New UKAS accredited laboratory opens in Yorkshire
Severn Trent Laboratories (STL) have officially opened their newest laboratory in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, which will provide a wide range of UKAS accredited environmental testing services in the North East of England. The laboratory is a new facility that has been custom specified and purpose-built.
In early 2009, STL secured a 10-year contract to deliver water and wastewater analytical services to Yorkshire Water Services Ltd. Since the contract was awarded, STL have been working on the construction of the laboratory and developing methods in line with UKAS requirements, ready for the contract start. In March STL received UKAS accreditation for the laboratory and on April 1st received their first samples from Yorkshire Water.
The Wakefield laboratory will not only deliver services to Yorkshire Water, but will also provide an extensive range of water and wastewater testing for customers throughout the North East of England. The laboratory will form a network with STL’s two existing water laboratories, in Coventry and Bridgend, and will also act as a hub where samples can be brought to be tested, or transported to the most appropriate STL laboratory.
The project has involved considerable investment in design, construction, method development and new instruments by STL. Rachel Henton, Managing Director, says: "This will be a real flagship base for us, and will give us three full size laboratories for testing water quality." The Wakefield laboratory, which will be able to handle in excess of quarter of a million samples a year, will be ready to receive samples from other customers in the next month.
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