A Tribute - NCSL International

Transcription

Dr. Seton Bennett
(1945 – 2015)
A Tribute
By Professor Andrew Wallard
42
Director Emeritus, International Bureau of Weights and Measures
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NCSLI WORLDWIDE NEWS
Publication ISSN #1940-2988
Vol. 8, No. 4, October 2015
Metrologist is published by
NCSL International and distributed
to its member organizations.
Publisher NCSL International
Editor Linda Stone, NCSL International
Contributing Editors
Prof. Horst Czichos, BHT Berlin, University of Applied Sciences
Mark Kuster, Pantex Metrology
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Tim Osborne, Trescal
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OCT
2015
NCSLI WORLDWIDE NEWS
inthisissue
contents
From the President
2
From the Boardroom
3
NCSLI New Members
4
2016 Technical Exchange
6
Conference Review
8
specialfeatures
Learning & Development 16
2016 Workshop & Symposium 40
Committee News 56
16
Education Outreach
24
Magnets
30
Primary Thermometry at NRC
34
Toward a Measurement
Information Infrastructure
MEMORIAM
Regional News IN 62
STEM and Seabrook Station Metrology
William Hinton
McClelland First Graders
William Hinton
Dr. Patrick Rourke and Dr. Andrew Todd
Smart Certificates, Part 2
Mark Kuster
A TRIBUTE TO
International News
A Major Milestone for Accreditation
DR.39
SETON
BENNETT
Robert Sawyer
and Georgette Macdonald
NRC Canada By30
Professor Andrew Wallard
42
(1945 – 2015)
Dr. Seton Bennett Tribute
Liaison Reports 44
Andrew physical-based
Wallardtechniques. At that time, many of us were devel-
The metrology world was deeply saddened to hear of the death
of Seton Bennett on 14 September. He had been diagnosed with
oping laser-based wavelength length standards that were even-
Motor Neurone Disease and coped bravely and with innate
tually used to replace the kryton lamp realisation of the metre.
fortitude as the illness took a hold.
I was developing the NPL’s red Helium Neon laser but, typically,
CPEM 2016 Conference 33
It is impossible to fit Seton into a single category as he was not
to work at the Labratoire de
with numerous papers and
l’Horloge Atomique in Orsay,
innovations to his name but
Advertisers Index 68
he took part in, and led, a
multitude of international
30 16
42
24
France where he developed
the first wavelength stabilized Helium-Neon laser,
activities with flair, distinc-
which used the saturated
tion, infectious charm, and
absorption technique, in the
ent husiasm. The ability
green region of the spectrum.
to bridge the gap between
It immediately had a practical
researcher and “manager”
application as it was more
is not a skill always relished
powerful than the red laser
and mastered by many but
on which the realisation of
Seton took to it naturally.
the redefined metre was even-
Unlike many whose career
tually based, and therefore
took a turn like this, he
more suited to Seton’s activi-
always maintained a deep
ties in engineering metrology.
understanding of, and love
Nevertheless, his scientific
for, his science and brought
paper on green lasers, is
it into management matters.
still — 30 or more years later
I was present on many an
— part of the official “mise
occasion when his quietly
en pratique” of length and
spoken and courteous inter-
wavelength standards.
vention in a meeting hit the
Retur ning to t he NPL,
nail on the head and led to
Seton was asked to take
a more sound scientific and
on the management of
administrative decision.
the
A f t e r l e av i n g O x fo r d
University, Seton started
www.ncsli.org
Seton saw an alternative approach which took him, for a year,
only an excellent scientist
57
Laborator y ’s
new
re s e a rc h p ro g ra m m e o n
micrometrolgy and, building
life as a laser and optical physics scientist at the UK’s National
on his specroscopic and laser experience, he also set up what is
Physical Laboratory, joining just a year before I did. He imme-
now NPL’s world-leading team in the use of trapped ions as wave-
diately showed that he had the skill to marry physics and
length and frequency standards. His skills were much in demand
engineering, and many of his innovations changed, quite
and he then took on the leadership role of one of the NPL’s
dramatically, the ability to make precise measurements. Seton’s
largest teams devoted to mass, force and pressure research and
diplomatic skills were called on early in life as he persuaded tradi-
routine calibration services. Part of this was the design and oper-
tional metrologists to adopt “new fangled” techniques. There
ation of the NPL’s new kilogram balance and Seton’s practical
are several instruments at the NPL and in metrology labs world-
eye focused on the need to investigate the surface properties of
wide that were developed from the principles that he intro-
the kilogram standards using surface analysis. This continues to
duced. Automated measurements and data processing speeded
play a major role in the understanding and maintenance of mass
up processes and replaced subjective judgements with objective,
standards and is something that is now of immense importance
October 2015 | Metrologist 1
regionalnews
fromthepresident
Roger Burton | NCSLI President
Greetings! I hope you have had a great summer and are looking
forward to the changing seasons and the beginning of fall.
Many of you attended the 2015 NCSLI Workshop & Symposium
that was held at the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention
Center in Grapevine, Texas from July 19-23. The conference
theme was “Measurement Science and the Quality of Life.” I
found the NIST Lego Watt Balance to be especially intriguing. If
you were like me, you found the conference to be a great chance
to hear about the latest advancements in our industry, catch up
with colleagues, meet with exhibitors and to come away with
increased knowledge and strengthened relationships that allow
you to improve and succeed in your career.
It is not too early to begin making your plans to attend the
upcoming 2016 NCSLI Technical Exchange, to be held at the
Omni Jacksonville Hotel, in Jacksonville, Florida from February
1-2, 2016. You can also start planning for next year’s Workshop
& Symposium, with the theme “Measurement Accuracy and the
Impact on Society,” which will be held in Saint Paul, Minnesota
on July 24-28, 2016.
As I have mentioned in my previous articles, the NCSLI Board
is focusing on seven key objectives as outlined in our strategic
plan, 2020 Vision. Our third objective is to be a Well-Run,
Financially Stable, and Viable Organization. This covers a wide
range of NCSLI initiatives, including using NCSLI resources
2 Metrologist | October 2015
prudently, financial oversight by the Board of Directors, Increase
memberships, improved financial visibility and reporting, and to
pursue additional revenue streams.
To meet our financial objectives, NCSLI uses a quarterly
dashboard that provides to board members with both quantitative
and qualitative results. We have put in place a reporting
mechanism that is both timely and accurate, and that transforms
the accounting data we have into financial information, the most
important purpose of which is to allow the board to make sound
business decisions. We compare our financial results both to the
previous year and budgeted amounts to ensure we stay on track.
On the balance sheet side, we maintain our stability by ensuring
we have the equivalent of 9 to 12 months expenses as a safety
reserve. On the income statement side, we strive to generate a
small profit just above breakeven to ensure we are viable going
forward. Always keeping our member’s best interest in mind,
we focus on efficiencies and cost saving measures to be able to
provide the highest level of services, publications, training and
other benefits to provide maximum value for your membership
investment.
I look forward to seeing you in Jacksonville!
rburto@sandia.gov
Vol. 8 No. 4
fromtheboardroom
The Boardroom
Dana Leaman | NCSLI Secretary
The NCSLI Board of Directors held
its summer meeting just prior to the
annual 2015 NCSLI Workshop &
Symposium in Grapevine, Texas. A
total of 29 people attended over the
course of the two-day meeting. In
addition to the NCSLI Operational
and
Division
Vice
President
presentations, the list of presenters
included Jim Olthoff (NIST United
States), Georgette MacDonald (NRC Canada), Salvador EcheverriaVillagomez (CENAM Mexico), Andy Henson (BIPM Paris), Pavel
Neyezhakov (COOMET Ukraine), Kamal Hossain (EURAMET
United Kingdom), Chuck Ehrlich (OIML United States), and Pete
Loftus (IET United Kingdom).
Reports from the NCSLI Operational and Division Vice
Presidents highlighted various committee and section activities
as well as the upcoming move of the NCSLI Business office. The
board also reviewed and approved a proposal for the creation
of a new committee, Military Test & Calibration Outreach. This
committee will be established under the Industrial Programs
(150). In our International activities, the Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) with EURAMET was re-signed.
As part of the required board activities for this summer
meeting, Roger Burton, President, re-appointed Ingrid Ulrich as
the NCSLI Treasurer for the 2016-2017 term. Also, as many of
our international liaisons were in attendance at this meeting, the
president noted the appointments that had been re- confirmed at
the February 2015 board meeting. A listing of the international
liaisons can be found in the NCSLI Who’s Who Volunteer Directory
posted on the NCSLI website.
The Board also continued to discuss activities surrounding the
proposed revision of ISO/IEC 17025. Updates were shared from
Jeff Gust (VP Standards and Practices and NCSLI Representative to
ILAC), Tim Osborne (VP Operations and an NCSLI Representative
to ISO/CASCO under the NCSLI Liaison A status), and Georgette
Macdonald (SCC Representative) on the activities of the ISO/
CASCO Working Group 44. It was noted that the committee
draft of the revised document is expected later this year.
dana.leaman@nist.gov
NCSLI Board of Directors.
www.ncsli.org
membership
American Gage
Goldbelt Falcon, LLC
American Gage is a leading metrology laboratory in Southern California meeting specific calibration, repair and instrument acquisition needs of clients in various industries for over 30 years. We are
a distributor for major instrument manufacturers providing third
party NIST traceable calibration certification for both client test
equipment and instrument sales. We offer personal and prompt
service covering a wide range of capabilities in our environmentally
controlled laboratories as well as at customer facilities (on-site service). We gained our Certificate of Accreditation for compliancy with ISO/IEC 17025:2005 (which includes applicable ISO 9001:2008 requirements) and ANSI/NCSL Z540 through the International Accreditation Service (IAS is recognized globally including NVLAP & A2LA). Our calibration system is designed to comply as required with ISO
10012 and the former MIL-STD 45662A. Our laboratories are equipped
with state of the art equipment and reference standards traceable to
the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
Goldbelt Falcon, LLC is an SBA-certified Alaska Native Corporation with headquarters in Chesapeake, Virginia. Our vision is to
be a leading independent preferred provider of, logistics, scientific, engineering, and technical services to the Homeland Security
(USCG), Defense (USAF, USN/DLA & USA), FDA, and Aerospace
marketplaces. More than ever, these organizations face new problems with increasing complexities that span organizational boundaries, involving emerging scientific technologies, and demanding
cost efficient solutions. We have helped these organizations make
important progress in rapidly changing environments. Our leadership team is committed to helping all customers achieve their
mission requirements. We provide customers reliable, high-quality scientific, engineering and management services in the following domains: Program/Project Management, Systems Engineering, C4ISR (command, control, communications, computers,
intelligence, sensors, and reconnaissance), Test & Evaluation,
Validation and Compliance, Sensors Integration, Acceptance Testing and Certification, Database Development, Verification and
Management, Logistics/Warehousing, Metrology, Calibration
Maintenance and Repair, Research and Genetics, and Training.
1131 S. Richfield Rd
Placentia, California 92870
Contact: Roger Arnold 657-216-2600
rarnold@americangage.com
BAE Systems ES Metrology
65 River Road
Hudson, New Hampshire 03051
Contact: Jason Butler 603-885-0514
We’re building on our strength as a global provider of defense and security products to shape support services that meet the changing needs of
our customers. From sophisticated cyber services and military support,
to mission critical electronic systems and protection equipment, we
aim to be at the forefront of defense technology and science.
C-6 Inc. Metrology Services
1264 Rangeview Rd.
Estes Park, Colorado 80517
Contact: Charlie Beninati 720-301-9242
charlie@c-6inc.com
C-6 Metrology Services combines extensive manufacturing knowledge with over 30 years of precision calibration expertise. Our
turn-around times average about a week and expedite services are
available to avoid long downtimes. At C-6, we serve our customers
through personal, specialized care. We are real people with a passion
for quality. We strive to develop strong business relationships, giving individual attention to your equipment.
DRS Environmental Systems Incorporated
860 Greenbrier Circle Suite 410
Chesapeake, Virginia 23320
Contact: Brian MacDonald 321-494-2504
brian.macdonald.7.ctr@us.af.mil
Hamilton Sundstrand
1 Hamilton Road M/S 1-M-J39
Windso Locks, Connecticut 06096
Contact: David Coache 860-654-2600
david.coache@utas.utc.com
Laerie Incorporated
332 Mountain View Road Unit 2
Berthoud, Colorado 80513
Contact: Scott Winston 970-532-7990 ext. 303
wscott@laerie.com
Laerie Inc. has provided calibrations (traceable to NIST) to over 600
customers in its 20 years of business. The company was formed in
1995 by Carol Lowe (owner), Larry Armfield (president) and Winston Scott, newly retired after 35 years serving NIST as Engineer
(Electrical and Safety). Laerie, Inc. has grown over the years to
ten employees using over 500 standards to serve customer needs.
Laerie, Inc. chooses to be accredited both to ISO /IEC 17025:2005
and ISO 9001:2008, which exceeds most customer needs, but provides double assurances for compliance by independent audits to
ISO standards.
7375 Industrial Rd.
Florence, Kentucky 41042
Contact: Keith Kruse 859-525-2102
kkruse@drs.com
Vol. 8 No. 4
membership
McCrometer
management tools to help fulfill your needs. We offer in-house
calibration with quick turn-around times. PMC is ISO9001:2008
certified and adheres to the ANSI Z540-1 lab procedure guidelines.
McCrometer is a leading global flow instrumentation specialist.
We specialize in the design, manufacture and testing of flow metering solutions. McCrometer’s flow technologies serve in a wide
range of applications and markets. Our application engineers,
researchers and designers apply their expertise in flow physics
and real-world operating dynamics. The results are some of the
most accurate, innovative and trusted flow meters on the market.
Singapore Technologies Electronics Ltd.
3255 West Stetson Avenue
Hemet, California 92545
Contact: Cameron Moyer 951-652-6811, www.mccrometer.com
Process Measurement Company
2475 W 2nd Ave.
Denver, Colorado 80223
Contact: Aaron Fugita 720-810-7106, afugita@lakelandcompanies.com
PMC offers calibration services to a wide variety of industries,
including food and agriculture, utilities, electrical contracting,
building safety, manufacturing, medical and aviation. Based in
Minneapolis with offices in Denver, Kansas City and Omaha,
we calibrate and certify electrical, mechanical, dimensional and
physical measuring equipment using NIST-traceable standards.
Our full service lab and highly trained staff can calibrate RF
equipment, oscilloscopes, multimeters, torque, pressure, rulers,
micrometers, and much more. We also offer field services,
bringing our capabilities to customers’ facilities, which provide
maximum efficiency of customer equipment use. PMC’s
certification management software program gives you online
access to all of your equipment certificates and provides asset
www.ncsli.org
24 Ang Mo Kio Street 65
Singapore, Ang Mo Kio Dist 569061
Contact: See Chee Foong 65-6413-1902, seecf@stee.stengg.com
Established in 1969, Singapore Technologies Electronics Limited (ST
Electronics) is a leading Information Communications Technologies (ICT) System provider in the region. The company’s strategic
thrust is in the three key business areas of Satellite & Broadband
Communications (satcoms); e-Government and e-Enterprise; and
Eco-enabling ICT. Its core capabilities lie in its design, development
and integration of advanced electronics systems for commercial,
industrial, defense, government and public services applications
worldwide. With its satcoms, e-Government and e-Enterprise, and
eco-enabling ICT capabilities and expertise, ST Electronics offers
wired and wireless communication solutions, rail and traffic management systems, real-time C4I (command, control, communication, computing and intelligence) solutions, modelling and training
simulation, intelligent building management systems, homeland
security solutions and managed services. It undertakes continuing
research and development to help create cost-effective purpose-built
products at both system and sub-system levels for customers.
Turbocam
607 Calef Highway, Barrington, New Hampshire 03825
Contact: Philip Honigfield, phil.honigfeld@turbocam.com
Two Days of Measurement Training
Conducted by Experts in the Field of Metrology!
FEBRUARY 1 - 2, 2016 IN JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA
HOTEL INFORMATION
PRICING AND REGISTRATION
Training
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OMNI JACKSONVILLE HOTEL
1/2 Day Training
$180
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1 Day Training
$360
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245 Water Street,
Jacksonville, Florida 32202
904-355-6664
2 Day Training
$720
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Registration Includes:
• Materials Bag
• Breakfast, Lunch and Expert Measurement Training for
that day!
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The NCSLI Technical Exchange will build and enhance specific hands-on skills in the
calibration of measurement and test equipment. This two-day training will also teach
best practices along with introducing new and innovative calibration hardware, software
and calibration services. Each training session is taught by measurement science
experts from throughout the industry.
TECHNICAL EXCHANGE TRAINING PROGRAM
MONDAY AND TUESDAY FEBRUARY 1 & 2, 2016
8:00AM - 5:00PM | 2 DAY CLASS
TUESDAY FEBRUARY 2, 2016
8:00AM - 12:00PM | 1/2 DAY CLASS
An Introduction to Instrument Control and
Calibration Automation in LabVIEW™
Fundamentals of Force Calibration
Henry Zumbrun, Morehouse Instruments
Logan Kunitz, National Instruments Corporation
MONDAY FEBRUARY 1, 2016
8:00AM - 12:00PM | 1/2 DAY CLASS
Industrial Pressure Calibration and Measurements
Jon Sanders, Additel Corporation
Dr. Hy Tran, Sandia National Laboratories
Rob Knake, A2LA
Calculating Uncertainties in Testing Laboratories
Dilip Shah, E=mc3 Solutions
Understanding RF Power Sensor Calibrations
Charlie Sperrazza, Tegam
Industrial Platinum Resistance Thermometry
John Wright, NIST
Ian Ciesniewsk and Dave Cirullo, Mettler Toledo
Dana Leaman and Kari Harper, NVLAP
Frank Liebmann, Fluke Calibration
Flow Measurements and Uncertainties
Good Weighing Practices
Conducting an Effective Internal Audit
Infrared Thermometry
Dilip Shah, E=mc3 Solutions
Barbara Belzer and Tom Hettenhouser, NVLAP
Statistical Analysis of Metrology Data
Proficiency Testing
Ron Ginley, NIST
Temperature Effects in Dimensional Metrology
ISO/IEC 17025 Laboratory Accreditation
RF Microwave Basics
Dawn Cross, NIST
1:00AM - 5:00PM | 1/2 DAY CLASS
Stating Compliance to Specifications with
Confidence: In-Tolerance, Out-of-Tolerance,
Indeterminate and Guardbanding
Jeff Gust, Fluke Calibration
So – You think you know DC Resistance
and Current Measurements!
