In experimental methodology, a round-robin test is an interlaboratory test (measurement, analysis, or

experiment An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs whe ...

) performed independently several times. This can involve multiple independent scientists performing the test with the use of the same method in different equipment, or a variety of methods and equipment. In reality it is often a combination of the two, for example if a sample is analysed, or one (or more) of its properties is measured by different laboratories using different methods, or even just by different units of equipment of identical construction. A round-robin program is a

measurement systems analysis A measurement systems analysis (MSA) is a thorough assessment of a measurement process, and typically includes a specially designed experiment that seeks to identify the components of variation in that measurement process. Just as processes that pr ...

technique which uses

analysis of variance Analysis of variance (ANOVA) is a collection of statistical models and their associated estimation procedures (such as the "variation" among and between groups) used to analyze the differences among means. ANOVA was developed by the statistician ...

(ANOVA) random effects model to assess a measurement system.

Round-robin tests regarding
occupational safety and health Occupational safety and health (OSH), also commonly referred to as occupational health and safety (OHS), occupational health, or occupational safety, is a multidisciplinary field concerned with the safety, health, and welfare of people at wo ...

Companies are obliged to determine whether hazardous substances are in the air at the

workplace A workplace is a location where someone works, for their employer or themselves, a place of employment. Such a place can range from a home office to a large office building or factory. For industrialized societies, the workplace is one of ...

by using appropriate measurements. To maintain the quality parameters for analytic procedures, the quality assurance methods are to be applied that are state-of-the-art. The Institute for Occupational Safety and Health of the German Social Accident Insurance (IFA) provides proficiency testing as support and assistance for the measuring stations worldwide for the purpose of self-examination and for the external presentation of quality standards. The PT schemes are conducted according to DIN EN ISO/IEC 17043 and DIN ISO 13528. The IFA organises the proficiency testing schemes in co-operation with the German association of environmental and OSH measurement bodies (BUA) and in collaboration with international partner institutes.German Social Accident Insurance (DGUV): Proficiency testing at the IFA
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Purpose

There are different reasons for performing a round-robin test: * determination the

reproducibility Reproducibility, also known as replicability and repeatability, is a major principle underpinning the scientific method. For the findings of a study to be reproducible means that results obtained by an experiment or an observational study or in ...

of a

test method A test method is a method for a test in science or engineering, such as a physical test, chemical test, or statistical test. It is a definitive procedure that produces a test result. In order to ensure accurate and relevant test results, a test m ...

or process * verification of a new method of analysis. If a new method of analysis has been developed, a round-robin test involving proven methods would verify whether the new method produces results that agree with the established method. * providing basis, by interlaboratory testing, for certificates of quantitative analysis on a given material in certified reference materials production.

Further info

ASTM ASTM International, formerly known as American Society for Testing and Materials, is an international standards organization that develops and publishes voluntary consensus technical standards for a wide range of materials, products, systems, an ...

E691 Standard Practice for Conducting an Interlaboratory Study to Determine the Precision of a Test Method * IUPAC
Round Robin Test on the Molecular Characterization of Epoxy Resins by Liquid Chromatography
* NIST/SEMATEK (2008
''Handbook of Statistical Methods''

References

{{reflist Design of experiments Statistical hypothesis testing