Policy support

Millions of testing measurements are performed in Europe every year. The results of these measurements influence important decisions in industry, environmental or food safety control.

They also form the basis for policy-making and many pieces of legislation in the European Union ranging from the maximum allowed content of toxic substances in food to monitoring soil and water quality or workplace air.

Testing results should therefore be reliable and comparable everywhere. This can only be realized by standardisation, harmonisation and assuring the quality of measurements.

Examples of policy support
Community reference laboratories at IRMM

The role of IRMM

IRMM supports and gives independent scientific advice to the policy-makers in the European Commission's Directorates-General in the areas of metrology, standardisation, harmonisation and quality of measurements.

Its research programme is focussed on areas of policy relevance, and serves many Directorates-General e.g. for Health and Consumer Protection, Environment, Agriculture, Energy, Entreprise, Trade, Taxation and the Customs Union, and External Relations. The other Commission departments can also request IRMM to perform specifically targeted research projects outside its annual programme.

As an institute of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre, IRMM carries out tasks complementary to those of the Member States, especially where an independent approach at European level is needed. It works in close collaboration with national and international research organisations, metrology institutes and competent authorities, universities as well as with industry.
IRMM expertise

IRMM develops and validates analytical testing methods, produces reference materials for quality assurance of testing laboratories, organises measurement evaluation programmes, and provides reference measurements.

All these tasks are supported by the scientific knowledge base acquired and maintained by both fundamental and applied research in the respective areas.

The primary task of IRMM is to build confidence in measurement results. Such confidence is essential when measuring near legally established limits or in cases of dispute and emergency. Recognised comparability of testing data also helps in reducing barriers for trade by reducing the need to duplicate measurements.


Last Update 13/11/2007