Mark Evans, Senior Engineer, Guildline
NCSLI.ORG FOR UPDATES AND CURRENT INFORMATION
MEASUREMENT
SCIENCE
AND THE
OF
LIFE
WORKSHOP & SYMPOSIUM | JULY 19 – 23, 2015
.........................................................................................
Conference Review
.........................................................................................
BY PAUL PACKEBUSH, NCSLI CONFERENCE VP
Welcome readers! In July NCSL International hosted its annual
Workshop & Symposium at the Gaylord Texan Resort in Grapevine
Texas. The Event offered fantastic opportunities to network
with peers, participate in training activities, and learn from an
exciting array of over 100 technical papers and presentations.
An impressive collection of exhibitors provided exceptional
value by educating us on new products and services, while more
than 18 NCSLI committees and working groups met to review,
update, improve and discuss NCSLI technical publications. Overall,
more than 700 measurement professionals took advantage of
our conference.
This year we provided focused tracks on “Measurements in Energy” and continued a popular track from
NMI leaders, “Amazing Stories of Measurements.” Both of these events were supported by an array of keynote
speakers. Opening session featured Dr. Chris Greer of NIST and Steve Russell of Duke Energy leading us
from the larger vision of the Internet of things to the “boots on the ground” complexities of implementing
measurement improvements in the existing power grid.
Ending our week of measurement education, Dr. Carl Williams and Jennifer Lee of NIST, provided an
exciting and entertaining view of transition of the kilogram. Keynote speaker, Amy Young of Illinois Wesleyan
University, closed the event with a fascinating discussion of her documentary on the people behind the
program to replace the kilogram.
Vol. 8 No. 4
We understand that as an organization we can
provide value beyond our tutorial program, technical
papers and meetings. Building relationships and
interacting with peers is important to personal
and career growth. To this end we hosted several
networking mixers, geared to help you meet and
interact with colleagues and exhibitors.
With a focus on serving our membership, this year’s
conference provided a special all day workshop on
the updates of ISO/IEC 17025. Led by Tim Osborne,
Trescal and Jeff Gust, Fluke Calibration, the workshop
provided insight on changes to the standards and
educated us on the process of acceptance by the
global community. In addition they sought feedback
from the NCSLI membership in order to better
represent our interests at the international level.
As we move into the second half of 2015 many
of us are already looking forward to the 2016
Technical Exchange Measurement Training Event on
February 1-2, 2016 at the Omni Hotel in Jacksonville,
Florida and beyond to the 2016 Workshop &
Symposium in Saint. Paul, Minnesota. I hope to see
many of you again at these two events, and as always,
I urge you to share your knowledge and experience
by submitting papers, provide measurement training,
sponsoring, exhibiting or simply attending to expand
your personal and career growth.
paul.packebush@ni.com
.........................................................................................
Keynote Speakers
Dr. Chris Greer, NIST Senior Executive
for Cyber Physical Systems and
National Coordinator for Smart Grid
Interoperability.
www.ncsli.org
Steve Russell, DMS/DA
Project Director for Duke
Energy Carolinas and the
Alstom DMS product within
Grid Modernization.
Screenwriter Amy Young
is a filmmaker with
strong experience in
communicating science to a
general audience.
MEASUREMENT
SCIENCE
AND THE
OF
LIFE
Dr Hector Nava Jaimes
WILDHACK AWARD WINNER
Congratulations to the 2015 Wildhack
Award Winner, Dr. Hector Nava Jaimes,
President National Academy of Engineering
1993-1995.
After completing his studies in Communications and Electronics Engineering at the
National Academy of Engineering in 1959,
Dr. Jaimes started his professional activities
as Assistant Researcher at the Institute of
Physics at UNAM.
His first task was to develop a system similar to that of Dr. Willard F. Libby, who was
awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in
1960 for radiocarbon dating, the method
of using carbon-14 for age determination
in archaeology, geology and other branches
of science. This was his first contact with
metrology.
in 1969 Dr. Jaimes obtained his doctorate
in Electronics at the Faculty of Sciences
d’Orsay University in Paris. In 1970 he
joined the Center for Research and Advanced
Studies of the IPN as a researcher in the
Department of Electrical Engineering. He
served as the head of this department from
1972 to 1982. During this time he was responsible for the Multinational Engineering Projects CINVESTAV-OAS and the Special Project
Mar de Plata OAS for the establishment of a
Metrology Laboratory in Mexico, which contributed to the training of specialized personnel in metrology who were in charge of
the National Center of Metrology (CENAM)
project (1976-1982).
In addition to the various activities as a
Research Professor, he was an advisor on
several undergraduate, master and doctorate
theses. He was the Director General of the
Center for Research and Advanced Studies of
the elected president of 1977 and for the
the IPN, from December 1982 to December
1990 and steered the Center towards excellence. During his tenure, new units were created in Mérida, Irapuato, Saltillo and Guadalajara, and developed the first international
project related to metrology culminating in
a Metrology Laboratory, CENAM precursor.
In 1986 he received the National Award for
Integral Standards, issued by the Ministry of
Commerce and Industrial Development, in
recognition of his contributions to the development of metrology in Mexico.
Dr. Jaimes is the founder of the InterAmerican Metrology System, SIM and
period 1996-1998.
In the early 70s he participated in several meetings in Latin America, to establish
guidelines for the creation of centers of excellence in engineering, sponsored by the OAS
and the UNESCO-Montevideo.
He was President of the National Academy
of Engineering (1993-1995) and President of
the Mexican Academy of Engineering (19992001). At the end of his tenure the two academies were merged.
He is the recipient of the Academic Palms
in Rank of Officer, awarded by the Ministry
of Universities of France (1981) and the Commemorative Medal at the Centennial of the
Central Metrology Laboratory of the Electrical Industry in France (1982).
He served as Deputy Director General of
Applied Research in the Mexican Petroleum
Institute (1991-1993) and Coordinator of
Research and Planning of the Mexican Petroleum Institute (1994-1996).
In June 1996 he was appointed by the
President of Mexico as Director General of
the National Centre of Metrology, his current position, which has allowed the development and competitiveness of Mexican
industry, through metrological support
provided to their systems quality and production.
On June 26, 2008 Dr. Naves was appointed
member of the International Committee for
Weights and Measures, which includes 18
internationally renowned personalities. He
was the second Mexican who has achieved
this recognition. The first was Dr. Manuel
Sandoval Vallarta. The Centennial Committee members hold five Nobel prizes.
Vol. 8 No. 4
Georgia L. Harris
EDUCATION AND TRAINING AWARD WINNER
By Vernon Alt, Jr. Learning and Development VP
It was a great pleasure for me to announce
Georgia L. Harris as the 2015 recipient of
the NCSLI Education and Training Award,
given annually to an individual or group of
individuals for outstanding contributions
to the field of metrology education and
training. Please allow me to tell
you some of the accomplishments which brought Georgia’s
name to the top of this year’s
nomination list.
Georgia began her career in
metrology as a Minnesota State
Metrologist in 1984. In 1985 she
became a highly active member
of NCSL International and in
1990 moved to Maryland to
work at NIST. During a still active
career at NIST she has authored
and co-authored numerous
technical publications. Georgia
has been the Program Leader for
the State Laboratory Program since 1990 and
the Technical Advisor to the National Conference on Weights and Measures since 1990.
NEMAP, SEMAP, SWAP, MidMP, WRAP, and
CaMAP are the six Regional Measurement
Assurance Programs — the regional groups
of state and industry labs conduct annual
training and interlaboratory comparisons.
Georgia conducted training at each of them
every year except one (2013) since 1990,
although in 2013, she oversaw the development of the agenda and content for the
training and supervised the contractors and
staff who provided the training. And for 12
years was the NIST Liaison to the Measurement Science Conference coordinating
annual NIST seminars and tutorials at MSC
conferences. Currently Georgia is the Secretary for the American Society for Quality
— Measurement Quality Division.
Georgia has received two Bronze Medal
www.ncsli.org
Awards, the highest honorary recognition given by NIST, the first in 1992 and
the second in 2008 as well as the Andrew
J. Woodington Award in 2003, the highest
honorary given by the Measurement Science
Conference and in 2003 the Arthur S. Flem-
ming Award which honors outstanding federal employees and is recognized by the President of the United States. At NIST, she was
instrumental in their office obtaining accreditation of their training program through the
International Association for Continuing
Education and Training or IACET.
From Education and Training perspective,
Georgia has taught tutorials at MSC, NCSLI,
CENAM Symposium, and at a Metrology
Congress in Colombia South America and
has also provided training for NIST Office
of Weights and Measures instructors, more
than 1,200 participants and 59 unique seminars and webinars, with more than 50 publications supporting education and training
or laboratory procedures in mass, volume,
and lab quality/administration in the past
20 plus years.
To say Georgia has been active with NCSLI
is a gross understatement, Section Coordi-
nator for the Twin Cities, Liaison to the
National Conference on Weights and Measures, a leader in the design and development
of the Metrology Careers website (www.
MetrologyCareers.com), presently chairing
the committee on Higher Education Academic Outreach, representing
NCSLI at the American Society
for Engineering Education
(ASEE) Conference and service
within the Division of Experimental and Laboratory-Oriented Studies of the ASEE. She
has been working on the team
to persuade the U.S. Department
of Labor and the U.S. Office of
Personnel Management to integrate metrology/calibration job
descriptions and labor statistics
into publications and processes
and is currently leading the
effort to implement activities
identified in the metrology education and
training roadmap to help meet metrology
workforce challenges. Georgia has presented
numerous papers, tutorials and workshops
on learning and development subject matter
at NCSLI, MSC, NLA South Africa, CENAM
Simposio, and at ASEE conferences and has
won best paper awards from MSC, NCSLI,
and ASEE. Recently our recipient has ended
a nearly 20 year stint on the NCSLI Board of
Directors beginning in 1993 (with a short
interim gap in the late 1990’s), performing
in the positions of: Eastern Division VP,
Measurement Science and Technology VP,
Publications VP, Learning and Development
VP, Operations VP, Executive Vice President,
President and most recently Immediate Past
President.
Congratulations and Thank You Georgia
for all you have done and continue to do for
the field of Metrology Education & Training.
MEASUREMENT
SCIENCE
BEST PAPER AWARDS
AND THE
Presented by Kevin Rust, Best Paper Chair
OF
LIFE
EDITOR’S
CHOICE
AWARD
Overall Best Paper Award
Paul Reese, Baxter Healthcare Corporation,
“Instrument Adjustment Policies”
Kenneth Hill (not pictured) and
Alan Steele, National Research Council
of Canada (NRC), “The International
Temperature Scale: Past, Present, and
Future” (Presented by Mike Lombardi,
NCSLI Measure Managing Editor)
Nigel Jou and Wanji Yang
(not pictured), APLAC, Taiwan
Accreditation Foundation, “Insight
into the APLAC Member Survey on
Report Credibility”
Craig Shakarji, NIST,
“Ramifications of Proposed
Changes to Decision Rules in 3
Standards within ISO and ASME”
Steven Yang, Standards & Calibration Laboratory,
Hong Kong, “Calibration of Defibrillator Analyzers
at the HKSARG Standards and Calibration
Laboratory”
TUTORIAL LONGEVITY AWARDS
In appreciation for continued support of the NCSLI Conference Tutorial Program.
Presented by Dilip Shah, Tutorial Program Chair
10 Years
Amosh Kumar,
Mitutoyo Corporation
Val Miller,
NIST
Mark Ruefenacht,
Heusser Neweigh
5 Years
Michael Bair, Fluke Calibration
Jeff Gust, Fluke Calibration
Frank Liebmann, Fluke Calibration
Rob Knake, A2LA
Gordon Skattum, Mitutoyo Corporation
NCSLI President Roger Burton, Rob Knake,
Jeff Gust, Dilip Shah
Jeff Bennewitz, Thunder Scientific Corporation
Mike Hamilton, Thunder Scientific Corporation
Bill Williams, Morehouse Instruments, Inc.
Henry Zumbrun, Morehouse Instruments, Inc.
Vol. 8 No. 4
EDUCATION AND TRAINING
Amazing Stories
Measurement
OF
www.ncsli.org
MEASUREMENT
SCIENCE
AND THE
OF
LIFE
Vol. 8 No. 4
Thank You SPONSORS & EXHIBITORS!
ONLINE CONFERENCE PHOTO GALLERY COMING SOON TO NCSLI.ORG
www.ncsli.org
learning+development
Education
Outreach
STEM and Seabrook Station Metrology
By William Hinton
New Hampshire statewide Metrology Ambassador
Students from Great Bay Community College – Advanced
Technology and Academic Center (GBCC-ATAC) and Spaulding
High School’s R. W. Creteau Regional Technology Center, both
in Rochester, NH and one student selected from a group of
more than 450 young ladies who participated in the 2015 New
Hampshire Girls Technology Day were provided an opportunity
to see how STEM (Science Technology Engineering Math) fits into
the design, operation and safety of a 1,244 Megawatt (electric)
world class nuclear power plant. The photo above shows the
students learning the basics of nuclear power as they tour NextEra
Energy Seabrook Station’s Science and Nature Center. Additional
participants included school chaperones, school career counselors
and industry partners who volunteer in education outreach events
at the schools.
Upon arrival at the Science and Nature Center, the students
and the station staff supporting this event were introduced
to each other followed by “Nuclear Power 101” presented by
Anders Oberg, a member of the Seabrook Station Operations
department. Meghan Haidul, site Fire Protection Engineer and
keynote speaker for the New Hampshire 2015 Girls Technology
Day, co-hosted the tour.
Students were taken through the exhibits in the Science and
Nature Center starting with a description of the construction
of the approximately 3-mile long intake and discharge tunnels
that provide cooling water to the plant auxiliary systems from
the Atlantic Ocean. Aquarium displays house live specimens
of sea stars, crabs and other species found in the waters around
the station.
The students interacted with various scientific displays followed
by construction and design information related to the reactor
containment building. The theory of nuclear fission and core
design is presented in several automated displays with animated
graphics and vocal descriptions. This is followed by descriptions
and examples of the materials used in the construction of the
reactor plant, steam plant and the turbine system. The final area
of the Science and Nature Center provided discovery of radiation
theory, several historical videos and knowledge assessment of the
material presented during the tour.
Vol. 8 No. 4
Safety requirements associated with the site and the facilities to
be visited were presented to the group. Safety is first and foremost
at an operating facility such as NextEra Energy Seabrook Station.
Students were then escorted to the Metrology Laboratory.
The Metrology Laboratory manages, calibrates, repairs and
distributes all of the station measuring and test equipment (MTE).
Four qualified Metrology Technicians with deep STEM related
skills and experience perform thousands of calibration every year.
The students were given a tour of the laboratory then paired up
and placed at one of several calibration stations. The metrology
laboratory staff had prepared a portion of a calibration related
task at each station. The technicians, using portions of station
procedures, demonstrated the process and engineering associated
with the calibration to the student pair, at which point, one
student became the performer with the other student acting as
a peer coach. Once the first student completed the calibration,
the duties were reversed and the other student performed the
calibration before the pair moved to the next calibration station.
Frequency measurement was employed at one of the stations
where a digital strobe tachometer was calibrated. This calibration
operates the tachometer at selected rates and the strobe flashes are
detected by an optical sensor that provides an input to a frequency
counter. The students are familiar with this the strobe unit which
is typically part of the equipment collection brought to each of
the NCSLI education outreach events during the school year. This
activity closes the loop for these students who are now aware of
the calibration of this item of Measuring and Test Equipment as
well as its field use.
The infrared thermometer is another item that is often brought
to the schools for outreach events. At this calibration station, the
students learn about the “black body” source and how the actual
temperature is measured by laboratory standards allowing this
device to be used to calibrate the infrared thermometer. Students
at this station calibrated the infrared thermometer as well as
experimented with a FLIR infrared imaging camera. The FLIR was
familiar to one of the students who had an opportunity to use
this device at the metrology workshop during the New Hampshire
2015 Girls Technology Day.
The physical and dimensional laboratory is a self-contained
room with its own air conditioning system designed to maintain
the length standards close to their desired 20 C (68 F) bases
temperature. Here the students were shown how a caliper is
calibrated using the gage blocks. Students also performed a
torque wrench calibration using the torque standard that is also
maintained in this room. The torque standard STEM relation in
this space is directly related to length and mass – N-m (lb-ft).
“The interactive equipment displays managed by their
[technicians] went above and beyond my expectations.
The whole experience was priceless.”
- Gwen DeYoung-Reynolds, recent GBCC graduate
Students inspect a simulated nuclear fuel pellet. Note the simulated fuel
bundle behind students.
www.ncsli.org
Student performing micrometer calibration using a NIST traceable gage block.
Student uses blackbody source to calibrate an infrared
thermometer and check a FLIR camera operation.
“Real world use piques my
interest so seeing in-use
tools…gave three dimensional
meaning to what had been
relatively dry knowledge.”
- Community College Student
Performing a strobe tachometer (strobotac) calibration by measuring the frequency.
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reliability through testing and calibration.
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compliance with respect to IEEE C37.118.1™ Standard for
SynchroPhasor Measurements for Power systems.
IMAGINE THE POSSIBILITIES.
The ability to test and calibrate PMU’s that provide real-time
measurement data for electric power grids, allows operators
to make quick, accurate decisions based on sound, detailed
data with respect to the condition of the grid.
AN INDUSTRY CHANGING IMPACT.
Consumers Energy Laboratory Services and IEEE Standards
Association (IEEE-SA) are working together to provide PMU
conformance testing.
THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING.
To learn more, call Consumers Energy Laboratory Services
at (800) 736-4147, or visit www.LaboratoryServices.com.
Vol. 8 No. 4
From the NFL Rulebook
The Ball must be a “Wilson,” hand selected,
bearing the signature of the Commissioner
of the League, Roger Goodell. The ball shall
be made up of an inflated
(12 1/2 to 13 1/2 pounds) urethane
bladder….
The Referee shall be the sole judge as to
whether the balls offered for play comply
with these specification.
