Orchid Cellmark is First U.S. Private Forensic DNA Testing Lab to Receive ISO 17025 Accreditation

Fulfilling the Promise of DNA Technology
President’s DNA Initiative Brings Hope of Crime Lab Funding, Backlog Resolution
By Kelly M. Pyrek

Crime Lab Design is in the Details
By Kelly M. Pyrek

Forensic Photography:
The Pros and Cons of Going Digital
By John Roark

EDITOR’S LETTER
Demanding Respect for Forensic Science

PERSPECTIVES
Field Needs Adequate Funding, National Forensic Science Commission

SPECIAL SECTION
Advances in DNA

NEWS & VIEWS
Industry News Briefs, Off the Bookshelf, Notes from the Field

Orchid Cellmark is First U.S. Private Forensic DNA Testing Lab to Receive ISO 17025 Accreditation
Posted on: 11/04/2003

PRINCETON, N.J. -- Orchid BioSciences, Inc. today announced that its Orchid Cellmark facility in Nashville, Tenn. has received accreditation under ISO Standard 17025. Orchid Cellmark is the first full-service private forensic DNA testing laboratory to receive this accreditation in the U.S.

ISO 17025 is an international standard that assesses the technical competency of calibration laboratories and helps to ensure accurate data generation, controlled test methods and procedures, and properly trained personnel. ISO 17025 covers every aspect of laboratory management, including sample preparation, analytical testing proficiency, report generation and record keeping.

As a forensic DNA testing laboratory, Orchid Cellmark was also required to satisfy the applicable requirements of the Forensic Requirements for Accreditation Guidelines. Orchid's European Cellmark laboratory in the U.K. has also received the ISO 17025 accreditation.

"Orchid Cellmark is proud to be the first full-service private U.S. forensic DNA testing laboratory to obtain this globally recognized accreditation, which further exemplifies our decades-long commitment to providing customers with the highest quality DNA analysis services," said Mark D. Stolorow, executive director. "Our success in meeting the stringent standards for this ISO designation reflects our ongoing efforts to ensure unsurpassed consistency in our procedures and the accuracy of our results."

This accreditation was awarded by the Forensic Quality Services International Division of the National Forensic Science Technology Center and certifies that Orchid Cellmark's Nashville laboratory meets or exceeds the international ISO 17025 standards and guidelines for forensic DNA testing established by the International Organization for Standardization and the International Electrotechnical Commission.

Orchid Cellmark, the forensic strategic business unit of Orchid BioSciences, Inc., is a leader in private forensic DNA analysis. It has an international network of forensic testing laboratories in the U.S. and U.K., and is the largest private DNA forensic testing service provider in the world. Orchid Cellmark provides a full range of high quality, customized forensic DNA testing services, including identification of victims of accidents and disasters, criminal casework analysis and expert testimony, convicted offender DNA databasing, no-suspect casework for government law enforcement laboratories, and DNA testing and consultative services for the defense bar as well as for the prosecution. Orchid Cellmark, which has conducted DNA testing for many notable forensic investigations, uses a variety of genetic analysis methods for its forensic DNA studies and is a leader in developing improved technologies for genetic analysis.

Source: Orchid BioSciences, Inc.