The laboratory employs BA, BSc, MSc and PhD graduates with a range of backgrounds including chemistry, biochemistry and microbiology. All staff receive full training on all methods and are competency checked. Throughout the three labs we have around 40 scientists with a combined technical experience of over 450 years. We also have multiple partnerships with organisations such as the Royal Society of Biology and Royal Society of Chemistry, as well as being a CPD approved employer from the Science Council.
We have four departments in our Staines laboratory; microbiology, cryptosporidium, organic chemistry and inorganic chemistry. Each department can analyse various water types including:
- HTM Suits
- Drinking Water
- Natural Water
- Recreational Water (Pools and Spas)
- Bottled Water
The quality of water is of vital importance to Affinity Water, so we therefore test for many contaminants that could cause detriment to human health. Our labs can test for cryptosporidium and E. coli as well as cyanides, pesticides and metals. We also test for Algae in samples. For a comprehensive list of determinants please do get in contact.
Our laboratory is accredited to National Measurement Accreditation Service (NMAS) M10 and Drinking Water Testing Specifications (DWTS) in July 1997. We also have the UKAS accreditation, ISO 17025, illustrating that the laboratory produces data of high quality, in which customers can have much confidence. Our AQC team are responsible for maintaining our accreditation and procedures, ensuring that our services are performed to the highest level. To achieve the highest standards, we receive reference cultures, have regular equipment profiling and calibrations, performance checks against over 100 laboratories and we receive unknown samples from an external source each quarter to ensure our results are accurate. We also run blanks, negatives and countable spikes within a batch to ensure each test is accurate.