A pump is to be furnished by the home
club, and the balls shall remain under the
supervision of the Referee until they are
delivered to the ball attendant just prior to
the start of the game.
This student is wringing gage blocks in preparation for a caliper calibration.
The student receives instructions for the torque wrench calibration bench from the technician.
The final calibration station was a timely analysis of analog versus digital
pressure instruments. In light of the recent NFL “deflategate” and the NextEra
Enegy Seabrook Station proximity to the New England Patriots, students were
presented with an opportunity to collect data using equipment similar to that
specified by the NFL then compare that data using a precision digital pressure
gauge (Crystal XP2I). The last step of this activity required the student to
inflate the football to prescribed pressure based on the “feel” of the ball. The
students closest to the proper pressure were presented with the football, pump
and pressure gauge. The data distribution was quite interesting.
Lunch was provided by NCSL International Metrology Ambassador William
Hinton (Hinton Technical Services) at the site General Office Building,
located in a portion of the owner controlled area with vistas of the natural
surroundings and wooded marshland. This facility also allowed the students
an opportunity to see another side of the site organization and to mingle with
station personnel.
www.ncsli.org
Winning students with their prizes.
Lunch was taken at the scenic General Office Building.
Simulator Manager Dana Merrill welcomes the group to the control room.
Students positioned at various control board stations for normal operations.
Student “tripping the reactor” as part of simulator drill scenario.
The control room simulator was the final stop on the tour and
was hosted by Dana Merrill, Simulator Manager. This is a rare
opportunity for the members of the tour group. The students,
instructors and guests were brought onto the simulator’s control
room operating floor and provided with an in-depth discussion
of the layout and purpose of this simulated plant control room as
well as the mission of the simulator.
Students were then placed at the various control board
operating positions and the simulator was activated. Several
normal operating transients were simulated and Dana walked the
students through the required responses, allowing them to operate
the control board switches and controls.
After getting some operating experience under their belts, the
students were then subjected to simulated plant transients ranging
from plant equipment failures up to and including a Fukushima
style earthquake with rumbling and vibrations that could be felt
through the control panels.
The focus of the day’s events was STEM with emphasis on
metrology. We can see metrology in the Science and Nature
Center where calibrated instruments are used to maintain the
electrical functions in the displays and building and to maintain
the aquariums that support the health and safety of the live
specimens. The metrology laboratory demonstrated all aspects
of metrology to the participants ranging from traceability of
Vol. 8 No. 4
standards to uncertainty, failure analysis (OOT or OOS) and asset
management. The simulator runs scenarios for the training of
operators that control the plant. Metrology is used to ensure that
the computer, control board instrumentation and communication
systems are functioning correctly. Every aspect of the day’s
event was connected to metrology and the breadth and depth of
metrology’s impact was made quite clear to the students and other
participants.
wdhinton@gmail.com
William Hinton
NextEra Energy Retiree and Owner of Hinton Technical Services, LLC
in Rochester, NH. An NCSLI member since1996, Hinton is a past
NCSLI Board Member currently engaged in writing NCSLI documents
and is a New Hampshire statewide Metrology Ambassador.
REFERENCES
1. NextEra Energy – Seabrook Station Safety, System and General Information,
http://www.nexteraenergyresources.com/pdf_redesign/seabrook.pdf
2. NextEra Energy – Seabrook Station public portal, http://www.nexteraenergyresources.com/what/nuclear_seabrook.shtml
www.ncsli.org
Metrology and Engineering
Outreach at ASEE Conference
By Georgia L. Harris
NCSLI Education Liaison and Outreach Chair
why a “weather” related community (aka meteorologists) is at
the conference. This year the outreach team included: Georgia
Harris (NIST), Maria Isabel Peña (Doxa International, NIST Guest
Researcher), Jack Somppi (Measurements International), Tony
Reed (Boeing), and Jason Koehn (Boeing). We reach between 300
and 500 engineering professors as well as about 15 to 20 students
(who attend to participate in the robotics competitions) each
year – in a conference of 5,000 to 6,000! Every year, we also have
a drawing at the booth for two copies of the ASQ “The Metrology
Handbook.” Numerous professors also take the catalogs for
obtaining copies of the handbook in the event that they don’t
win the drawing.
This was the first time for Maria Isabel Peña to participate
in our engineering outreach efforts. She has a background of
biomedical engineering and her work as a Guest Researcher
included education liaison and outreach as one of the three key
areas of her work while at NIST. She was very excited to learn
about the Metrology Ambassador efforts of NCSLI and has been
an ASQ Certified Calibration Technician (CCT) for a number
of years. Though she has finished her Guest Researcher efforts
at NIST, she is looking forward to continuing her efforts as a
Metrology Ambassador!
Georgia Harris and Maria Isabel Peña at Boeing Store.
Metrology Ambassadors participated in the 8th year of
outreach at the American Society for Engineering Education
(ASEE) in June 2015 in Seattle. The Metrology Careers
booth is a cooperative effort between NCSL International
Education Liaison and Outreach Committee and the ASQ
Measurement Quality Division.
Post cards about the www.metrologycareers.com
website as well as materials from NCSLI and ASQ-MQD are
distributed at the booth. The team answers many questions
for professors about useful resources for integrating
metrology concepts into the engineering curriculum. One of
the most exciting things that we have observed since beginning
our outreach efforts is that professors now seek out resources at
the booth and ask questions about metrology, instead of asking
Maria Isabel Pena at Metrology Careers Booth.
Vol. 8 No. 4
Past sessions at ASEE have also included technical papers
and presentations on metrology that have been well-received,
including a best paper award in 2013 by Georgia Harris on
Incorporating Project Based Learning in a Fundamentals of
Metrology course at NIST. Papers have also been presented by
John Fishell (retired Navy), Doug Sugg (Navy), Elizabeth Gentry
(NIST), Mark Lapinskes (while at Sypris), Helga Alexander (while
at Keithley) and include numerous topics of mutual interest in the
ASEE Division of Experimental and Laboratory Oriented Studies
(DELOS) who have sponsored the metrology papers presented
at the conference. Georgia Harris also sits as a member at large
for the DELOS Division and reviews abstracts and papers to
champion the interests of metrology.
This year was the third year for the Division to sponsor a
Bring Your Own Experiment (BYOE). In 2014, Joe Fuehne, from
Purdue participated in the BYOE session when the conference
was held in Indianapolis. Charles Andrews (Eli Lilly) and
Joe and his son, along with Dilip Shah worked the booth in
2014. Participating in the BYOE session enables the metrology
community to ask many questions and make suggestions
about metrology concepts that can easily be integrated into
the laboratory experiments that the professors are using in the
curriculum. Encouraging the DELOS members to reach out to
the local metrology community in their areas is another one
of our objectives.
In addition to local NCSLI and ASQ-MQD representatives
helping staff the booth each year, we are also able to coordinate
local laboratory tours. In 2014 we toured the Eli Lilly metrology
laboratory as a part of the visit to Indianapolis. This year, Tony Reed
arranged for us to tour portions of the Boeing metrology laboratory
in Seattle.
We were also able to meet with Susan Bradshaw, Mary Ann
Gillis, and David Cunningham about the metrology curriculum
that is being developed at the Aerospace Center of Excellence in
the Seattle area and is part of the Everett Community College and
a DACUM study that was completed a couple of years ago (with
numerous industry partners from the Seattle area). (Note: this
was one of the programs that received a NIST Standards Education
Grant in 2014). While meeting with the college representatives,
two ideas were presented for additional follow up:
Hold a special workshop for continuing education for university
professors (like the SIM Summer School or the NIST Summer
Institute for Middle School Science Teachers). This would be a
2-week seminar for to serve the need for continuing education
for professors/instructors and enable laboratory tours and handson activities at NIST in the research laboratories. A grant was
proposed to fund this kind of an effort.
Develop standardized national metrology course descriptions
(along with job descriptions) along with course content or
recommended resources/references and even text books. [The
college representatives suggested that NIST should be the one to
publish such a recommendation and resources; however, through
discussions, it was suggested that a partnership of professional
associations like NCSLI, ASQ-MQD and the Coordinate Metrology
Society (CMS) would be the best way forward].
www.ncsli.org
Roger Beardsley at BYOE on BioDiesel Experiment..
In 2016, the ASEE conference will be held in New Orleans the
last week of June – where we hope to again count on the local
metrology community to help staff the booth and maybe even
arrange for another laboratory tour! Metrology Ambassador efforts
and outreach to school and universities often take many years of
metrology champions engaging in these other communities to
integrate metrological thinking into what they already do. Only
a few of those in the other communities are likely to “come to
us” but we can reach many more people by having champions
engage as Metrology Ambassadors in their local areas. Also,
stay tuned for the results of a recent survey conducted among
the NCSLI contact schools the members of the ASEE DELOS
division regarding integration of metrology concepts into the
engineering curriculum.
Please share your Metrology Ambassador stories, please fill
out the ongoing survey at this link (https://www.surveymonkey.
com/r/Metrology_Ambassadors), and send articles to Linda Stone
at lstone@ncsli.org! Please send contact information at local
colleges and universities to Georgia Harris, the current chair of
the 164, Education Liaison and Outreach committee and 164-1,
University Outreach at gharris@nist.gov.
Magnets
the Star Attraction for
McClelland First Graders
By William Hinton
New Hampshire statewide Metrology Ambassador
Vol. 8 No. 4
Magnets and magnetism were the
topics of discussion, dialog and
discovery for the first grade students
(soon to be second graders according
to the students in the class) in Davita
Fortier’s class at the McClelland
elementary school in Rochester, New
Hampshire. This event was scheduled
to coincide with the 2015 World
Metrology Day and was a first for NCSL
International Metrology Ambassador
William Hinton considering that
his traditional student body for
such an event consists of high
school and community college
students. Davita Fortier, a neighbor
to William, requested assistance in
collecting magnets of various styles
and applications for an end of school
year science presentation. Enough
magnets and related hardware had
been collected to fill a 90-minute
presentation
and
after
some
discussion, William offered to extend
education outreach to the very
beginning of the education process…
these future STEM professionals. And
so we begin.
www.ncsli.org
The collection of magnets was typical for
what one would find around the house
with small ceramic magnets taken from
the tool box and off the refrigerator.
These were augmented with several high
strength magnets on flexible wands used
to retrieve errant parts dropped into
openings while repairing the family car.
Another magnet application consisted of
a small steel pan mounted to a magnet
to hold steel parts close at hand and
preventing their escape. This collection
eventually included a very large bar
magnet often used on construction
sites to collect nails dropped on
the ground during construction or
renovation.
The collection really took off when
it was decided that we would not limit
the size, type or style of magnets and we
added several “rare-earth” neodymium
magnets, high strength fixture mounting
magnets with lifting power in excess of
45 lbs. (20.4 kg) and two, hand wound,
electromagnets each powered by two
C-cell batteries.
A set of learning objectives, appropriate
to the age and experience of the students,
was created to not only focus the students
but the presenter as well. They were
simple, concise and well suited to the
audience:
1.discuss the poles of a magnet and how they
interact with each other,
2.explain the earth as a magnet and why a
compass works, and
3.Identify two uses for magnetism/magnets.
Students at this age are very tactile
in their learning and it was important
to provide them with experiences as
well as some challenges. There were
plenty of magnets but the more powerful
neodymium magnets were under strict
control of the metrology ambassador,
teacher Davita Fortier or the classroom
teaching assistant.
These items were
powerful enough to potentially cause
pinched fingers.
One of the larger
neodymium magnets was magnetically
attached to an iron block and the students
were challenged early in the class period
with the promise of a prize for anyone
who could get the magnet off the block.
More on that later.
Construction site bar magnet.
Opposite magnetic poles attract.
After the ground rules were explained to the students, the
basic theory of magnets and magnet poles was explained and
demonstrated.
Describing the magnetic lines of flux is a difficult concept to
grasp. Drawings on the white board look good but they don’t
make it a physical representation for such young students. The
answer was simple, build two wooden frames with a high-pressure
laminate panel inside the frame and set each frame over one of the
magnets. Still can’t see the flux? Problem solved with a pepper
shaker filled with iron filings from a local truck repair center brake
turning lath. Not only could the students now see the lines of flux
but they could move the magnet and see how the filings and the
flux follow the magnet.
Now it was time to get their hands on the hardware. It was
discovery time. Four work stations were created by grouping four
sets of student desks into a square. Each station had a lunch tray
and a plastic container filled with many different items – plastic
“I learned the biggest magnet is the earth.
And there’s two poles on the magnet.”
-McClelland Student
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Vol. 8 No. 4
Reveal lines of magnetic flux.
Initial engagement to determine what is magnetic and what is not.
A Jr. Scientist with her “tornado”.
beads, a piece of steel chain, a golf ball, wooden biscuits, several
coins, brass fittings, steel nuts and washer, paperclips, wooden
knob and a large nail. The students were assigned to one of the
four stations and they took turns with a magnet, separating the
items in the container into two pockets of the lunch tray as to
magnetic or non-magnetic. They continued this until every
student had completed the task.
Two visual effects using the magnets really amazed the students.
A laboratory magnetic stirrer was used to demonstrate the coupling
between magnets, one in the stirrer base and the other in the Teflon
stirrer in the beaker, and with a high enough spin-rate, the students
were able to create a “tornado” right in the classroom. Every student
was allowed to operate the stirrer and create their own tornado.
The second visual effect was pure magnet magic to the students.
The high strength neodymium magnets, while not attracted to
copper tubing, will induce an eddy current in the tubing, often
called Lenz’s Law, producing an opposing magnetic field to that
of the magnet. When the magnet is dropped into the opening of
the 12-inch tube, the magnet drifts down the tube and drops from
the bottom end in approximately four seconds while freefall from
this height in open air is less than one-half second. The students
would drop the magnets into the opening and watch it drift down
www.ncsli.org
Changed the color and now turning on the stirrer.
the length of the tube doing it again and again and again. One
student spent most of his free exploration time dropping and
timing the magnet drift rate.
Eddy current magnetic effects on magnet.
Timing the drift of the magnet through the tube.
The topic of electromagnetism was presented as an initial foray powerful, high strength wand style machinist magnets. One
into the science of electric power and it was tied to something that student would collect the paperclips then broadcast them across
most of the students had seen on television, the electromagnet
the padded activity floor area then the student with the large
attached to the crane in an auto salvage yard. The explanation was
magnet raced the other two to see who gets the most paperclips.
kept very simple, staying away from turns ratios and left-hand- This game was created entirely by the students themselves with
rule for coils. It was enough that they grasped the connection
no adult input.
between completing the power circuit and the coils ability to
Now back to our earlier challenge of removing the high
attract paperclips from the end of the iron (steel) core.
strength magnet from the iron block. One of the students
The creativity of this group was wonderful. Several of the figured out that sliding the magnet, albeit with some effort, to
students devised a game pitting the ability of the large area the edge of the block, allowed the magnet to be removed from
4243 Metrologist 2015_4139 Metrologist 2015 6/16/15 10:23 AM Page 1
construction debris pickup magnet against the smaller, but more the block.
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Vol. 8 No. 4
Sliding the rare-earth magnet to the edge for removal.
Connecting the batteries to the coil assembly.
Electric power converted to magnetic attraction.
Peer says “Push it with the bottom of your hand.”
“I like sins [science] you did a good job
teaching us Mr. Hinton.”
-McClelland Student
William Hinton
NextEra Energy Retiree and Owner of Hinton Technical Services, LLC
in Rochester, NH. An NCSLI member since1996, Hinton is a past
NCSLI Board Member currently engaged in writing NCSLI documents
and is a New Hampshire statewide Metrology Ambassador.
REFERENCES
She told two friends who told two friends and by the end of
the event, every student was able to remove the magnet. The
metrology ambassador came prepared with two dozen “Wooly
Willy” magnet toys and every student and the teachers received
one of the toys to remind them of their day being drawn to
magnets and magnetism.
1. Governor Hassan’s Statement on the STEM Task Force Report,
Communications Office, January 13, 2015
http://governor.nh.gov/media/news/2015/pr-2015-01-13-stem.htm
2. Neodymium Magnets (aka Rare-Earth Magnets)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neodymium_magnet
3. Lenz’s Law and Neodymium magnets.
wdhinton@gmail.com
www.ncsli.org
http://www.education.com/science-fair/article/copper-magnetic-affect-falling-magnet/
internationalnews
Primary Thermometry at NRC
By Dr. Patrick Rourke and Dr. Andrew Todd
National Research Council of Canada (NRC)
In the coming years, the Système
international d’unités (SI) base unit of
temperature, the kelvin, will be redefined
from its current definition, which is based
on the triple point of water, in terms of
the SI derived unit of energy, the joule, via
a fixed value of the Boltzmann constant.
With this upcoming redefinition and the
further possibility of a new or revised
temperature scale, there is an increased
need to know not only the temperature
as approximated using the International
Temperature Scale of 1990 (ITS-90) but also
the true thermodynamic temperature.
At the National Research Council of
Canada (NRC) we have been pursuing two
primary thermometry methods to measure
thermodynamic temperature, T, and its
difference from temperature as defined by
the ITS-90, T90. Below 300 K, microwave
refractive index gas thermometry (RIGT)
is being developed and above 1300 K
absolute radiation thermometry is the
method of choice.
To measure T below 300 K, we use
light at GHz microwave frequencies to
do RIGT in a hollow copper resonating
cavity with microwave antennas mounted
in the walls. The interior of the cavity is
machined to be an almost perfect sphere,
but slightly elongated in two axes so
that each microwave resonance mode is
split into a set of three resonance peaks. The
frequencies of the resonance peaks are set by
the size and shape of the cavity, combined
with the speed of light inside the cavity.
The microwave resonances are measured
using a vector network analyzer with
its time-base frequency reference signal
provided directly by a cesium frequency
standard that is a part of the NRC
clock ensemble. The use of the cesium
frequency standard gives traceability to
the SI second, and eliminates the need
for regular network analyzer time-base
calibration. The network analyzer allows
the microwave resonance frequencies
Dr. Patrick Rourke with the NRC refractive index gas thermometry (RIGT) apparatus for measuring
thermodynamic temperature below 300 K. The NRC copper resonating cavity can be seen at left,
hanging beneath the cryogen-free pulse-tube cryocooler, while the microwave resonance peaks of this
resonating cavity are shown on the network analyzer screen in the background.
