Interlaboratory paper and pulp program

The interlaboratory paper and pulp programs provide information that enables the continuous improvement of the participating laboratories and result in the following benefits, among others:

• they provide assistance to participating laboratories in the maintenance and calibration of their equipment, since it is often difficult to schedule dates for the performance of these operations;
• they indicate situations in which participants should revise their procedures;
• they indicate situations in which the participants should invest in the quality of work of their technical personnel;
• they allow for improvements in the quality and credibility of tests and services offered.

In the area of pulp and paper, participation in inter-laboratory testing programs is indispensable, since standards of pulp and papers are not repeatable while simultaneously maintaining exactly the same characteristics and properties. The reason for this is the fact that cellulose is a natural product occurring in plants in the form of a complex fibrous arrangement which is not isolated, i.e., it is accompanied by other components. Thus, the characteristics and properties of cellulose pulps depend on the raw materials from which they originate, on the process employed in their extraction, and on the conditions of this process. In the case of paper, in addition to variations inherent to the pulp, there are others associated to the formation of the paper sheet.

IPT offers three annual programs in the pulp and paper area, each consisting of three rounds, with the participation of a total of approximately 80 laboratories in Brazil and abroad. These programs are:

• Inter-laboratory Program for Paper Testing;
• Inter-laboratory Program for Tests on Corrugated Board Sheets;
• Inter-laboratory Program for Cellulose Pulp Testing.

In addition to these annual Programs, IPT offers inter-laboratory programs on demand, for groups of laboratories and/or specific trials. The management of the programs on demand includes the entire preparation of samples, shipping to participating laboratories, receiving and handling the results and issuing of reports.