Jimmy B once bubbled...
Puffer Fish,
Heres another possible solution.
For the OUC to meet the accreditation standard, I believe it is a money thing.
The costs vary from 3000.00 yearly to 5000.00 every 2 years. They are the voice for divers in Ontario, so lets support them. Lobby all the dive shops for this and have them prepare to pay for the extra testing. Sounds good so far. To pay for this extra testing have all divers pay 10.00 for a fill. Two reasons here, One; theyre now guaranteed to receive grade a 100% accredited air by the current standard as requested. Two; Offset the costs of the extra testing.
JB as I said to you (or was that Tom R) on the Nitrox thread the OUC should not be in the business of testing Ontario divers' air period. I am all for having a voice for Ontario divers to represent the various parties like shops, charters, instructors, students,etc. when the need arises and to organize things like diver forums. There is a conflict of interest though when the same agency you pay membership dues to is also going to test the fill stations air. They might not even install a methanizer as they know that the bulk of fill station failures for air in the US is for low concentration CO and CO2. We wouldn't want to have to fail some of our members who pay part of our salaries through air testing program now would we. If a large percentage of the OUC's budget comes from substandard air testing rather than from memberships derived from providing us the diver or shop owner with a useful organization then the OUC is going to disappear.
As far as getting them accredited it would be a huge financial undertaking and basically air testing should not be part of their mandate. One does not just buy a GC and stick it in a trailor and then pay the fee to the Standard Council of Canada and call themselves an accredited lab. They have obviously convinced many fill station owners and divers they are legit but closer analysis reveals the OUC is a very weak link in the chain of diver air safety. And this is from the very organization who should be looking out for diver safety.
Please go back and read what Sneaky posted on page 14 July 21 about Criteria and Procedures for Accreditation.
The OUC does NOT have:
i) "Technically competent staff with the requisite skills and knowledge" This means people with credentials as chemists or analytical technicians not OUC board members who want a gig testing air.
ii) "The environment with the requisite facilities and equipment"
The OUC has a GC in a facility that has never been checked by any standards association. This would be like you purchasing a GC and sticking it in your garage and then claiming to offer reliable testing when in fact you don't as there is no methanizer or proper method to measure particulates and hydrocarbons.
iii) "The requisite procedures" Please ask them now they measure particulates.
iv) "The requisite quality control" This means having checks in place to ensure accuracy and precision or results and an external independent body who verfies this QC is being done correctly and at the right frequency.
So here is a list of questions to ask the OUC if you can get a hold of them.
1. Are you accredited by the Standard Council of Canada?
2. Can you provide me with a Scope of Accreditation issued by the SCC?
3. Are you testing to the CSA Z180.1 2000 standard?
4. Do your staff have any credentials in analytical chemistry?
5. Do you participate in any external monitoring program to ensure the results are reliable (accurate and precise).
6. Do you meet the requirements of ISO 9002:1994?
7. Do you have a methanizer on your GC to ensure the reliability of low concentrations of CO or CO2.
To anyone who has any lingering doubts about the quality of OUC testing I would encourage them to call the OUC and ask these questions. You should get back seven answers of No, No,No,....
And why do we want to continue to use the OUC? It is not possible to make the OUC accredited for a few grand nor is it in the Ontario diver's interest to do so.