Vol. 8 No. 4
internationalnews
Dr. Patrick Rourke adjusting the microwave antennas and connections to the NRC
copper resonating cavity for use in refractive index gas thermometry (RIGT).
Putting helium gas into the resonator at a
carefully-controlled pressure refracts the
microwaves, like light through a prism,
changing the speed of light and shifting the
frequencies of the resonance peaks.
Close-up of the NRC refractive index gas thermometry (RIGT) copper
resonating cavity.
of the copper resonating cavity to be measured with parts per
billion accuracy.
When the RIGT system is operated in vacuum, the speed of light is
a universal constant, so the microwave resonance frequencies allow
precise measurements of the size and shape of the cavity1. Putting
helium gas into the resonator at a carefully-controlled pressure
refracts the microwaves, like light through a prism, changing the
speed of light and shifting the frequencies of the resonance peaks.
By measuring these frequency shifts and combining the data with
quantum mechanical calculations of the properties of helium, the
refractive index and density of the helium gas are measured. Then
the thermodynamic temperature of the gas is obtained from the
gas density by using the ideal gas law PV = nRT (and corrections)
and pressure measurements traceable to the SI. Since the molar gas
constant, R, is equal to the product of the Boltzmann constant and
the Avogadro constant, there is a direct link to the new Boltzmannconstant-based definition of the kelvin.
1
P.M.C. Rourke and K.D. Hill, Progress Toward Development of Low
Temperature Microwave Refractive Index Gas Thermometry at NRC,
International Journal of Thermophysics 36, 205 (2015).
www.ncsli.org
The resonator’s ITS-90 temperature, T90, is monitored continuously during the microwave measurements using a capsule standard platinum resistance thermometer (CSPRT) that has been
calibrated in NRC’s adiabatic cryogenic fixed point facility. This arrangement enables direct, real-time comparison of T and T90. The
resonator and gas pressure vessel are mounted on a cryogen-free
pulse-tube cryocooler, which allows the resonator’s temperature to
be precisely controlled between 300 K and 5 K.
The measurement of T above 1300 K is achieved using a silicon detector-based radiation thermometer that has been calibrated traceable
to the watt and the meter using a high temperature blackbody and
a filter radiometer. The radiation thermometer and the filter radiometer detect light in the visible part of the spectrum (650 nm, which
is red). The amount of light detected at this wavelength changes as
the temperature changes according to Planck’s law of radiation. This
allows a change in temperature to be equated to a change in signal
as measured by the radiation thermometer or filter radiometer. Traceability to the watt is achieved by using an absolute standard for optical power: an electrical substitution radiometer which can determine
the power in a beam of light by measuring the equivalent amount of
electrical power (which can be measured very accurately). Traceability
to the meter is achieved through two apertures with known areas
separated by a distance that has been determined by a gauge bar. Both
the aperture areas and the gauge bar length have been calibrated with
traceability to NRC length standards.
internationalnews
Mr. Donald Woods aligning the apertures for the filter radiometer using a gauge bar.
With the geometry and the optical power measurements
made with traceability to the SI, T of a suitable source, usually a
blackbody, can be measured. This method of realizing temperature
can provide the most accurate measurements of T but, because
it requires regular calibration of the filter radiometer using
an electrical substitution radiometer and is very sensitive to
alignment, it is more practical to use a method based on the
(temperature invariant) phase transitions of materials – generally
referred to in thermometry as fixed points. Additionally, the
radiation thermometer has been calibrated to measure T90 using
the freezing point of copper and knowledge about the spectral
transmittance of its filter and other optical components.
NRC has recently participated in an international collaborative
research project to determine, with the lowest possible
uncertainties, the melting transitions of the metal-carbon eutectic
fixed points of Re-C (2748 K), Pt-C (2011 K), Co-C (1597 K), and
the freezing point of Cu (1358 K)2. In this work, NRC, along with
eight other leading national metrology institutes, measured the
phase transitions of these high temperature fixed points using the
absolute method described above. Using this primary thermometry
technique, the phase transition thermodynamic temperatures
have been determined and will be used as more practical
temperature reference points, either to realize thermodynamic
temperature directly, or, as part of a set of defining points in a
future temperature scale.
Both of these methods use light – microwaves in the temperature
range from 5 K to 300 K and visible light in the temperature
range above 1300 K – to measure thermodynamic temperature.
These measurements of T and comparisons to T90 will enable
temperature measurements with better connection to temperature
2
NRC thermodynamic temperature (above 1300 K) measurement setup including
the high temperature blackbody, the radiation thermometer, and a filter radiometer.
as it will be implemented once the kelvin is redefined in terms
of the Boltzmann constant and ensure a smooth transition from
ITS-90 to any future temperature scale.
Contact:
Dr. Patrick Rourke
patrick.rourke@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca
(refractive index gas thermometry)
Dr. Andrew Todd
andrew.todd@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca
(radiation thermometry)
E.R. Woolliams et. al, Thermodynamic temperature assignment to the point
of inflection of the melting curve of high temperature fixed points, Accepted
in Philosophical Transactions A.
Vol. 8 No. 4
Conference on
Precision Electromagnetic
Measurements
JULY 10-15, 2016
OTTAWA, CANADA
This biennial conference is the premier international forum for the exchange
of information on precision electromagnetic measurements.
www.cpem2016.com
Hosted by the National Research Council Canada
specialfeature
Toward a
Measurement
Information
Infrastructure
Smart Certificates, Part 2
By Mark Kuster
Pantex Metrology, Contributing Editor
Greetings once again,
Colleagues.
Our last installment
considered the
information that test or
calibration certificates
supply, the functions
they serve, and the
ways we currently
(manually) use them in
our business. Based on
that, we mapped out a
high-level MII certificate
data model that would
facilitate automating
our certificate-related
business and technical
processes and reap the
rewards thereof. This
installment finishes that
model sketch.
Vol. 8 No. 1
specialfeature
Map Review
We left off with a fairly comprehensive data model that captured the
certificate’s administrative information: organization identifiers,
accreditation info, dates, signatures, amendments and the like. We
also included some basic technical information on environmental
conditions and mentioned ways to generate the human-readable
version with graphics and adapt to the local language. Without the
next lower level detail, the model looked like:
Certificate
• System Identifier
• Customer Identifier
• Measuring Entity
• Service
• Accreditation (optional)
• Qualification
• Environmental Conditions
• Measuring Instrument 1 Results
• Measuring Instrument 2 Results
⋮ • Measuring Instrument NI Results
• Locale-Language
• Human-Readable Document
• Visual Aids Script
To a reasonable level, we then detailed everything except one
important missing piece, namely the calibration or test results
themselves, without which the certificate has no purpose. Notice
that the top-level certificate structure includes Measuring Instrument
Results for any number, NI, of instruments since we may calibrate
or test a measuring system comprising several separate instruments
(or just one). So a given certificate may simply repeat the Measuring
Instrument Results structure as required, each instance with its own
detailed data. Let’s hike down that path now.
A Measured Pace
As previously discussed, the three main MII vehicles (certificates,
spec sheets and accreditation scopes) should carry measurement
information in a standardized format so that software may
fully leverage it, transform it, and seamlessly pass it along. For
example, we would like MII instrument specifications to describe
an instrument’s designed performance parameters in such a way
that MII software may link measurement results to each function
and range of interest to create an MII certificate, and draw from
measurement standards’ MII spec sheets to derive the certificate’s
uncertainties. Similarly, other MII software will want to compare
certification results with accreditation scopes and instrument
specs. Only our imaginations and logistics will limit an MII’s
utility. The data itself will travel back and forth from document
to document and organization to organization, with each step
adding some further value. As Dave Wiseman, a former metrology
technician, enjoyed quoting, “Round and round she1 goes; where
she stops, nobody knows.”
Based on that certificate-spec sheet-accreditation scope synergy,
we therefore begin the Measurement Results structure by describing
and identifying the object of interest as we did for the instrument
www.ncsli.org
specifications and accreditation scopes. So, taking another look at
identifiers, we have:
System or Instrument Identifier (revised)
• Make-Model Unique ID (UUID2, hash, URL3, DOI4, etc.)
• UUT Specific Unique ID
• UUT Serial Number
• Lab-Assigned ID
• Owner-Assigned ID
Function or Range Identifier
• Unique ID
The identifier structures uniquely identify the instrument features
to which the measurement results apply via the make-model specific
Instrument, Function and Range Unique IDs and the unit-specific
Unique ID along with its (newly added) Serial Number and the humanreadable ID numbers the laboratory and the owner assign. The latter
two elements strictly interest humans viewing the instrument; the
machine-readable Unique IDs serve any MII software comparing or
processing specified, certified and accredited measurements. In time,
we might even imagine measuring instruments connected to the
Internet of Things or otherwise having embedded Unique IDs and
thus obviating the human-readable ID labels. National Instruments
recently began exploring similar ideas for its products.
We revised the System Identifier structure covered in the previous
article in order to remove redundant information already contained
in another document, the instrument nomenclature in this case, and
did likewise for the Function and Range Identifiers. We will continue
that strategy as we go. However, a human-readable certificate may
well want to show tolerances, nomenclature, etc. from the spec sheet
so an actual MII certificate implementation might in fact duplicate
the spec sheet information as a self-contained one-stop reference,
or it might link to the relevant MII documents hosted on the Web
as indicated here, or package a copy of those documents with the
certificate delivered to the user. Either case would require transparency
and unique identification of the spec sheet version used.
Continuing down the trail, we build a multi-level Measurement
Results structure that further mirrors the instrument specs and
accreditation scope structures:
Measuring Instrument Results
• Instrument Identifier
• Measuring Function 1 Results
• Measuring Function 2 Results
⋮ • Measuring Function NF Results
Measuring Function Results
• Function Identifier
• Quantity Kind
The wheel spun to determine the contestants’ performance order in the
1930s radio show “The Original Amateur Hour”
Universally unique identifier
3
Universal resource locator
4
Digital object identifier
1
2
specialfeature
• Range 1 Results
• Range 2 Results
⋮ • Range NR Results
Measuring Range Results
• Range Identifier
• Results Descriptor
• Measurement Result 1
• Measurement Result 2
⋮ • Measurement Result Nm
This layout organizes one or more test point results
(Measurement Results per the VIM5) by Range, groups Ranges into
Functions, and Functions under Instruments; though with the
various identifiers, an actual file format may or may not store the
data hierarchically. The Results Descriptor would comprise ordinal
values representing defined qualifiers: As-Found (pre-adjustment),
As-Left (post adjustment), and perhaps others.
Now we have a semantic structure but still no actual
measurement results other than the placeholders. So extending
our VIM terminology usage, we drill down as follows:
Measurement Result
• Measured Quantity
• Influence or Input Quantity 1
• Influence or Input Quantity 2
⋮ • Influence or Input Quantity Nq
• Measurement Uncertainty
Quantity
• Quantity Symbol
• Nominal Quantity Value
• Reference Quantity Value
• Measured Quantity Value
The MII certificate then contains all the Measurement Results and
each one relates back through its Range Identifier to the corresponding
measurand in the instrument spec sheet, where we find the primary,
influence, and input quantity definitions identified by their Quantity
Symbol and all the other required information to properly qualify the
measurand. Refer back to the April 2014 installment for more detail
or download the model from the MII Community page at www.ncsli.
org. Each Quantity indicates its nominal, reference, and measured
values, from which we may calculate the measurement bias as the
Measured Value minus the Reference Value.
That does it. Or does it?
Tracing Steps
The observant reader will have noticed that each Measurement
Result contains a Measurement Uncertainty element that we have
5
6
International Vocabulary of Metrology
GUM uncertainty framework—the GUM and its Supplement 2 extension to
multiple output quantities
not yet covered, without which we have neither a Measurement
Result nor traceability. At this point we have many divergent
options corresponding to the various uncertainty expression
guides: GUF6, GUM S17, current derivative works, and future
variations and potential enhancements. An MII certificate model
might define a default model structure and alternates to handle
any or all options. We noted early on in this column that we would
like an extensible MII document format and that various existing
technologies, such as XML8, support that, so it would suffice to
develop data models for the most commonly travelled roads and
add alternatives as desired in the future.
Since each measurement result in the certificate has an
uncertainty data element, perhaps the simplest option (01) would
just capture the routinely reported uncertainty information in a
single measurement result context:
Measurement Uncertainty Opt01
• Uncertainty Value
• DOF
• Report Coverage Probability
Uncertainty Value represents the combined “standard”
uncertainty, DOF the effective degrees of freedom, Report Coverage
Probability the value MII software would use for calculating
a coverage interval or “expanded” uncertainty to report on the
human-readable document. MII software would consider a valid
finite DOF entry to indicate a t-distribution and reduce that to a
normal distribution if given infinite DOF.
Option 01 excludes GUM S1 results but would otherwise handle
the vast majority of certificates as generated today. Why? Because
contrary to GUM guidance, most certificates today do not report
correlations between multiple measurement results. The MII would
overcome that humanly convenient shortcut because the extra information presents no significant burden or confusion when automatically generated, transmitted, and consumed. So, let’s add correlations:
Correlation List
• Correlation 1
• Correlation 2
⋮ • Correlation Nc
Correlation
• Instrument Identifier 1
• Function Identifier 1
• Range Identifier 1
• Quantity Symbol 1
• Instrument Identifier 2
• Function Identifier 2
• Range Identifier 2
• Correlation Coefficient
With this structure, MII software may report and use the
correlations between any two measurement results at will. Using
7
8
GUM Supplement 1—uncertainty propagation via Monte Carlo methods
eXtensible markup language
Vol. 8 No. 3
specialfeature
MII certificates and the GUF, MII software would seamlessly pass
correlation down the traceability chain. For space efficiency, only
non-zero correlations would appear in the list. Since the correlations
apply system-wide we would place the Correlation List element in
the MII certificate’s top level after the Measurement Results.
JCGM9 published GUM S1 some time ago (2008), so we assume
metrologists use it often enough to want the first MII certificate
model to handle it also. In that case, an Option 02 structure might
simply carry a histogram:
Measurement Uncertainty Opt02
• Bucket 1
• Bucket 2
⋮ • Bucket Nb
Bucket
• Quantity Value
• Relative Frequency
Option 02 encapsulates the measurement error distribution
in a step function form, from which MII software may derive
coverage intervals or use as inputs into uncertainty analyses in
succeeding traceability steps. In the limit, each “bucket” might
simplify to a single sample from the Monte Carlo procedure
though that would drive file sizes higher.
Other perhaps more attractive options exist. UncertML10
captures uncertainty in the form of statistics, data samples, or
probability. Options 01 and 02, with or without correlations,
irretrievably collapse information from previous traceability steps
just as current human-readable certificates do, a deficiency we
have previously mentioned. At least two other traceability options
might solve that problem by retaining all traceability information
accumulated in MII certificates from SI unit realizations down to
the certificate at hand: Vector uncertainty analysis as described in
“Metrology: Standardize and Automate!”11 or the METAS12 UncLib
uncertainty storage and propagation format.
What of uncertainty budgets, distributions, sensitivity
coefficients and Type A-B designators? The vector uncertainty
and METAS methods inherently capture the information
required for uncertainty budgets and so MII software would
easily generate budgets for human-readable certificates or other
documents. Options 01 and 02 would require that our model add
similar information.
Finally, as we discussed in the January 2014 installment,
instrument models fitted to calibration data would allow the
measuring system owner to compute a correction and uncertainty
at any measurement point in the system’s measurement space
without recourse to or concern for instrument MPEs13. The
instrument spec sheet would define the measurement model or
measurement function and calibration would determine the
parameter values. The MII instrument specs data model allows a
measurement model at all hierarchy levels (system, instrument,
Joint Committee for Guides in Metrology
Uncertainty markup language (October 2014)
11
Cal Lab, April 2013
12
The Swiss national metrology institute
function, range) as appropriate, so we complete the concept by
allowing a Correction Model at any level in the MII certificate:
Correction
• Parameter Quantity 1
• Parameter Quantity 2
⋮ • Parameter Quantity Nq
The resulting correction may then range from a simple additive
constant, a multiplicative factor, a regression, or anything else
resulting from an interpretable equation or coded algorithm of
any complexity. See the MII instrument specification model for
more information. A computation engine similar to Dr. Blair Hall’s
GUM Tree Calculator (GTC) would handle the algorithmic option,
interpreting and executing the spec sheet’s code to propagate
the calibration measurement results to the measuring system’s
measurement results during use.
Given the computing power already present in some measuring
systems, the instrument itself might implement its own model and
store its own MII certificate. It might then correct its outputs (long
ago done in many instruments via internally stored correction
parameters), indicate its measurement uncertainty, and estimate its
measurement reliability in order to determine its own calibration
due date. This scheme would work similar to TEDS14 but with full
MII compatibility.
Marching Onward
That takes care of smart certificates for now. A bit of information
overload but thankfully, standards and software would part the
trees so we may view the important scenery. The certificate model
does not explicitly contain some information that certificates
might report, such as those related to verification or conformance
testing. Instead, the Measuring Entity’s (lab’s) and the customer’s
MII software would report or calculate coverage factors, in-tolerance
indicators, guardbands, MPEs, decision rules and such from the
other certificate information and the UUT’s15 MII spec sheet.
Once someone begins testing this model with a variety
of example certificates we will no doubt find a few things
to tweak or add, but we’ll worry about that then. In the
meantime we have plenty of other subjects to address, like
the advantages and disadvantages of particular data formats
for storing MII data, mechanisms like web services for
automated MII data exchange, and ontology frameworks for
standardizing terminology.
We hope you enjoyed the NCSLI Workshop & Symposium in
Grapevine, Texas. The tutorials, technical program, committees and
exhibitors all proved valuable and worthwhile. As we look forward to
the Tech Exchange in Jacksonville, please email us your MII ideas or
post them on the MII community discussion forum or wiki at www.
ncsli.org and then Committees | Communities | MII from the menus.
mjk@ieee.org
9
13
10
14
www.ncsli.org
15
Maximum permissible errors
Transducer Electronic Data Sheet (See the October 2014 installment.)
Unit under test
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from -20 to 50° C. You can count on the same accuracy whether measuring pressure,
current, voltage, or temperature.
