IQ-test: Improving quality in outdoor thermal testing

PASLINK is the grouping of 14 European research institutes involved in the performance assessment of the thermal and solar characteristics of building components under real climate conditions. Most of the members are performing semi-standardised tests using the PASSYS/PASLINK test cells. IQ-TEST is the European thematic network project aiming at further developing common quality procedures for testing, calibration, data gathering, cleaning and analysis, interpretation of test results and scaling/replication to real buildings, maintenance of test infrastructure. Therefore common activities are set up and coordinated. Pragmatic quality procedures for test site management, testing and data analysis are being updated or developed to become more practicable. The procedures are integrated in a software tool for daily practice. The application of the procedures is subject to an inspection visit at all test sites. A set of training instruments is under development and is applied in training sessions for the test site managers to promote the compliance of each members test site expertise in design, preparation and execution of tests and analysis of test data with the required quality level. To assess the inter-site quality of testing and analytical procedures of the members, round robin tests are performed. The synthesis of these test results should make clear whether further standardisation of outdoor testing is feasible. For dissemination of the network activities, case studies are documented and published on the website www.paslink.org and a series of industrial workshops is organised. All these activities will consolidate the network, integrate new test sites and strengthen its common approach of support for new product developments in the field of innovative building components through semi-standardised tests and pragmatic, practicable and affordable but accurate procedures, and last but not least, to higher confidence in the results by professional clients and to a broader market for performance evaluation using the tools and facilities of the network.