WHAT IS CALIBRATION AND WHY IS IT SO

IMPORTANT
WHAT IS CALIBRATION AND WHAT IS ITS IMPORTANCE? CALIBRATION IS VITALLY
IMPORTANT WHEREVER MEASUREMENTS ARE IMPORTANT, IT ENABLES USERS AND
BUSINESSES TO HAVE CONFIDENCE IN THE RESULTS THAT THEY MONITOR, RECORD
AND SUBSEQUENTLY CONTROL.
If you need your equipment calibrated, contact us for single unit programme pricing.
Calibration is defined as an association between measurements – one of a scale or
accuracy made or set with one piece of equipment and another measurement made in
as similar a way as possible with a second piece of equipment. The piece of equipment
or device with the known or assigned accuracy is called the standard. Standards vary
from country to country depending upon the type of industry; whilst manufacturers
designate their measurement criterion and recommend the frequency and level of
calibration, depending upon industry requirements, how often the device is used and the
specific application.

Some companies will offer a pre-calibration test where they test equipment first, to
determine whether it is suitable for calibration, whilst others will submit all equipment for
calibration whether or not it is working properly.

In general use, calibration is often regarded as including the process of adjusting the
output or indication on a measurement instrument to agree with value of the applied
standard, within a specified accuracy however this is actually two processes: calibration
and adjustment. It is important therefore to understand exactly what service you require.
It is also important to understand what is being calibrated and how the calibration is
being performed. As an example, consider a digital thermometer that uses an external
temperature probe. Many companies are surprised to learn that their calibration is
performed using a simulated temperature value that is applied to the thermometer only.
Here, a test instrument is attached to the digital thermometer and a voltage equivalent
to a specific temperature is applied to the digital thermometer. The result is then
recorded and the thermometer considered to be calibrated.

Many users require, and probably expect, a more rigorous calibration to be performed
that reflects real world usage. Here, the preferred method is to test both the digital
thermometer and the temperature probe together (in other words a ‘system test’) and to
use a real heat source. The value displayed by the system being tested is then
compared against the standard (the system with a known or assigned accuracy from the
first paragraph!).

Why is Calibration So Important?

Calibration defines the accuracy and quality of measurements recorded using a piece of
equipment. Over time there is a tendency for results and accuracy to ‘drift’ particularly
when using particular technologies or measuring particular parameters such as
temperature and humidity. To be confident in the results being measured there is an
ongoing need to service and maintain the calibration of equipment throughout its lifetime
for reliable, accurate and repeatable measurements.
The goal of calibration is to minimise any measurement uncertainty by ensuring the
accuracy of test equipment. Calibration quantifies and controls errors or uncertainties
within measurement processes to an acceptable level.

So if you know that a particular food product needs to be kept above 68°C and the
instrument system you are using displays a figure of 68.8°C then provided the system is
calibrated to be accurate within 0.5°C at 68°C you can be confident the food is safe, if
the system has an accuracy of 1°C though then you cannot be certain that the food’s
temperature has been correctly controlled. Food is, of course, only one example of why
it is essential to have a confirmed calibrated level of accuracy. Manufacturing processes
that require specific controlled curing temperatures are another in fact the list goes on.

In summary, calibration is vitally important wherever measurements are important, it

enables users and businesses to have confidence in the results that they monitor record
and subsequently control.
Instrument calibration is one of the primary processes used to maintain
instrument accuracy. Calibration is the process of configuring an instrument to
provide a result for a sample within an acceptable range. Eliminating or
minimizing factors that cause inaccurate measurements is a fundamental
aspect of instrumentation design.

Although the exact procedure may vary from product to product, the
calibration process generally involves using the instrument to test samples of
one or more known values called “calibrators.” The results are used to
establish a relationship between the measurement technique used by the
instrument and the known values. The process in essence “teaches” the
instrument to produce results that are more accurate than those that would
occur otherwise. The instrument can then provide more accurate results when
samples of unknown values are tested in the normal usage of the product.
Calibrations are performed using only a few calibrators to establish the
correlation at specific points within the instrument’s operating range. While it
might be desirable to use a large number of calibrators to establish the
calibration relationship, or “curve”, the time and labor associated with
preparing and testing a large number of calibrators might outweigh the
resulting level of performance. From a practical standpoint, a tradeoff must be
made between the desired level of product performance and the effort
associated with accomplishing the calibration. The instrument will provide the
best performance when the intermediate points provided in the manufacturer’s
performance specifications are used for calibration; the specified process
essentially eliminates, or “zeroes out”, the inherent instrument error at these
points.