Do you need a calibration certificate on new equipment?

[John Preston]

I've been looking at buying some new test equipment and have noticed that there is always an option to buy with or without a calibration certificate. (extra cost involved) Surely if the equipment is "brand new" then you shouldn't need it... or am I wrong?

 

[Taylortwocities]

If it is brand new, it should come with a calibration certificate. Buy from somewhere else, if it doesn't, or if it is a cost option.

 

[John Preston]

If it is brand new, it should come with a calibration certificate. Buy from somewhere else, if it doesn't, or if it is a cost option.

I thought as much but couldn't understand why it's an option if you don't need it on a brand new piece of equipment. Just didn't make sense.

 

[Wilko]

Hi - strangely your Scheme may insist on it, so I'd confirm with them on an email. A nonsense in my opinion.

 

[l4urence]

They generally come with a calibration cert but thinking if its been on a shelf for a year or more... I've always assumed with new kit the first year (from receipt date) is in calibration. But I wouldn't want to fight in court over that argument!

 

[Deleted member 26818]

If you intend using an instrument immediately upon receipt, having an initial calibration certificate is probably a waste of time.
Your purchase receipt should be sufficient to prove the instrument is in calibration.
If however you intend placing the instrument in stock, then a calibration certificate which you can then date when the instrument is first put into use might be preferable.

Metrel MFTs for instance come with a calibration certificate which should be dated by the vendor and has a space for the user to date when the MFT is first put into use.

 

[rolyberkin]

Stroma stipulate a calibration cert is required a year after first purchase, I am sitting with a calibration person at the mo and he says it is due to not knowing how long it has sat on the shelf, but a bit of a money spinner for the companies.

 

[Fitzy]

New measuring equipment or similar should come with a ‘certificate of conformity’ from the manufacturer, which is in affect a ‘calibration certificate’, which means it was calibrated during manufacture.

 

[Boing89]

New measuring equipment or similar should come with a ‘certificate of conformity’ from the manufacturer, which is in affect a ‘calibration certificate’, which means it was calibrated during manufacture.

A certificate of conformity is not a calibration certificate. It’s a certificate that says the equipment conforms to the EN standard it was designed and built for. If you don’t have an in date certificate then it’s not calibrated. Whether that’s important to you is a different matter. Due to the nature of What we do at my work we don’t calibrate every meter. There are installation kits with calibrated meters but the rest of the time I use a multimeter for indication unless a site induction says otherwise. Is there voltage, is there continuity? I don’t really care if it’s reading 401V or 399V. If it started to really look like it was off the scale I’d probably look into having it checked but it’s not an issue I’ve had with a digi multimeter in over 20 years. I’d rather they were all kept calibrated but it’s not my call and I appreciate where the boss is coming from on this one.

 

[Blissof89]

My martindale came with a calibration cert but then also had blank spaces on that cert for date of purchase and re calibration date.

I'd like to think a MFT won't just start loosing accuracy from sitting on a shelf for 6 months, knocking about in the van and on site is a different story.

 

[Moley]

All our new equipment has to have a new calibration cert before we use it. Even if it's straight out of the box. It's not our policy but the sites we work at.

 

[Diver233]

If you have a test box you can prove it against, or another calibrated meter take the readings and that should satisfy any certification body with it being a brand new meter.

It is a con that you buy a meter and you have to buy a certificate extra.
Listen up suppliers it pees your customers (us) off

 

[davesparks]

The manufacturer must calibrate it when they manufacture it, otherwise it wouldn't read correctly. And that is probably the only time that any actual adjustment will happen as part of the calibration process, the annual calibration will rarely be anything more than plugging it in to a fancy check box.