Crystal
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specialfeature
A MAJOR MILESTONE
for Accreditation
By Robert Sawyer and Georgette Macdonald
N
uclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approved the use of
Technical Report NEI 14-05, “GUIDELINES FOR THE USE
OF ACCREDITATION IN LIEU OF COMMERCIAL GRADE
SURVEYS FOR PROCUREMENT OF LABORATORY CALIBRATION
AND TEST SERVICES,” REVISION 1. Nuclear facilities and suppliers
in the US that are subject to the quality assurance requirements of
10CFR50, Appendix B may use laboratory accreditation as a basis
for approving calibration and testing laboratories as part of the
commercial grade dedication process. Under the guidance of NEI
14-05, calibration and test laboratories can be utilized based on
their accreditation without the need to perform a commercial
grade survey provided the Accreditation Body (AB) is a signatory
to the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC)
Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA). This major change does
include testing and accreditations by national and international
AB’s. Previous to this change the NRC limited the use of calibration
laboratories accredited by 6 of the US based AB’s A2LA, NVLAP,
IAS, L-A-B, ACLASS and PJLA.
This is a major milestone for accreditation and measurement
science moving the world closer to “tested once accepted
everywhere.”
provides material cost savings to non-domestic ISO/IEC 17025
Accredited Labs. For example prior to this ruling Guildline typically
undertook one or two NUPIC Supplier Audits/Surveys each year in
addition to an annual ISO/IEC 17025 Reassessment and Renewal
of Accreditation. I would also like to thank the NCSLI Utility
Committee which I feel was instrumental in this NRC ruling.
For more information go the NRC website. http://www.nrc.gov/
reactors/new-reactors/oversight/quality-assurance/qual-assuresafety.html
Comments: Nick Serafin, Quality Manager
Consumers Energy Laboratory Services
Comments: Richard Timmons, President
Guildline Instruments a Canadian company
The NRC SER for NEI 14-05, allowing use of domestic and
international labs accredited by signatories to ILAC MRA, is an
important ruling for the Nuclear Power industry and for ISO/IEC
17025 Accredited Labs like Guildline Instruments. This ruling
provides US nuclear customers access to a wider range of ISO/IEC
17025 Accredited Labs, potentially improving their measurement
capabilities. It will also reduce operating and maintenance
costs associated with NUPIC (i.e. Nuclear Procurement Issues
Committee) Supplier Audits and Surveys. Non-domestic ISO/IEC
17025 Accredited Labs, like Guildline, can now offer services to
a wider range of US based nuclear customers. This ruling also
www.ncsli.org
Comments: Peter Unger, ILAC Chair and A2LA
President and CEO
ILAC is very pleased to have its peer evaluation and recognition
process for accreditation bodies accepted by the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission. The due diligence exercised by the Nuclear Energy
Institute (NEI) on behalf of NRC to provide the justification for
this acceptance was really appreciated. NEI personnel witnessed
the peer evaluations of a few accreditation bodies and the decision
process carried out by ILAC’s recognized regional cooperation,
the Asia-Pacific Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation. NEI is an
ILAC stakeholder member of ILAC and intends to monitor ILAC
for continual improvement and ongoing that internationally
recognized accreditation can be trusted.
Knowing from personal experience the scrutiny that comes
from an assessment to ISO/IEC 17025, we are confident that this
expansion of acceptance by the NRC will provide a broader base
of competent vendors to meet the needs of our laboratory as we
provide calibration and testing services to our clients.
Comments: Jeff Russell, National Research
Council Canada, Calibration Laboratory
Assessment Service (NRC-CLAS)
CLAS is very pleased that Canadian accredited calibration
laboratories have been recognized by the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission. This is an important step for recognition of labs
accredited under the ILAC MRA. Canadian labs will benefit from
increased international opportunities. US nuclear facilities will benefit
from access to labs accredited by Canadian accreditation bodies.
2016 NCSLI WORKSHOP & SYMPOSIUM
JULY 24–28, 2016
Saint Paul RiverCentre
Saint Paul, Minnesota
NCSL INTERNATIONAL | ncsli.org
5766 Central Avenue, Suite 150 | Boulder, CO 80301 | (303) 440-3339 | info@ncsli.org
2016 CALL FOR PAPERS
The NCSL International 2016 Workshop & Symposium theme
is Measurement Accuracy and the Impact on Society.
Measurements in science are important because they are
used to express results and make conclusions for just about
everything; therefore accuracy is crucial. Even the slightest
error in measurement can render impractical data.
Accurate measurements not only impact us through
technological innovations, but also through other aspects of
our lives. For example, accurate measurements are needed as
they ensure that the weight and volume of goods sold in the
market are correct, thus maintaining a fair playing field
between competitive buyers and sellers.
Please consider sharing your metrological experiences
regarding Measurement Accuracy and the Impact on Society.
GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
Abstracts are required for all proposed papers, panels and workshops.
ABSTRACT REQUIREMENTS AND DEADLINE
Abstracts must be 350 words or less and be submitted electronically using the
NCSLI Abstract Management System on the NCSLI website no later than
December 1, 2015. Submitters may edit and track their abstract using the NCSLI
Abstract Management System. Speakers will return to this page to upload their
manuscripts once accepted.
ABSTRACT ACCEPTANCE DATE
Speakers will be notified on or before December 30, 2015 if their abstract has been
accepted. Once abstracts are selected for the NCSLI Technical Program, authors
will be provided manuscript instructions.
MANUSCRIPT REQUIREMENTS AND DEADLINE
All manuscripts must be uploaded by March 17, 2016. All papers received by the
manuscript deadline will be included in the NCSLI Conference Proceedings CD.
SPEAKER DISCOUNTS
• All speakers who upload their abstract by the December 1, 2015 deadline
(and are accepted) will receive a $150 discount off of registration.
• All speakers who upload their manuscript by the March 17, 2016 deadline
will receive a $350 discount off of registration.
• All deadlines must be met to receive the speaker registration discount of $500.
BEST PAPER AWARDS
A Best Paper Award will be presented in each track. The overall Best Conference
Paper will then be awarded to the paper which receives the overall highest point
total. To be considered for the Best Paper Award, all deadlines must be met.
CALL FOR PAPERS
CallforPapers@ncsli.org
EXHIBIT SALES
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IN MEMORIAM
A TRIBUTE TO
DR. SETON BENNETT
(1945 – 2015)
By Professor Andrew Wallard
The metrology world was deeply saddened to hear of the death
physical-based techniques. At that time, many of us were devel-
of Seton Bennett on 14 September. He had been diagnosed with
oping laser-based wavelength length standards that were even-
Motor Neurone Disease and coped bravely and with innate
tually used to replace the kryton lamp realisation of the metre.
fortitude as the illness took a hold.
I was developing the NPL’s red Helium Neon laser but, typically,
It is impossible to fit Seton into a single category as he was not
Seton saw an alternative approach which took him, for a year,
only an excellent scientist
to work at the Labratoire de
with numerous papers and
l’Horloge Atomique in Orsay,
innovations to his name but
France where he developed
he took part in, and led, a
the first wavelength stabi-
lized Helium-Neon laser,
activities with flair, distinc-
which used the saturated
tion, infectious charm, and
absorption technique, in the
ent husiasm. The ability
green region of the spectrum.
to bridge the gap between
It immediately had a practical
researcher and “manager”
application as it was more
is not a skill always relished
powerful than the red laser
and mastered by many but
on which the realisation of
Seton took to it naturally.
the redefined metre was even-
Unlike many whose career
tually based, and therefore
took a turn like this, he
more suited to Seton’s activi-
always maintained a deep
ties in engineering metrology.
understanding of, and love
Nevertheless, his scientific
for, his science and brought
paper on green lasers, is
it into management matters.
still — 30 or more years later
I was present on many an
— part of the official “mise
occasion when his quietly
en pratique” of length and
spoken and courteous inter-
wavelength standards.
vention in a meeting hit the
Retur ning to t he NPL,
nail on the head and led to
Seton was asked to take
a more sound scientific and
on the management of
administrative decision.
the
A f t e r l e av i n g O x fo r d
University, Seton started
Laborator y ’s
new
re s e a rc h p ro g ra m m e o n
micrometrolgy and, building
life as a laser and optical physics scientist at the UK’s National
on his specroscopic and laser experience, he also set up what is
Physical Laboratory, joining just a year before I did. He imme-
now NPL’s world-leading team in the use of trapped ions as wave-
diately showed that he had the skill to marry physics and
length and frequency standards. His skills were much in demand
engineering, and many of his innovations changed, quite
and he then took on the leadership role of one of the NPL’s
dramatically, the ability to make precise measurements. Seton’s
largest teams devoted to mass, force and pressure research and
diplomatic skills were called on early in life as he persuaded tradi-
routine calibration services. Part of this was the design and oper-
tional metrologists to adopt “new fangled” techniques. There
ation of the NPL’s new kilogram balance and Seton’s practical
are several instruments at the NPL and in metrology labs world-
eye focused on the need to investigate the surface properties of
wide that were developed from the principles that he intro-
the kilogram standards using surface analysis. This continues to
duced. Automated measurements and data processing speeded
play a major role in the understanding and maintenance of mass
up processes and replaced subjective judgements with objective,
standards and is something that is now of immense importance
Vol. 8 No. 4
internationalnews
as we plan for a new kilogram definition and its realisation.
He was, rightly, and worthily, recognised through his election
Then he took his first step into a major national manage-
to the world’s top metrology committee — the International
ment role when he was invited to become the Deputy Director
Committee of Weights and Measures, where he led an important
and, subsequently, the Director and Chief Executive of the UK’s
study into traceable metrology in materials science. Nationally,
National Weights and Measures Laboratory. With practical
he became a Member of the UK’s Worshipful Company of Scien-
and engineering metrology at its heart, Seton took to it like a
tific Instrument Makers — one of the famous livery companies
duck to water and his increasingly acknowledged managerial
of the City of London and was just about to become its Master
and diplomatic skills saw him take on the UK’s leadership of
when his illness struck. The Company elected him as Master
negotiations on a variety of Directives and Regulations from the
Emeritus and through its activities he was able to enjoy one of his
European Union as well as the International Organization of
great loves — the history and tradition of science, and metrology
Legal Metrology where he became a member of its International
in particular. He was also a Fellow and Council Member of the
Committee as well as its Presidential Council. His reputation as
Institute of Physics, and Member of the small, but elite, Physical
an international leader was, by now, well established, and he
Society of London. Her Majesty the Queen recognised his work
chaired WELMEC, the European Association of cooperation on
by appointing him a Commander of the Order of the British
legal metrology where he worked closely, and highly effectively,
Empire in 2006.
with the European Commission as well as national authorities.
This was to stand him in good stead for future challenges.
Seton was greatly in demand to join a range of national and
international committees, including regular attendance at
It was hardly a surprise, then,
NCSLI. All wanted him for his
with this multitude of experi-
metrological and managerial
ence to offer, that he became
NPL’s Deputy Director and
D i re c to r o f I n t e r n a t i o n a l
Metrology. This appointment
coincided with the rapid development of the grouping of
European National Metrology
Institutes, EUROMET, into
EURAMET and a partnership
with the European Commission which led to the launch
of a large collaborative research
p r o g r a m m e b e t we e n t h e
National Metrology Institutes.
Welding together the European
labs into a single, goal-driven,
European Metrology Research
Programme or EMRP, was tricky
but Seton’s role was crucial.
Throughout his career he had
a knack for understanding
people as well as the motiva-
It is impossible to
fit Seton into a single
category as he was
not only an excellent
scientist with numerous
papers and innovations
to his name but he
took part in, and led, a
activities with flair,
distinction, infectious
charm, and enthusiasm.
more importantly, his people
skills. It’s impossible to list all
he achieved but in all he did,
he brought courtesy, modesty,
wise advice, respect, and, of
course, sound scientific knowledge. Seton was never a “flashy”
per son and never r uffled
feat hers. He succeeded by
quiet persuasion, good sense,
and a gift for understanding
people and cultures. He could
fit in wherever he went and
was a much sought after, and
entertaining, dinner and social
companion. His influence was
widespread and I suspect that
he didn’t know how persuasive
and highly regarded he was.
There were other sides: a
marathon runner; a strong
churchman; a Chair and
tions of organisations. This was
Trustee of at least two Christian
never more important than in
the EMRP. To succeed, he had to give everyone, not just the larger
knowledge but, equally if not
charities; and a family man with strong ethics.
research based labs, a slice of the attractive and appetising cake.
Seton had so much more to give. He hardly had time to enjoy
His trick was that he recognised the qualities and competences
a retirement in which he was looking forward to spending more
of many of the Directors and staff of the smaller labs and giving
time with his wife Lesley, who helped care for him in his illness,
them leadership and responsibility in EMRP which helped to
and his two sons Tom and Adam of whom he was so proud. He set
cement them all into a common programme in which all saw,
us an example of a good man who was a privilege and pleasure to
and enjoyed, the benefits. I have seen a comment from another
know and count as a friend.
good friend of NCSLI, Andy Henson, then part of Seton’s
team and himself a major factor in initiating the Programme.
It epitomises Seton: “Seton was an excellent boss and a real
gentleman. Under his wise guidance... the initiative transformed
measurement research in Europe.”
www.ncsli.org
In creating this short but inadequate note, I am grateful
for help and contributions from Peter Clapham,
Jonathan Williams, and numerous friends and colleagues
from the NPL and the BIPM networks.
liaisonreport
People & EURAMET
Euramet’s new Chairperson: Beat Jeckelmann from Switzerland
EURAMET is delighted to announce that Dr Beat
Jeckelmann, the Delegate of METAS (the Federal
Institute of Metrology of Switzerland), has taken
over the position of EURAMET Chairperson. He
was elected by the General Assembly in 2014 and
started his three year term in June 2015.
EURAMET: Beat, what is your vision for
EURAMET during your term and what are
the biggest challenges?
public and by policy makers. It is, thus, a
priority for EURAMET to make the benefits
of metrology better known.
Beat: My vision is that the Metrology Research Programmes (EMRP and EMPIR)
bring us closer to sustainable, coordinated and integrated metrology research in
Europe. This is a prerequisite to meet the
challenges lying ahead of us. Coordinated
research is the basis for the development of
a coordinated metrology landscape which
will naturally lead to distributed centres
of excellence for metrological services and
expertise. It is also equally important to
support the EURAMET members and associates in the development of an appropriate
metrology infrastructure in their countries
and to support especially new and evolving
National Metrology Institutes (NMIs).
EURAMET: What are you most excited
about and looking forward to in your term?
EURAMET: What is, in your view, the
importance of metrology?
Beat: Lord Kelvin is quoted as saying
“If you cannot measure it, you cannot
improve it”. Metrology is an essential tool
for scientific research and development and
for technological innovation. It underpins
modern industrial competitiveness and
supports the development of new products
and processes. Accepted measurements and
standards are essential for global trade and
regulations. In summary, metrology is an
indispensable part of the foundation of a
modern state. Sometimes the importance
of metrology is not fully recognized by the
Beat: EURAMET membership spans the
whole continent. The diversity of cultures
is huge, as is the range of capabilities and
development status of the NMIs. It is a
challenge but at the same time a great
enrichment to work in such an environment.
I am looking forward to working with many
highly committed colleagues and to spread
the word about metrology throughout our
stakeholder groups. With our metrology
research programmes we have a unique
opportunity to fundamentally change the
metrology landscape in Europe and this is
very exciting.
EURAMET: Being EURAMET’s Chairperson
in addition to your role as Chief Science
Officer of METAS is a challenging task. How
do you find a personal balance?
Beat: It is very important to be well organized
and to have good collaborators. I can count
on a dedicated team of professionals in the
EURAMET Secretariat and the MSU who
do all the operational work. In my private
life, I am fortunate to live in a beautiful
area. I enjoy my free time with my family:
cooking, gardening and hiking give a good
balance to the professional activities.
About Beat
In his early career Beat studied physics
at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland and having obtained a PhD in experimental particle physics he worked
at the Federal Institute of Technology
(ETH) Zurich and the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT), USA.
Beat joined the Electricity Sector of METAS in 1989 and became Head of the
department in 1999. Since 2011 to the
present he has had the role of Chief
Science Officer and member of the extended management board where he is
responsible for the research and development programme of METAS.
Beat has around 25 years’ experience
working within the EURAMET community: Beat has been the Chair of the
Technical Committee (TC) for Electricity and Magnetism, TC Contact
Person and Subcommittee Convenor.
He is currently a Representative in the
EMRP and EMPIR Committees and the
Research Subcommittee and since 2010
has been a Member of EURAMET’s
Board of Directors.
Beat is well known on the international
circuit, being not only a Swiss representative in the Consultative Committee
for Electricity and Magnetism of the
Metre Convention but also a technical
expert, peer reviewer, referee, speaker
and lecturer.
Vol. 8 No. 4
liaisonreport
“I enjoyed the job and the challenge”
Kamal Hossain - EURAMET’s Past-Chairperson
Highly committed, focused and visionary.
This is how Beat Jeckelmann described,
Kamal Hossain, his predecessor as
EURAMET Chairperson, when taking over
the mandate in June 2015.
Kamal is the International Director at
the National Physical Laboratory (NPL,
United Kingdom) and started his term as
EURAMET Chairperson in 2012.
“I would like to thank EURAMET for
giving me the privilege of being the
Chairperson during one of the busiest
periods of development. I had the chance to
work with the most wonderful set of people,
all talented and with great enthusiasm.
I enjoyed enormously the job and the
challenge. I have every confidence in Beat,
my successor, and I wish him all the best.”
During his term of office Kamal has
been the initiator of crucial strategic
developments and improvements at
www.ncsli.org
EURAMET. He was the main driver behind
EURAMET’s 2020 Strategy, including the
Association’s strategic objectives aimed
at improving the European metrology
infrastructure. Kamal further developed the
close cooperation between the Technical
Committees and the Board of Directors,
two important bodies of EURAMET. He also
facilitated more focussed communication
both externally, between EURAMET and
external associations and stakeholders, and
internally. One of the major achievements
for EURAMET within the past three years
was the launch of the new 600 Million
Euros European Metrology Programme for
Innovation and Research, EMPIR. “Such
major achievements were the result of the
efforts of many people and of excellent
teamwork”, said Kamal.
“With Kamal’s leadership EURAMET was
able to improve its governance and built
new strategic partnerships. We appreciate
Kamal’s effort and engagement. He spent
a lot of his personal time working for the
benefit of the Association. On behalf of
EURAMET I would like to express my
sincerest thanks to Kamal”, says Beat.
