The scope of the ISO/IEC 17025:2005 accreditation includes several SAE AS6171 test methods for suspect/counterfeit electrical, electronic and electromechanical (EEE) parts. According to the company, IEC is the first and only electronic manufacturing services (EMS) provider with an on-site testing laboratory to receive this accreditation with the addition of SAE AS6171 test methods. The ISO/IEC 17025:2005 accreditation is the internationally accepted specification of general requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories. The SAE AS6171 test methods were developed specifically for laboratories for the detection and avoidance of suspect/counterfeit parts. The company also asserts that, currently, SAE AS6171 is the only standard that provides uniform requirements, practices, and test methods, making it more stringent than other counterfeit avoidance protocols.

This SAE Aerospace Standard standardizes inspection and test procedures, workmanship criteria, and minimum training and certification requirements to detect suspect/counterfeit  electrical, electronic, and electromechanical (EEE) parts. The requirements of this document apply once a decision is made to use parts with unknown chain of custody that do not have pedigree back to the original component manufacturer, or have been acquired from a broker or independent distributor, or when there are other known risk elements that result in the user to have concerns about potential counterfeit parts. The tests specified by this standard may also detect occurrences of malicious tampering, although the current version of this standard is not designed specifically for this purpose. This standard ensures consistency across the supply chain for test techniques and requirements based on assessed risk associated with the application, component, supplier, and other relevant risk factors. The requirements of this document supplement the requirements of a higher level quality standard (e.g., AS9100, AS9003, AS9120, ISO 9001) and other quality management system documents. They are not intended to stand alone, supersede, or cancel requirements found in other quality management system documents, or requirements imposed by contracting authorities.