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Our approach

from sampling to practical advice

ECCA is more than a lab. Our advisors guide you through every step of the process: we help or advise you when taking a sample, carry out a meticulous analysis and finally translate the results into practical advice. With these recommendations, you improve your process and increase the quality of your products.

 

sampling

Laboratorium registratie

registration

 

laboratorium verdelingstalen

distribution of samples to departments

analysis

(per department)

laboratorium valideren

compilation and validation of results

advice

Step 1: sampling

An analysis is only relevant if the sample is taken correctly. You can take a sample yourself or have our experts take a sample for you:

Take a sample yourself

Do you take a sample yourself, but would like to know more about the ideal sample volume? Or about the way you deliver the samples to ECCA in the best circumstances? Ask our experts for the best approach.

After that you can send the sample to ECCA yourself or request a pick-up.

Have a sample taken by our experts

When you request a sampling, we immediately collect all necessary information on the analysis purpose. Based on this, we provide the right sampling tools, containers, swabs, and sample labelling. Thanks to this thorough preparation, the sampling afterwards proceeds correctly and efficiently.
Together, we determine the appropriate moment.
On the agreed date, we will come to your company to take a sample on site (under supervision) according to the agreed and valid quality procedures. We register all actions in a sampling form, including photographs (if your company policy allows this).

 

In the event of a recurring assignment, we can – with your consent – also perform the sampling without site supervision. Via our (online) sampling documents, you can follow and track our progress in real time. This saves you time because you do not have to visit all the sampling locations, while you still remain in contact.

The power of an annual plan

Do you regularly have sampling or pick-ups carried out? Then it is advisable to draw up an annual plan:

Thanks to this follow-up, your sampling or pick-ups are always made on time, without you having to worry about it yourself. This way, you save time and energy.

Step 2: analysis

Once the sample arrives at ECCA, the analysis proceeds according to a fixed schedule:

  • We register the sample based on the information on your request form (your sample receives a barcode for internal traceability).
  • Depending on the demand, the sample goes directly to the microbiology*** department or to the preparation (placing waste or drinking water in the correct preservation, homogenising the sample, preparing asbestos sample)
  • From the preparation, the correct sample portions go to the specific departments (Food, Microbiology, Organic chemistry, and Inorganic chemistry). Except for asbestos, where the sample leaves in its entirety for the asbestos department.
  • In the various departments, the lab assistants carry out analyses on the basis of their work lists. Afterwards, they report on this analysis (you can follow the report online in real-time).
  • Customer service gathers the results from all the departments and validates the final result.

*** For microbiological testing, no extra preparation is needed, because there is no sterile way to homogenise (read: grind) a sample. Lab technicians therefore analyse an unprocessed sample (can be as little as 10 or 25 grams) that is representative of the composition of the product being investigated.

Step 3: advice

After the final check, Customer Service hands over the report to you. Our advisors do not simply pass on the results: they link practical recommendations to them and remain accessible afterwards for additional clarification or questions.

 

This advisory role is rooted in our DNA. How quickly we perform our analyses and how extensive our advice is, is up to you: in consultation, we can compose your desired service package.

Follow the process online in real time

Via our online Qlab system and the data analysis module, you can follow the progress throughout the process. In this way, you can see the trends in the examined quality in real time. This way, you can get to work even faster with the results of the study. With Qlab, you also have a user-friendly solution for monitoring internal standards.

 

Would you like to know more about our approach