As Past-Chairperson Kamal Hossain
remains on the Board of Directors until
June 2016.
liaisonreport
Liaison Report
NCSL International
ISO/CASCO
Working Group 44
By Jeff Gust and Tim Osborne
NCSLI Liaison Representatives
ISO/IEC 17025 Workshop in
Grapevine, Texas (July 24, 2015)
Jeff Gust
Tim Osborne
Warren Merkel (NVLAP Chief and WG44
co-convener), Jeff Gust (VP Standards &
Practices) and Georgette Macdonald hosted
the ISO/IEC 17025 Workshop at the conclusion of the Annual Workshop & Symposium. Approximately 50 people attended
the workshop representing accrediting bodies, calibration laboratories, defense personnel, educators, end-users, industry, national
laboratories and testing laboratories. The
objectives of the meeting included: the introduction of the ISO/CASCO process to the
NCSLI members, the education of the members on the philosophy behind the structural changes to the document, and the provision of membership to ask questions about
the document, the review process, its impact
on the community as well as the obligatory
changes and the ISO 9001 options.
The presentation included the following
subjects:
1. History of the Revision & NCSLI
Position Paper
2. Many of the ISO management
system, conformity assessment
and normative references are being
revised (9001, 17025, SI, GUM, VIM,
etc.)
3. Who can participate
4. ISO Standards Development
Ground Rules
5. ISO Standards Development Stages
6. Structure for CASCO documents
7. Common Elements of ISO/CASCO
a.Obligatory language
b.Recommended language
8. How would an AB assess 9001
requirements?
9. Key Points of View of Impact on QMS
for laboratories
a.AB – not designed as an
accreditation standard; cleaner
b.NMI – CIPM/MRA; transfer and
dissemination of traceability; not
applicable for R&D; streamlining
processes
c.OEM – Option B advantageous (ISO
9001 registration/certification);
flexibility in reports; issues with
competitor reporting
d.Labs – concerned with cost of
change
10.When Can I Comment? DIS/FDIS
through P-Member
a.Canada – SCC (Daniel Ethier)
b.USA – ANSI/ICAC Secretariat (Nora
Moudiyne-Schweniger)
11.Implementation
a.Target release is October 2017
b.Non-accredited laboratories –
customer demand
c.Accredited laboratories – within 2
years of release
Vol. 8 No. 4
liaisonreport
WG44 Meeting Geneva, Switzerland
(August 18-20, 2015)
7. Process Requirements
Jeff Gust (VP Standards & Practices) and Tim Osborne (VP Operations) attended, with approximately 60 other experts, the third
meeting of the ISO/CASCO working group (WG 44) to revise
ISO/IEC 17025 “General requirements for the competence of testing
and calibration laboratories.” In summary, the progress of WG44
remains on target for an October 2017 release to the general public.
The objectives of this meeting focused on:
• Reviewing and editing Working Draft (WD 2),
• Determining the release date of the Committee Draft (CD) to
the member bodies for review,
• Confirming the Writing Group participants, and
• Establishing the convening date for the Writing Group to
address the comments from the member bodies on the CD.
7.1 Review of Requests &
Contracts
7.2 Sampling
7.3 Handling of Items
7.4 Measurement Uncertainty
7.5 Reporting Results
7.6 Assuring Quality
7.7 Methods
7.8 Nonconforming Work
7.9 Technical Records
7.10 Control of Data
7.11 Complaints
8. Management
Requirements
8.1 Options
8.2 Management System
Documentation (Option A**)
8.3 Control of Documents
(Option A**)
8.4 Control of Records
(Option A**)
8.5 Improvement
(Option A**)
8.6 Corrective Action
(Option A**)
8.7 Internal Audits (Option A**)
8.8 Management Review
(Option A**)
Section
At the conclusion of the meeting, unanimous consent was
achieved such that Working Draft 3 (WD 3) met the requirements
for reclassification to Committee Draft (CD 1) and should be
made available this October for P- members (ANSI in the U.S. and
SCC in Canada) to review and comment over a 3-month period.
[Category ‘A’ liaisons (NCSLI) are not allowed to review or
comment in this stage.] It is important to note that all comments
submitted by P-member stakeholders have to be addressed and
formal responses provided to the commenters. This might lead
to additional CDs as long as membership and ISO agree that
additional clarity is required.
Basic Structure of CD
Section
Sub-Section*
Notable Points:
Sub-Section*
1. Scope
2. Normative References
3. Terms & Definitions
4. General Requirements
4.1 Impartiality
4.2 Confidentiality
5. Structural Requirements
(Organization)
6. Resource Requirements
6.1 General
6.2 Personnel
6.3 Accommodation &
Environment
6.4 External Supplies & Services
6.5 Equipment
6.6 Metrological Traceability
1. There is active discussion on whether to allow sampling as
a standalone process, that is, independent of testing and
calibration activities.
2. Top Management is not the CEO, but local decision makers
3. Much of the traceability discussion, informational matter,
has been moved to Annex A
4. Clarification of the relationship between ISO/IEC 17025 and
ISO 9001 management system requirements were added as
Annex B.
ISO/CASCO P-Members:
1. Canada – SCC
2. Mexico – DGN
3. United States – ANSI
See http://www.iso.org/iso/home/about/iso_members.htm for
your country’s P-member.
tosborne@trescal.us
www.ncsli.org
liaisonreport
Report on
the Activities of the
International Organization
of Legal Metrology (OIML)
By Dr. Chuck Ehrlich
OMIL Liaison
The Office of Weights and Measures (OWM) of the National
Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is responsible for
coordinating U.S. participation in the International Organization
of Legal Metrology (OIML) and other international legal
metrology organizations.
Learn more about OIML at the website www.oiml.org and
about the NIST Office of Weights and Measures at the OWM
website www.nist.gov/owm. Dr. Charles Ehrlich, Program Leader
of the International Legal Metrology Program (ILMP) and US
CIML member, can be contacted at charles.ehrlich@nist.gov or at
(301) 975‑4834.
Please note:
• OIML publications are available without cost at
http://www.oiml.org
• The OIML and NCSLI have signed a document that
recognizes the mutual benefit of exchanging information
and encourages joint activities.
I. Highlights of Selected OIML Activities
This section reports on recent activities and the status of work in
the OIML Technical Committees (TCs), Technical Subcommittees
(SCs), and Project Groups (PGs) of specific interest to members of
the NCSLI. Schedules of future activities of the TC/SC Secretariats,
PG Conveners, the U.S. National Work Groups (USNWGs),
and the International Project Groups of the TCs and SCs are
also included.
TC 3/SC 5 Conformity Assessment (United States)
The OIML Basic Publications B 3:2011 Certificate System and
B 10:2012 Mutual Acceptance Arrangement (MAA) are the core
documents underpinning the OIML Certificate System. An
amendment to B10 was approved by the CIML that allows for the
voluntary use of test data from manufacturer’s test laboratories
(MTLs) under specially supervised conditions.
An MAA workshop was held in conjunction with the 2013
CIML Meeting (in Vietnam) to gather experiences of the various
MAA stakeholders in the MAA. Based on the outcome of this
workshop and MAA discussions at the 2013 CIML Meeting, OIML
has established an Ad-Hoc Working Group (AHWG) consisting
of interested CIML members, Committee on Participation
Review (CPR) members, and representatives of manufacturers’
associations. This working group was tasked with reviewing the
structure, rules, and procedures governing the operation of the MAA
(and the role of Utilizing Participants), with a view to increasing
the efficiency of the operation of the MAA, and, if necessary,
amending their internal (MAA) documents and suggesting to
TC 3/SC 5 appropriate amendments to OIML Publication B 10. This Ad-Hoc Working Group is chaired by the CIML first VicePresident Dr. Roman Schwartz of PTB (Germany), and held its
first meeting on 20-21 March 2014, at NIST. Three Task Groups
were established that looked into 1) improving the international
awareness and use of the OIML MAA, 2) developing a more robust
model for operation of the CPR, and 3) evaluating the impact that
termination of the Basic System for categories already covered by
the MAA (currently these are load cells, NAWIs and water meters)
would have on all stakeholders.
At the CIML Meeting in November 2014, in Auckland, New
Zealand, the Committee encouraged the AHWG, and its three Task
Groups, to present concrete proposals at the 2015 CIML meeting
and instructed the BIML to provide all necessary support to help
the AHWG achieve its objectives. The Committee also requested
that CIML Members inform the BIML about their experience and
knowledge as to whether or not OIML certificates (Basic or MAA)
and OIML Test Reports are accepted in their countries as the basis
for national or regional type approval, and the reasons in cases
where they are either not accepted, or not completely accepted.
A sub-group of the AHWG met in March 2015, to review a
proposal that could significantly change the way that the OIML
Certificate System is structured, managed and operated. This
Vol. 8 No. 4
liaisonreport
proposal includes the creation of an OIML Certificate System
(called OIML-CS) that would be managed by a Management
Committee instead of by the BIML. Advisory Committees to
the Management Committee are also envisioned. A full AHWG
meeting was held in June 2015 to finalize a proposal that will be
put forward to the CIML at its meeting in October 2015. Until the
new OIML-CS is approved by the CIML, the current Basic and MAA
systems will continue and will be supported by the BIML.
A new OIML document entitled The Role of Measurement
Uncertainty in Conformity Assessment Decisions in Legal Metrology
has passed its 2CD vote. A preliminary ballot of this document
was distributed for CIML vote and comment in July 2015. For a
copy of this document or for more information on the activities of
this subcommittee, please contact Dr. Ehrlich at (301) 975-4834 or
charles.ehrlich@nist.gov.
TC 5/SC 1 Environmental Conditions (Netherlands)
OIML D 11 General requirements for measuring instruments Environmental conditions has been published. This is a very
important document in the OIML system and is used by all of
the OIML TCs as a general reference for technical and testing
requirements on all measuring instruments. Highlights of this
recent revision cycle include: expanding the terminology section,
updating several testing sections to reflect the latest International
Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) reference standards, and
including a new environmental class (“E3”) for a non-mains local
source of electrical power supply. Please contact Mr. Ralph Richter
at (301) 975-3997 or ralph.richter@nist.gov, if you would like
additional information on TC5/SC1 or OIML D 11.
TC 5/SC 2 Software (Germany and BIML)
The OIML D 31 General Requirements for Software-controlled Measuring
Instruments has been published and now serves as guidance
for software requirements for type evaluation in International
Recommendations by OIML TCs. The United States participated
in the technical work on this document and submitted votes and
comments on several drafts of the document. A new project on
software verification was approved by CIML, and the United States
is waiting for the first draft of this document. Please contact Dr.
Ambler Thompson at (301) 975-2333 or ambler@nist.gov if you
would like to discuss OIML software efforts.
TC 6 Prepackaged Products (South Africa)
The first draft of a new project Guidance for defining the system
requirements for a certification system for prepackages was discussed
at a TC 6 meeting in Seoul, South Korea, in September 2014. This
guideline is being developed to assist countries in establishing
reciprocal agreements to accept the test results on prepackaged
goods. It is expected that the 2CD of this guidance document will
be distributed in the second half of 2015.
A revision of OIML Recommendation R 87 Quantity of Product in
Prepackages (the OIML equivalent to NIST Handbook 133: Checking
the Net Contents of Packaged Goods) includes a comprehensive
overhaul of the statistical requirements and sampling plans (the
revisions were prepared by Blaza Toman of NIST’s Statistical
Engineering Division) to correct errors discovered by a statistician
www.ncsli.org
from Asia a few years ago. The U.S. and several other countries were
successful in opposing efforts by several European Union countries
to add drained weight test procedures and packaging requirements
utilized in that region to the new edition of R87. Those procedures
were rejected primarily because they failed to recognize drained
weight test methods that have been in use around the world for
decades and which have been adopted by Codex Alimentarius.
The US voted “yes” and submitted comments on the 3CD of R 87
in October 2014. CIML vote and comments on the preliminary
ballot of R 87 will close in September 2015.
The US voted “yes” on the CIML Preliminary Ballot of OIML R
79 Labeling Requirements for Prepackaged Products in June 2015. It
is expected that R 79 will receive final CIML approval in October
2015. For more information on the activities of this committee,
and to participate in the U.S. review of these documents, please
contact Mr. Ken Butcher at (301) 975-4859 or kbutcher@nist.gov .
TC 8 Measurement of Quantities of Fluids (Japan)
The Japanese Secretariat for TC 8 distributed a questionnaire in 2014
concerning several projects in TC 8. Based on responses received on
the questionnaire, Japan decided to cancel a project to combine and
revise R 40, R 41 and R 43 into a single standard entitled Standard
volumetric measures. Japan also decided to delay the project to revise
R 63 Petroleum Measurement Tables (1994) until the corresponding
ISO standard is next revised. The Secretariat plans to start the
revision of R 119 Pipe Provers for Testing of Measuring Systems for
Liquids Other Than Water (1996) -- this document is important
for other OIML recommendations involving liquid measurement.
Please contact Mr. Ralph Richter at (301) 975-3997 or ralph.richter@
nist.gov, if you would like copies of any of these documents or to
participate in the project to revise R 119.
TC 8/SC 1 Static Volume and Mass Measurement (Germany)
The United States chairs the Project Group that has drafted new
sections of OIML R 71 Fixed Storage Tanks and R 85 Automatic
Level Gages for Measuring the Level of Liquid in Fixed Storage Tanks
to add specific requirements for specialized tanks. A committee
draft of OIML R 80-2, Road and Rail Tankers, Test Methods has been
developed by Germany. The Secretariat has also initiated the effort
of revising OIML R 95 Ships’ Tanks. A meeting to move all of these
subcommittee projects forward was held in Germany in December
2014. Please contact Mr. Ralph Richter at (301) 975-3997 or ralph.
richter@nist.gov, if you would like copies of the documents or to
participate in any of these projects.
TC 8/SC 3 Dynamic Volume and Mass Measurement for Liquids
Other Than Water (United States and Germany)
New annexes for measuring systems for foaming potable liquids,
for pipelines, and for aircraft refueling have been added to OIML R
117-2, Dynamic Measuring Systems for Liquids Other Than Water, Part
2, Test Methods. The 2CD of R117-2 was approved by the Project
Group in March 2014 with over 300 comments. The 1CD of
R117-3 Part 3, Test Report Format was distributed in March 2014. A
meeting of the R117 International Project Group was held in April
2014 in Chicago. International comments on the 2CD of R117-2
and the 1CD of R117-3 were discussed and new committee drafts
liaisonreport
of both documents were created and approved at the meeting.
Representatives of major manufacturers of these systems and
liaison organizations actively participated in the meeting. These
technical experts provided a depth of experience and technical
expertise that proved highly valuable during the meeting.
Both R117-2 and R117-3 passed their CIML preliminary ballots
with 100% consensus in July 2014; they also received final
CIML approval with 100% consensus in November 2014. Both
documents were published in April 2015. The CIML also approved
a new project for an “immediate revision” of all three parts of R
117. This new project will fully harmonize all three parts and add
new annexes to R 117 for several complete measuring systems,
including:
(a) measuring systems for the unloading of ships’
tanks and for rail and road tankers using an intermediate tank, (b)
measuring systems for liquefied gases under pressure (other than
LPG dispensers), (c) measuring systems for bunker fuel, and (d)
measuring systems for liquefied natural gas (LNG). If you have
any questions or would like to participate in the next phases of
this project, please contact Mr. Ralph Richter at (301) 975-3997 or
ralph.richter@nist.gov.
TC 8/SC 5 Water Meters (UK)
OIML, the International Standardization Organization (ISO),
and the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) worked
together to harmonize requirements for water meters using OIML
R 49 Water Meters Intended for the Metering of Cold Potable Water and
Hot Water Parts 1, 2, and 3 as the base document. The American
Water Works Association Committee on Water Meters assisted in
these efforts. This new revision of R 49 (which is now harmonized
with the water meter standards from ISO and CEN) was published
in May 2014. Please contact Mr. Ralph Richter at (301) 975-3997
or ralph.richter@nist.gov, if you would like additional information
on these documents.
TC 8/SC 6 Measurement of Cryogenic Liquids (United States)
The Secretariat for R 81, Dynamic Measuring Devices and Systems for
Cryogenic Liquids has distributed a first working draft (1WD) of R
81 to TC 8/SC 6 members and the USNWG for their review and
comment. Nine members of the R 81 project group submitted
comments on Parts 1 and 2 of R 81. A compilation of those
comments will be distributed in mid-2015, and distribution of a
first committee draft incorporating these comments is also planned
for mid-2015. To obtain more information or to participate in this
project, please contact Ms. Juana Williams at (301) 975-3989 or
juana.williams@nist.gov.
TC 8/SC 7 Gas Metering (Netherlands)
All three parts of OIML R 137 Gas Meters have been published.
Extensive United States comments on the 1 CD, the 2 CD, and
the DR were developed in cooperation with the measurement
committees of the American Gas Association. The OIML R
137 document is especially important to the U. S. interests
because the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) B 109
committee on gas measurement is using the published R 137 to
create a new performance-based standard for gas meters in the
United States. Please contact Mr. Ralph Richter at (301) 975-3997
or ralph.richter@nist.gov, if you would like to participate in these
efforts or if you would like to obtain a copy of any of these gas
measurement documents.
The CIML preliminary ballot on OIML R 139-1 and R139-2,
Compressed gaseous fuel measuring systems for vehicles, passed in
March 2014. This standard is important to US stakeholders,
especially in the effort to maximize harmonization between
domestic and international legal metrology requirements used
for the delivery of alternative fuels such as hydrogen gas and
compressed natural gas (CNG). R 139-1 and R139-2 received
final CIML approval in November 2014, and were published
in February 2015. To obtain more information on this effort,
please contact Ms. Juana Williams at (301) 975-3989 or
juana.williams@nist.gov.
TC 9 Instruments for Measuring Mass (United States)
The United States distributed the 3rd Committee Draft of R 60
Metrological Regulation for Load Cells Parts 1&2 (Metrological and
technical requirements and Metrological controls and performance
tests) in August 2014 for comments and voting. The Project Group
decided that R 60 needs further development, and a 4 CD is being
drafted; it is expected to be circulated in the Fall of 2015. A 1
CD of R 60-3 is also planned to be circulated in the Fall of 2015.
