A NEW ACHIEVEMENT FOR LUKAVAC CEMENT: FIRST ACCREDITED LABORATORY FOR TESTING ALTERNATIVE FUELS IN BIH
Lukavac Cement recently established and accredited a section of its Production Control Service – Laboratory, dedicated to testing SRF (Solid Recovered Fuel) alternative fuel and hardened concrete. This section now operates under the name Testing Laboratory.
In its commitment to providing high-quality services, accurate, and reliable testing results, both for its own needs and now for external clients, the Testing Laboratory has been accredited. With the issuance of the Accreditation Certificate on June 26, 2024, the Institute for Accreditation of BIH confirmed that our laboratory meets all requirements in accordance with the BAS EN ISO/IEC 17025:2018 standard for testing competence.
This Testing Laboratory is the first of its kind in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the standard integrated into Lukavac Cement’s existing quality management system. This confirms that the laboratory meets the requirements of the standard for competency in conducting physical and chemical testing of solid fuels from renewable sources, as well as their sampling, and for testing in construction, specifically construction materials and concrete. This includes the following methods for physical and chemical testing of solid fuels from renewable sources:
- preparation of the laboratory sample BAS EN 21646:2023
- determination of moisture content by the method of drying in a dryer – Part 1: Determination of total moisture by the reference method according to BAS CEN/TS 15414 – 1:2015
- determination of moisture content by the method of drying in the dryer – Part 3: Moisture in the sample for general analysis according to the method BAS EN ISO 21660 – 3:2022
- determination of heat value up to 40000 kJ/kg BAS EN ISO 21654:2022
- determination of ash content BAS EN ISO 21656:2022
- determination of mercury content BAS EN ISO 15411:2013
- determination of chlorine content BAS EN ISO 15408:2012
- as well as for static lot sampling using RU 8.6.0. – 5.6.5 (BAS EN ISO 21645:2022 points for static lot).
The laboratory is accredited for the testing of construction material concrete for the following areas:
- shape, dimensions and other requirements for samples and molds according to BAS EN 12390-1:2022
- compressive strength testing, BAS 12390-3:2020.
For the purposes of accreditation, it was necessary to adapt the existing quality management system in accordance with the BAS EN ISO/IEC 17025:2018 standard, conduct staff training, amend the Rules of Procedure and introduce a new process: testing laboratory. Thus, in addition to the products, the testing laboratory services were introduced into the system. Accreditation means official recognition that a body (laboratory, certification body, inspection body) is competent to carry out conformity assessment activities in accordance with internationally accepted rules, while certification is a confirmation (certificate) of the conformity of management systems, products or persons with certain standard or technical specification.
We are now able to provide reference testing services for fuel from waste (SRF) in and out of BIH, as well as for our own needs, in our accredited testing laboratory. In this regard, we have been using fuel from waste (GIO) in our production process for more than 10 years which successfully replaces conventional fossil fuels – coal, oil or gas. Its use does not create new waste, it is a green alternative that significantly reduces carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere and creates many positive effects.
Its greatest value lies precisely in the fact that it saves fuel from nature for future generations.
