8. Mistakes to avoid

8.1 Don't think that normative specifications are just for you!

If your customers or regulations do not require you to do so, you can (must) adapt them.

• Believe that calibrations/verifications are an end in themselves: these operations provide a status of the instrument at a given point in time, never at the actual moment of measurement. It is imperative to set up monitoring systems for critical processes.

• Believe that calibrations/verifications are "valid" until the next calibration date: periodicity should be determined to maximize the chance that this is true.