For more information on TC 9 activities, please contact Mr. John
Barton at (301) 975-4002 or john.barton@nist.gov.
TC 9/SC 2 Automatic Weighing Instruments (United Kingdom)
All three parts of OIML R 50 Continuous Totalizing Automatic
Weighing Instruments (Belt Weighers) received final CIML approval
in November 2014, and R 50 was published in March 2015. To
receive copies of these documents or to obtain more information
on the work of this subcommittee, please contact Mr. John Barton
at (301) 975-4002 or john.barton@nist.gov. The TC 9/SC 2 Secretariat distributed a questionnaire
concerning a possible project to revise OIML R 51 Automatic catchweighing instruments, which was last revised in 2006. The proposed
international effort to revise R 51 was also announced by the
NCWM. Please contact Mr. Rick Harshman at (301) 975-8107 or
richard.harshman@nist.gov if you are interested in the project to
revise this document.
TC 17/SC 1 Humidity (China and United States)
The 7 CD of OIML R 59 Moisture Meters for Cereal Grains and Oilseeds
was distributed for voting in December 2014. OIML officially
closed the online voting in April 2015. The 7 CD was approved,
PG comments on the 7 CD will be resolved, and the document will
be forwarded to OIML as a DR for final voting. Please contact Ms.
G. Diane Lee at (301) 975-4405 or diane.lee@nist.gov if you would
like to participate in this work.
TC 17/SC 8 Quality Analysis of Agricultural Products (Australia)
The 5 CD of a draft document Measuring Instruments for Protein
Determination in Grains was approved by the PG in December 2014.
A DR is expected in 2015. Please contact Ms. G. Diane Lee at (301)
975-4405 or diane.lee@nist.gov, if you would like to participate in
this work.
Vol. 8 No. 4
liaisonreport
II.REPORT ON THE 49TH CIML MEETING IN Auckland, new
Zealand IN november 2014
Mr. Peter Mason, CIML member from the United Kingdom
and President of the CIML, opened the meeting and gave the
President’s Report.
Mr. Stephen Patoray, who has been serving as BIML Director
since January 2011, provided several reports on financial and
administrative matters at the BIML. Mr. Patoray also discussed
upgrades to the OIML website and significant improvements to
the BIML headquarters building in Paris.
Based on a proposal by Mr. Mason, and after a lengthy discussion,
the CIML decided that it expects to renew the appointment of the
BIML Director for a fixed term of up to five years at its meeting
in 2015.
The CIML welcomed Cameroon as a re-instated Member State
and welcomed Azerbaijan as a new Corresponding Member.
The Committee noted a report given by the BIML on its
activities in liaison with other international organizations aimed at
developing countries, including the organization of an AFRIMETS
Legal Metrology School in Tunis in October 2014. The Committee
also established an advisory group to carry out wide consultation,
to seek suggestions and to build up links with other bodies with an
interest in promoting the economic development of countries and
economies with emerging metrology systems.
The Committee approved the following draft publications:
• Revision of R 50: Continuous totalizing automatic weighing
instruments (belt weighers)
• R 117: Dynamic measuring systems for liquids other than water –
Part 2: Metrological controls and performance tests; and – Part 3:
Test report format;
• Revision of R 139: Compressed gaseous fuels measuring systems
for vehicles – Part 1: Metrological and technical requirements; and
– Part 2: Metrological controls and performance tests.
The Committee also approved a new project in TC 8/SC 3 for the
“immediate revision” of all three parts of R 117 Dynamic measuring
systems for liquids other than water – and also approved a new
project in TC 8/SC 7 for the revision of all parts of R 140 Measuring
systems for gaseous fuels.
The Committee noted a report given by the MAA Ad-hoc
Working Group (AHWG) chair and CIML First Vice-President,
Dr. Roman Schwartz of PTB in Germany.
The Committee
requested that CIML Members inform the BIML about their
experience and knowledge as to whether or not OIML certificates
(Basic or MAA) and OIML Test Reports are accepted in their
countries as the basis for national or regional type approval,
and the reasons in cases where they are either not accepted, or
not completely accepted.
III. Future OIML Meetings
The next CIML Meeting will be held during the week of 19 October
2015 in Arcachon, France. An OIML seminar on “Countries and
Economies with Emerging Metrology Systems (CEEMS)” will be
held in conjunction with the 2015 CIML meeting. The next OIML
Conference will be held in 2016; the venue and dates for this
meeting have not yet been announced.
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liaisonreport
V.Regional Legal Metrology Organizations
A meeting of the Inter-American Metrology System (SIM) General
Assembly is organized annually and is the event where delegates
from National Metrology Institutes of the Americas meet to discuss
important issues. This past year, the SIM General Assembly was
held in November 2014 in Bogotá, Columbia. Mr. José Dajes
Castro, from INDECOPI in Lima, Peru, serves as the SIM President.
The Legal Metrology Working Group is chaired by Mr. Emilio
Löbbe from INTI/Argentina. The organization is working to build
capacity in legal metrology for SIM member countries. In April
2014, INTI and INMETRO held a 3-day Workshop in Brazil on
“Hardware and Software Security in Legal Metrology”.
The 21st Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Legal Metrology Forum
(APLMF) was held November 10-12, 2014 in Wellington, New
Zealand. The People’s Republic of China holds the Presidency
and Secretariat of APLMF. Mr. Changcheng, APLMF President and
Vice Minister of AQSIQ, chaired the meeting. During the opening
comments at the APLMF Meeting, it was announced that New
Zealand planned to assume the APLMF Secretariat in 2015.
The main objectives of APLMF are to coordinate regional training
courses in legal metrology and to provide a forum for exchange of
information among legal metrology authorities. APLMF activities
are facilitated through its seven work groups. The most active
WG is the Working Group on Training Coordination, chaired by
Australia. In the past year, APLMF held training on “Traceability
in Rice Moisture Measurement” in Thailand and “Non-automatic
Weighing Instruments” in Indonesia.
The WG on Training Coordination reported on the results
of a 2013 survey of APLMF member economies that requested
information on the benefits of APLMF training that was conducted
in the period 2005-2013. The results clearly indicated that the more
than 20 courses conducted by APLMF in that 8-year time period were
highly valued by the member economies, promoted harmonization
in the Asia-Pacific region, and frequently led to revised/improved
legislation and regulations in the member economies.
A significant joint project entitled “Metrology Enabling
Developing Economies in Asia” (MEDEA) has been launched
by APLMF, the Asia Pacific Metrology Programme (APMP) and
the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB). This fouryear project is being managed by PTB and is primarily funded
by Germany. The project aims to foster and further develop the
capabilities of the APLMF and the Asia-Pacific Metrology Program
(APMP) to support developing economies in the Asia-Pacific region,
to promote metrology systems within developing economies,
and to strengthen the metrology systems/infrastructure within
developing economies. The main first-year accomplishments of
the MEDEA Project were to establish a Coordination Committee
and to survey APLMF developing economies about their legal
and scientific metrology capabilities and needs. Several training
courses are planned through the MEDEA Project for the years
2015-2017.
The United States was represented at the APLMF meeting in
Wellington by Dr. Charles Ehrlich and Mr. Ralph Richter. Dr. Ehrlich
serves as the Chair of the APLMF work group on Mutual Recognition
Arrangements and gave a report and update on the OIML MAA. Mr.
Richter presented the United States Country Report.
The United States will host the next APLMF meeting on 28-30
October 2015 in Hawaii. Please contact Mr. Ralph Richter at (301)
975-3997 or ralph.richter@nist.gov for more information on SIM,
APLMF, and the 2015 APLMF Annual Meeting.
charles.ehrlich@nist.gov
Vol. 8 No. 4
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liaisonreport
EUROLAB 25 Years
By Horst Czichos, BHT Berlin
EUROLAB Past President
Background:
Formation of the EU
and EUROLAB
• To facilitate the free movement of goods, persons, services,
and capital – while protecting essential public needs, e.g.
safety, health, environment – the New Approach was
established 1985 in the European Union (EU) as flexible
regulatory framework for market and trade.
• Essential requirements are defined in EU-Directives. CE
marking declares that the product is safe and in conformity
with the relevant EU Directives.
• Harmonised EN Standards define the technical details →
European Standards are valid in the whole EU, conflicting
National Standards have to be withdrawn: “one standard, one
test, accepted everywhere”.
• EUROLAB was set up in Brussels April 1990 in connection with
the formation of the European Union. Since 1998 it is a Legal
Entity under Belgian Law, composed of National Associations
of Measurement, Testing and Analytical Laboratories with
over 2,000 members and about 100,000 technical experts and
laboratory practitioners. EUROLAB represents the laboratory
community regarding political and technical issues, its
members perform confomity assessment services.
EUROLAB Member
Structure
EUROLAB Objectives
• Creating awareness among public and political authorities,
industry and other partners of the
• work of the measurement, calibration, testing, inspection and
certification sector.
• Representation by formulating and voicing the opinion of
European laboratories regarding political and technical issues.
• Coordination by interfacing with partner organisations
having activities of interest to the laboratory community.
• Action by providing adequate means for exchange of
information and experience.
• Promotion of cost-effective measurement, testing, calibration
and analytical services.
www.ncsli.org
liaisonreport
EUROLAB Working Groups,
Cooperation Representation
EUROLAB Working Groups
• TCQA EUROLAB Technical Committee on Quality Assurance
in Testing and Calibration (TCQA)
• JTCPTC Joint Technical Committee on Product Testing and
Certification with CEOC, the International Confederation of
Inspection and Certification Organization
• EEECE Permanent Liaison Group between the Boards
of EUROLAB-EURAMET-EURACHEMCEOC, and EA, the
European Accreditation Cooperation
EUROLAB Representation within
Accreditation Organizations
• ILAC Laboratory Committee, Inspection Committee,
Arrangements Committee, Accreditation Issues Committee
• EA Laboratory Committee, Certification Committee,
Inspection Committee
• EAAB European Accreditation Advisory Board
EUROLAB Cooperation with
Standardization Bodies
• CEN European Committee for Standardization Certification
Board (CEN CCB) Standardization and Research (CEN-STAR)
• ISO Conformity Assessment Committee (ISO-CASCO)
EUROLAB Activities
• Representation in the EU Institutions
• Monitoring selected EU Legislation
• Organising Workshops and Meetings
• Discussion and Position Papers, e. g.
• EUROLAB DISCUSSION PAPER on ILAC Policy on the
Traceability of Measurement Results
• EUROLAB POSITION PAPER on Opinions and
Interpretations in Test Reports
• Promotion of laboratories, e. g.
• EUROLAB COOK BOOK
→ see www.eurolab.org
horst.czichos@t-online.de
EUROLAB DISCUSSION PAPER on ILAC Policy on the
Traceability of Measurement Results
EUROLAB POSITION PAPER on Opinions and
Interpretations in Test Reports
Vol. 8 No. 4
committeenews
NCSL International Laboratory
Management Guide LM-15
Laboratory Recovery Planning;
Disasters and Planned Events
By James Smith
NCSLI Laboratory Operations VP
The new Laboratory Management guide LM-15 “Laboratory Recovery
Planning; Disasters and Planned Events” was developed by the NCSL
International Laboratory Facilities Committee. This guide will assist
members and industry peers who have the responsibility to prepare
their labs for various recovery events. As we see a steady flow of
disasters across the globe those whose livelihoods depend on the
continued success of their business understand that extended loss of
revenue and income cannot be fully covered by emergency support,
nor is limited insurance and government support guaranteed to meet
your needs and those of your employees.
Solid, successful lab operations can be devastated by fire, tornado,
hurricanes or reckless vandalism. This guide is designed to help
leadership take a good look at evaluating their vulnerability, create a
plan to address likely events and consequences then establish steps to
better prepare an accelerated recovery.
Planned events such as a lab relocation, remodeling or consolidation
also present circumstances which can impact a laboratory’s ability to
perform work to accredited criteria thus placing the lab in jeopardy of
greater loss of revenue and customer base.
Doug Cooper, Laboratory Facilities Chair, led the working group
and with the help of members was able to build a diverse team of
industry professionals to prepare this guide.
As with any Guide, soon after release solid feedback raises the
need for revision, if you are interested in participating on this
committee or any of the NCSLI Laboratory Operations Committees
send an email to info@ncsli.org.
LM-15 “Laboratory Recovery Planning; Disasters and Planned
Events” is available for download to all NCSLI Member Delegates
or to purchase at ncsli.org.
james.e.smith4@boeing.com
Vol. 8 No. 4
committeenews
NCSL International Laboratory
Management Guide LM-17
Leading in the Laboratory: Applying Leadership
Principles to Ensure Laboratory Excellence
By Gloria Neely
NCSLI Workplace and Professional Development
NCSL International Laboratory Management Guide LM-17
“Leading in the Laboratory: Applying Leadership Principles to
Ensure Laboratory Excellence” was written by the NCSLI Workplace
and Professional Development Committee and provides guidance
on leadership for laboratory personnel currently in a leadership
position or aspiring to leadership. This document explores
personal leadership qualities, models, and roles while providing
information on different aspects of leadership, this LM also helps
to improve one’s ability to form and maintain connected and
empowered relationships with various employees and customers.
Understanding different leadership principles can also help cultivate the desire for the development of self and others. In addition, this
document explores the transition into leadership and what strategies
can assist with the transition from laboratory technician to leader.
This document differentiates between leadership and management, emphasizing that effective leadership embodies vision, uni-
www.ncsli.org
fies and motivates people, and advances the technical excellence
of the laboratory. Readers of this document will understand that
leaders who effectively promote professional growth and productivity of both self and employees will encourage efficient organization performance and success.
While written for laboratory personnel, the leadership concepts
in this document apply to any business. This document offers an
overview of different leadership approaches as opposed to being a
training manual for a distinct leadership approach.
LM-17 “Leading in the Laboratory: Applying Leadership Principles
to Ensure Laboratory Excellence” is available for download to all
NCSLI Member Delegates or to purchase at ncsli.org.
If you would like more information on the NCSLI Learning and
Development Committees email us at info@ncsi.org.
gjneely@hotmail.com
committeenews
NCSL International Recommended
Practice RP-18
Estimation and Evaluation of Measurement Decision Risk
By Mark Kuster
NCSLI Metrology Practices Committee
This new recommended practice, NCSLI RP-18, “Estimation
and Evaluation of Measurement Decision Risk,” describes and
develops industry best practices for the estimation and control
of measurement decision risk (MDR). The RP accumulates and
focuses the current body of knowledge to provide guidelines for
estimating and managing MDR and for computing measurement
quality metrics by which to evaluate conformance testing.
MDR marks conformance testing at each level in the measurement
support hierarchy (see figure), so RP-18 applies equally well to
product testing, process monitoring and test equipment calibration.
Among other metrics, MDR includes the false accept risk of
accepting non-conforming equipment attributes as conforming
and the false reject risk of rejecting conforming attributes as nonconforming. False accepts may lead to negative business outcomes
related to calibration and test system accuracies and to end-item
or final product performance. False rejects incur excess costs
C ALIBRATIO N STAND ARD
Calibration Results
..
.
Calibration Results
Support Requirements
C ALIBRATIO N SYSTEM n
Calibration Results
TEST SYSTEM
Test Results
from first principles in order to serve as a comprehensive reference
for estimating MDR. The RP includes the following topics:
• Background, motivation, and a reader’s guide
• Introductory and advanced uncertainty analysis to make the document a
one-stop reference
• MDR fundamentals
• Conditional and unconditional risk estimates
• ANSI/NCSL Z540.3 support and extensions
• Step-by-step Bayesian and alternative procedures
• Time-of-measurement and process-design-time estimates
• Analysis for compensatory measures such as multiple independent or
sequential tests
• MDR-based testing and reporting guardband limits
• Post-test and post-adjustment error distributions
• Basic cost optimization
• Additional MDR metrics
• True vs. perceived measurement reliability for several error distributions
• Numeric algorithms for software implementations
• Out-of-tolerance impact evaluation by “feedback analysis”
• Risk-based reliability targets
• Uncertainty growth effects
END ITEM
The test and calibration support hierarchy.
In work spanning more than a decade, Dr. Howard Castrup, NCSLI
173.2 MDR Analysis Committee Chair, spearheaded this document’s
development from initial concept through material aggregation,
writing, and multiple review-revision cycles. Many thanks go to
Howard and his supporting cast, including Del Caldwell, Dr. Dennis
Dubro, Dr. Dennis H. Jackson, Greg Cenker (Chair 2007 - 2011),
Jerry Hayes, Jim Wachter, Miguel Decos, Mihaela Fulop, Perry King,
Randy Long, Scott Mimbs, Dr. Steven Dwyer, Suzanne Castrup, and
other NASA personnel and NCSLI members. The NCSLI Board of
Directors approved the RP July, 2014.
RP-18 “Estimation and Evaluation of Measurement Decision
Risk” is available for download to all NCSLI Member Delegates or
to purchase at ncsli.org.
If you would like more information on the NCSLI Standards and
Practices Committees email us at info@ncsi.org .
mjk@ieee.org
for adjustment, scrap, repair and re-test; shortened calibration
intervals; and extraneous out-of-tolerance reports or other
administrative reactions.
The RP explains key concepts and methods and, since little
other specifically applicable literature exists, provides derivations
Vol. 8 No. 4
committeenews
157 Early Career Professionals;
Industry and Military
By Jennifer Fleenor
NCSLI 157 Committee Chair
NCSLI has established a new committee to support young
industry and military professionals. The committee will focus
on career development, networking, technical, and business
training events to enhance measurement science expertise for
early career industry and military professionals. I would like to
introduce a few of our committee members, and their feedback
from the NCSLI Workshop & Symposium in Dallas, Texas.
Matt Aloisio, Metrology Engineer, Radian Research Inc.
I’m excited to see what actions may be taken to try and get the
younger generation more involved in NSCLI.
I’d like to provide you with my feedback from the NCSLI
Conference in July. First, just a bit of background information
about myself: I’m 25 years old and working as a Metrology Engineer
at Radian Research. I started at Radian shortly after completing my
bachelors in electrical engineering and have been working there
for about a year and a half.
