufacturer of an electronic component
an organization, situated at a stated location or stated locations, that carries out or controls such stages in the manufacture, inspection, handling and storage of an electronic component that enables it to accept responsibility for the quality assessment of that component

A.11
Designated Management Representative (DMR)
a person, acceptable to the National Supervising Inspectorate (NSI), who is a member of the organization concerned and who is responsible for the quality system of that organization. This person is the normal means of communication between the NSI and the organization

A.12
approval of manufacturer
a decision by the National Certification Body (NCB) that a manufacturer has the organization and the facilities to assure the production and supply of components in accordance with the requirements of the System, and that the manufacturer meets the requirements of the System

A.13
approval of distributor
a decision by the NCB that a distributor has the organization and the facilities necessary to assure the supply of components in accordance with the requirements of the System

A.14
approval of independent testing laboratory
a decision by the NCB that a testing laboratory is capable of carrying out its function under the System and is free from any influence which would prevent it from acting in an impartial manner

A.15
inspection (of components and materials)
the process of selecting samples from an inspection lot; measuring, examining, testing or otherwise comparing each specimen of these samples with the requirements of the applicable specification; deciding whether the sample complies with the applicable specification and what subsequent action shall be taken with regard to the inspection lot

A.16
quality conformance inspection an inspection carried out by or on behalf of the manufacturer under the surveillance of an NSI on the components and materials he manufactures, in order to establish that their quality is being maintained in accordance with the requirements of the applicable specification

A.17
release
a decision, taken in accordance with the Rules of the System1 that an inspection lot has successfully passed all the relevant requirements of the applicable specification(s)

A.18
measurement standard
an instrument, a device, or a material of known characteristics used to establish and maintain the integrity of measuring equipment or measuring methods

NOTE - Measurement standards are classified in different levels, for example, reference, transfer.

A.19
specialist contractor
a contractor providing a specialist process capability or technical service to the electronic components industry