This was my first year attending the annual NCSLI Workshop &
Symposium and I was very pleased with the whole experience. As
someone fairly new to the field of metrology, my goals going into
the conference were to simply gather as much new information
as possible by attending the various technical presentations and
networking with other professionals. I was especially happy to see
a featured Energy Track within the technical programs. Initially I
wasn’t sure how much information would be relevant to my work
at Radian Research where we specialize in electrical power and
energy measurements. I was very happy with the different topics
presented and how inviting the various speakers were to further
questions and discussion. This added discussion with some of the
industry experts has me looking forwarded to writing papers of my
own and getting the opportunity to present.
If I had to think of something I didn’t like or felt could use
improvement it would be the lack of interactive events at the
conference. The unfortunate truth is that many people from the
younger generations have a painfully short attention span and
may not be fully benefitting from some of the longer technical
presentations. I think having some sort of program with increased
involvement and interaction would go a long way in sparking
more thought provoking questions and discussion from those
involved.
I had a great time at this year’s conference and enjoyed being
exposed to so much new information in the world of measurement
science. I’m glad I got the opportunity to meet and speak with
so many knowledgeable and helpful individuals and I’m looking
forward to attending again next year.
www.ncsli.org
Cody Luke, Engineering Operations & Technology
Test Resource and Infrastructure Optimization
I graduated from Central Washington University (CWU), with a
degree in Industrial Technology and specialized in Production and
Casting Fabrication. CWU is one of only a small handful of schools
that have a learning foundry which was really neat to be able to
see the process unfold, from creating the mold, to pouring the
molten metal and finally seeing the finished part. After graduation
in the spring of 2011, I started a contract position with Boeing
performing a holistic inventory of all equipment within the lab
test value stream. Upon completion, I was hired by Boeing and
moved into affordability and optimization projects supporting
multiple programs such as F-15 and 777x for Boeing Test and
Evaluation. During this time I have implemented and executed
on strategic plans that has saved Boeing a considerable amount by
conscientiously utilizing their asset base.
Aspects of the conference that I liked were the amount of
presentations and venders in attendance. I attended all three
day sessions and was thinking beforehand that there might not
be enough presentations, panel discussions, and demonstrations
to fill that time. I was completely wrong, there were multiple
events proceeding every hour and it was hard to choose from at
times which one to attend. One of the aspects that I think can be
improved upon is the room accommodates for popular speakers
or topics. I was in one session about, “The Amazing Stories of
Measurement,” and it was so packed that it was standing room
only. I was one of those unfortunate few that were left standing,
behind a column, in the very back of the room, which needless to
say was difficult to listen to what was being talked about.
This was my first NCSLI conference and my first time speaking
at one. I was part of two panels and presented a paper that I cowrote with a colleague of mine who was also attending for the first
time. We were definitely the younger members in attendance, but
the seasoned attendees welcomed us with warm gratitude and not
one time did I feel out of place or inept as to my experience.
Leah Lindstrom, MATES
I began my career with Boeing in February of 2014 as a Project
Manager on an enterprise wide affordability project. I am 27. Originally from Arizona, I received my Bachelors of Science in
Chemistry as well as a minor in both Biology and Spanish from
Northern Arizona University in 2009. I have been abroad many
times including multiple backpacking trips through Europe; I
have volunteered in Costa Rica working with a Leatherback Sea
Turtle Conservation Program; walked the Camino de Santiago,
studied Spanish in San Sebastian, Spain; and lived in Newcastle,
committeenews
Australia for seven months during a study abroad program. Most
recently, I received a Professional Certificate in Wetland Science and
Management from the University of Washington. I would like to
continue my education to obtain a Master’s degree in a field related to
alternative or renewable energy but have little exposure in that field.
The only reason I am aware of NCSLI or its membership is because
of my previous team lead, Jim “Smitty” Smith. He encouraged our
team to actively participate in the organization in order to expand
our horizons for continuous development and improvement of our
technical and professional skills. With guidance, Cody Luke and
I wrote our first white paper, “Test Lab Asset Utilization; Methods
to Maximize Your Asset Budget,” which was accepted as a Poster
Presentation at the 2015 NCSLI Workshop & Symposium.
The Dallas conference was my first conference and I was not sure
what to expect. From the beginning it was obvious that I was one
of the youngest members in attendance and would have like to
have seen others in my age range. Although it was intimidating, I
was pleasantly surprised when members of NCSLI recognized that
I was new to the organization and reached out to me. Every day
I met a variety of people who asked about our paper and were
genuinely interested in offering feedback. I truly felt welcomed
by the veteran members, but more importantly, I felt included, as
though my opinions and perspectives were important and taken
seriously. Since the conference, I have begun talking with a small group
of NCSLI members about a marketing and outreach program to
encourage the participation of younger generations. If you are in
a position to mentor someone who would be interested in NCSLI,
please share your experiences because they may be looking for an
opportunity like this and not know where to begin!
jennifer.fleenor@tektronix.com
NCSLI Automotive Metrology
Committee 155
By Marc Devereaux
NCSLI Automotive Committee Chair
Marc Devereaux, Lloyd Baker and Bob Sawyer supported the NCSL
International booth at the AIAG Quality Summit in Novi, Michigan.
This evet was attended by over 170 automotive OEM’s and
associated suppliers. The 1 ½ day event featured keynote speaker Dr.
Mark Rosekind the administrator for the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration (NHTSA), which he highlighted the industry’s
best practices in proactive and preventive engineering and quality
processes, methods, and tools to increase the safety, reliability, and
durability of parts, systems, and vehicles. A range of sessions along
two tracks - Quality and Product Development, enabled participants
to learn about the latest tools and techniques in traceability, new
product quality planning, model-based development, data mining,
and product validation testing.
NCSLI Committee Charter
Establish liaison within all elements of the automotive
products industry, government regulatory agencies, and
other appropriate organizations dealing with applicable
types and aspects of controlled measurements required in the
development and production of automotive products. Serve
as a forum from which metrology and calibration regulatory
requirements, proposed compliance guidelines, techniques, and
knowledge can be shared with industry, regulatory agencies
and professional organizations through NCSL International
publications, Workshops, Seminars, and Member Delegates.
marc.devereaux@gm.com
Vol. 8 No. 4
Joe D. Simmons
NIST (NBS) (1963-1994)
1992 NCSLI, William A. Wildhack award winner.
1995 MSC, Andrew J. Woodington award winner.
Co-founder and Chair of
ASQ Measurement Quality Division.
Founded in the memory of Joe Simmons to
support the study of measurement science
and metrology related quality topics.
QUALIFIED STUDENTS ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY
$3000 SCHOLARSHIP
Completed applications are due March 1
www.ncsli.org
For application forms or more information contact your
advisor, student aid office, or the Scholarship itself at:
SimmonsScholarship@ncsli.org
www.ncsli.org (search Simmons)
PROMOTING
ACADEMIC
EXCELLENCE IN
METROLOGY
Submit to:
Simmons Scholarship
2995 Wilderness Place, Suite 107
Boulder, CO 80301
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The beautiful drive through rolling hills of western Pennsylvania
almost eclipsed the Ohio/Western Pennsylvania Fall 2015 section
meeting. But the destination could not be better, for our meeting was
being hosted by Butler Community College (BC3), one of the few
schools with a metrology program. Could it get better? Yet it did,
Dilip Shah, E = mc3 Solutions provided two sessions on measurement
uncertainty, geared to students. And Erik Volek, Mettler-Toldeo dove
deep into the weighty science of laboratory weighing.
Our meeting started with a warm welcome from the Butler
Community College staff, led by faculty Kevin Ruediger. BC3
accommodations were nothing but exceptional.
For the morning session, Dilip Shah, led the attack on
uncertainty. The presentation focused on a working understanding
of uncertainty and the end result: an uncertainty budget.
James Littlefield, of Smithers and section coordinator, slipped in
an ad hoc session on uncertainty and how it affects risk (e.g. type
I and type II).
How gorgeous is BC3’s campus? It was a golf course before it
was a school. This of course explains why a special team was sent
out to rescue session attendees after lunch to start the tour.
James Littlefield
The tour left everyone with an expectation of what a metrology program should be, including all the basics, from dimensions to electronics.
Dilip Shah returned for the afternoon session with a hands-on
lab on creating an uncertainty budget, including conducting a
repeatability and reproducibility exercise. The emphasis was on
current practices of the industry.
Northern Ohio Meeting.
www.ncsli.org
regionalnews
Erik Volek, Mettler Toledo, presented his topic of “GWP (Good
Weight Practices),” but was more like “Everything you would ever
want to know about laboratory weighting,” including the history
of scales, the life cycle of scales, how to select, and proper use.
Other topics covered: accuracy, uncertainty, minimum weight,
low end accuracy limitation, and performance verification.
The meeting wrapped up with Lloyd Baker, of GM and our NCSLI
Regional Coordinator. Lloyd covered NCSLI Updates, including
the upcoming NCSLI Technical Exchange in Jacksonville, Florida
on February 1 and 2, 2016. He reviewed NCSLI‘s mission and
recruited for volunteers.
www.ncsli.org
We hope to return to Butler Community College in two years
and planning is underway for our next meeting scheduled for
spring of 2016.
littlefieldpj@gmail.com
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regionalnews
Ch
Baxter Healthcare in Round Lake, Illinois,
hosted the NCSLI Chicago Section meeting
on Wednesday, September 23, 2015. We
were very excited to bring to the Chicago
area two major highlights from the 2015
NCSLI Annual Workshop & Symposium in
Grapevine, Texas.
After short introductions by the Chicago
Section Coordinator, Jim Salsbury, Mitutoyo
America, and Andre Brodsky, Baxter
Healthcare, the Chicago section welcomed
Paul Reese from Baxter Healthcare. Paul’s
paper and presentation on “Instrument
Adjustment Policies” won the Best Paper
Award at the 2015 Workshop & Symposium.
His paper was also quite well-received by
the Chicago section crowd of around 40
attendees. Paul’s presentation addressed
the fundamental question about when is
adjustment beneficial in calibration.
The Chicago section was also excited
to bring another highlight from this past
summer in Grapevine, Texas – the ISO/IEC
17025 Workshop. Tim Osborne, Trescal,
and VP of Operations for NCSLI, and who
Jim Salsbury PhD
is directly involved with the revision of
this standard that is so important to many
NCSLI member organizations, agreed to
lead a shortened version of the workshop
at the Chicago section meeting. Prior to
lunch, Tim discussed the ISO process and
the current status of the revision to ISO/IEC
17025. The timing was perfect, as the first
committee draft (CD) was released just that
morning.
After lunch, Tim continued the ISO/
IEC 17025 Workshop. Tim presented on
many of the key changes being debated
that will impact accredited calibration and
testing laboratories. Not surprisingly, Tim’s
presentation turned into a lively discussion
with lots of questions and comments from
those in attendance. We greatly appreciate
both Tim’s time in coming to speak in
Chicago and also with his handling of all
the questions we threw at him.
In-between Paul and Tim, the Chicago
section welcomed Baxter Healthcare’s
Charles Emken. Charles, who works in
IT for Baxter Healthcare, presented on
“Regulatory Initiatives and their Impact
on Technology.” His presentation focused
on important developments in data
exchange standards with a goal to speed
the delivery of new therapies to patients.
He discussed an organization called the
Allotrope Foundation, which Baxter is a
member company, which is building an
open framework for laboratory data.
We concluded the meeting with news
from the NCSLI Board, including our next
Chicago Section meeting date which is
Wednesday April 20, 2016 at Cole-Parmer/
Innocal in Vernon Hills, Illinois.
After the meeting, the attendees were
welcomed by Baxter for a tour of their
facilities, including their calibration
laboratories. On behalf of the Chicago
section, I would like to thank Baxter
Healthcare and Andre Brodsky for hosting
a very successful Chicago Section Meeting.
Jim.Salsbury@mitutoyo.com
Chicago Meeting.
Vol. 8 No. 4
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The Michigan sections fall meeting drew 37 attendees (two of which
were students from U of M Dearborn College) to take part in a full
day of measurement training on the topic of “Dynamic Sensors and
Calibration Techniques.” This measurement training was provided
and sponsored by Eric Seller and Bob Auchterlonie from The Modal
Shop, Inc., a PCB Group Company.
The Event began with a warm welcome to all attendees and
presenters. Lloyd Baker from GM gave the NCSLI Board update, also
upcoming events and how to become a member of NCSLI and the
benefits of being a member. Bob Auchterlonie from PCB began the training section by speaking
on accelerometer types and theory and cabling of an accelerometer,
mounting methods effects of high frequency accelerometers when
performing a test or calibration using accelerometers. He also spoke on
accelerometers vibration in terms of the “G” and sensor applications
and how accelerometers are used in the field. Plenty of demos and
cut away examples of accelerometers were passed around the room
for attendees to examine, while going through presentations.
Sam Davis
Eric Seller from the Modal Shop began his presentation discussing
the basics of accelerometer calibration and what is Calibration? His
discussion included how often you should calibrate your accelerometer
and how the user should be included in determining the calibration
cycle. Eric also touched on the uncertainty contributor (systemic and
random component) to the accelerometer calibration. He also gave
an example of the uncertainty budget chart for an accelerometer.
After lunch Eric Seller did a demonstration on accelerometer
calibration using The Modal Shop, 9110D Portable Vibration
Calibrator. In closing Bob Auchterlonie talked about different types
of microphones (Free Field, Random Incident and Pressure) and how
they work and Eric Seller touched on microphone calibration (closed
and open circuitry) and sensitivity.
I would like to thank The Modal Shop for their sponsorship and
providing the excellent measurement training - it was a great success.
Sam.Davis@us.bosch.com
Michigan Meeting.
www.ncsli.org
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The Twin Cities NCSLI Section 1311 met
on September 22, at the New Brighton
Community Center in New Brighton, Minnesota. The event was sponsored by the
National Association of Proficiency Testing
(NAPT) which is based in Minnesota. This
full day event pulled in 84 attendees!
This was my first meeting as the new
section coordinator. I’m told the first
meeting is always the most challenging,
but there are 13 members on our steering
committee who really help plan and hold
the meetings. I would like to welcome two
new members to our steering committee;
Cory Otto, Boston Scientific and Rashad
Nash, 3M.
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The first presentation topic was “Proficiency Testing and Inter-laboratory Comparisons” presented by Charles Ellis, NAPT.
Charles has been involved in the administration of interlaboratory comparisons in
the metrology community for over 20 years.
Based on that experience, Charles has many
stories and experiences with ILC’s and PT’s.
He reviewed many of the principles of testing and the good and bad practices that he
has seen. One particular interesting thing
is that NAPT provides their application for
ILC’s to the public for free! Anyone can sign
up to use their online application to manage their testing and use their QA module.
More information at www.proficiency.org.
Corey Garbers
The second presenter was Robert Stern
from Keysight Technologies. Bob’s topic
was on “Decision Risk – Balancing False
Acceptance Risk and False Rejection Risk.”
It was a very interesting presentation with
very little math (thank you!). Many people
are looking for more specific guidance
from the next version of ISO/IEC 17025
on how to take measurement uncertainty
into account when making statements of
conformance. This presentation provided
several promising options for taking this
into account. To see the presentation,
search YouTube.com for “Calibration series
for test and measurement equipment.”
This was Part 3 in a 7 part series by Bob.
Twin Cities Meeting.
Vol. 8 No. 4
regionalnews
The third presentation was by David
Harris of Glastonbury Southern Gage. His
topic was “Thread Ring Calibration using
Set Plugs.” David explained in detail how
to use set plugs to inspect and set thread
ring gages. In particular, he covered the
use of truncated set plugs when checking
for wear of the thread ring. It’s not
just used to set the ring gage as some
technicians may think. Inspecting and
setting thread ring gages is as much an art
as it is a science. There is a certain “feel” to
the drag of the set plug when checking the
thread ring gage.
The fourth presentation was by Michael
Turnure from Pace Analytical Services.
His topic was “Clean Room Certification
and Monitoring.” This was an in depth
look at the requirements for a clean room.
Michael covered the basics of what a clean
room is and the standards that govern
them. ISO 14644 and FS 209E define the
requirements for clean rooms. There are
numerous requirements for constructing
and validating a clean room facility. We
found this presentation very pertinent
to our area where there are numerous
medical device manufacturers including
Boston Scientific, St Jude, and Medtronics.
As usual, the meeting concluded with a
door prize drawing. There were so many
door prizes at this meeting that everyone
Larry Roden Retirement Tribute:
Larry Roden is a seasoned calibration technician working for
Boston Scientific in Arden Hills, Minnesota. He received his 2
yr. associate degree in the field of electronics from Lakewood
Community College. He started his career with Ball Electronics
in Circle Pines, Minnesota where he ran the Calibration Lab for
10 years. Larry then went to work for Cardiac Pacemakers Inc.,
which became Guidant Corporation and eventually Boston
Scientific. While working for CPI at the time, he set up the first
automated calibration process using Fluke MetCal.
Larry has been instrumental in setting up most of the
electrical, temperature and mechanical calibration processes
used at Boston Scientific, Arden Hills, Minnesota. He has
worked his way up to Sr. Calibration Technician during the 30
years working for what is now Boston Scientific.
www.ncsli.org
left with something! The meeting was a lot
of fun and I look forward to our next.
cgarbers@martincalibration.com
His calibration skills were learned and honed by attending
the Technical Paper sessions of 14 NCSLI Workshops and
Symposiums held throughout the US and Canada. He also
attends the local NCSLI region meetings to interface with
fellow peers.
After 40 years of working in the Calibration field Larry is
retiring to start a new adventure in life, whatever that might
be, undetermined at this time.
The Twin Cities Section and NCSLI organization would like
to thank Larry for his many contributions to the measurement
science community and for his support of the NCSL
International Membership for 29 years!
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Masy
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Mensor Corporation
www.mensor.com
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NCSLI Technical Exchange
www.ncsli.org
Page 6
NCSLI 2016 Workshop & Symposium
www.ncsli.org
Back Cover
NCSLI Joe D. Simmons Scholarship
www.ncsli.org
Page 61
Thunder Scientific Corporation
www.thunderscientific.com
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Trescal
www.trescal.com
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Vol. 8 No. 4
2016 NCSLI WORKSHOP & SYMPOSIUM
JULY 24–28, 2016
Saint Paul RiverCentre
Saint Paul, Minnesota
NCSL INTERNATIONAL | ncsli.org
5766 Central Avenue, Suite 150 | Boulder, CO 80301 | (303) 440-3339 | info@ncsli.org

A Tribute - NCSL International

Transcription

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