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Happy 4th of July!
We are excited to bring you the July 2024 OWM Newsletter to highlight the resources we have provided and which are available for the upcoming 2024 NCWM Annual meeting July 14-18, a new FAQ page on international legal metrology, a new web-based and Excel searchable “Technical Article Library”, as well as newly recorded webinars and other e-learning resources now available on our Products and Services webpage. You will also find interesting technical articles on Class II Scales, the UK’s plan to recognize CE-marked instruments, and updates on NIST activities for EVSE and the 2024 RMAP series. Also, learn more as we kick off our new “Information Hours,” hosted by the National Legal Metrology Program (NLMP) team. Lastly, we welcome our new NIST detailee Toby Herman to the laboratory metrology program, our returning intern Dinelka Jagoda to continue her work on metric/SI education and outreach, and new NIST associate Scott Simmons to OWM’s training programs for laboratory metrology and legal metrology devices.
Enjoy our articles, and as always, we welcome your suggestions and feedback.
Katrice Lippa, NIST OWM Chief
 Credit: Colorado Dept. of Agriculture
Considerations for Class II Scale Applications
For several years, there has been an increase in the use of Class II scales in commercial applications. Previously relegated to pharmacies, jewelry stores, and facilities that receive or process grain (e.g., a grain elevator or feed mill), these scales are now found in retail environments where high-priced commodities are sold. While the cost of these commodities warrants the use of a Class II scale, several things must be considered when selecting and evaluating these devices.
 Credit: Adobe
Update on NIST Activities for EVSE
NIST OWM is striving to assist the weights and measures community meet the new technical challenges and demands of America’s continued transition to E-mobility. While OWM continues to facilitate standardization of commercially applied EV supply equipment (EVSE) in the U.S. through technical analyses and leadership of the National Working Group on Electric Vehicle Fueling and Submetering, it has recently expanded its efforts to new scientific and international initiatives. These activities shall also help advance the burgeoning framework for ensuring sound EV charging infrastructure and equity in the market.
 Celebrating A Successful 2024 Regional Measurement Assurance Program (RMAP)
Since the 1990s, NIST OWM’s Laboratory Metrology Program has organized Regional Measurement Assurance Program (RMAP) annual in-person training events to support the State Weights and Measures Laboratories. This includes the Northeastern (NEMAP), Southeastern (SEMAP), Midwestern (MidMAP), Southwestern (SWAP), Western (WRAP), and the Caribbean (CaMAP) regions across the U.S.
 Credit: Adobe/OWM
The UK to recognize CE-marked weighing and measuring instruments
Before Brexit when the United Kingdom (UK) was still part of the European Union (EU), products placed on the UK market were required to comply with the EU directives and bear a CE mark (from the French conformité Européenne meaning "European conformity") to demonstrate compliance with these directives.
Four Resources for the NCWM Interim and Annual Meetings
NIST OWM produces publications, technical guidance documents, and documentary standards on legal metrology, laws, regulations, measurement devices, specifications, and tolerances. In addition, we provide resources for the NCWM membership and stakeholders to assist in the deliberations and historical record of the items under consideration in Pub 15 (NCWM Interim meeting) and Pub 16 (NCWM Annual meeting).
1. OWM Technical Analysis. The NIST OWM Technical Analysis is a series of documents prepared to assist the weights and measures community as it deliberates on items before the National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM) Interim and Annual meetings. This is an online collection of the OWM Technical Analysis documents starting from 2022.
Separate analyses are prepared for and submitted to the NCWM’s Laws and Regulations (L&R) Committee and Specifications and Tolerances (S&T) Committee prior to each NCWM Meeting . Please see these links herein for the S&T Full Analysis | S&T Executive Summary and the L&R Full Analysis | L&R Executive Summary for the upcoming 2024 Annual NCWM meeting.
2. Federal Register Notices (FRNs). NIST publishes a short description of select proposed amendments to the NIST Handbooks (44, 130, and 133) to the Federal Register system ahead of both the NCWM Interim and Annual meetings. In some cases, NIST will publish FRNs ahead of regional weights and measures associations meetings. The notice for the 2024 Annual NCWM meeting is here.
3. NIST Summary of U.S. Legal Metrology Activities. The 2023 NIST Summary provides an archival record of proposals and associated actions with the goal of assisting the weights and measures community in consistently interpreting and implementing changes to NIST Handbooks 44, 130, and 133. It includes a high-level summarization of technical aspects and a detailed analysis of each item by NIST OW M, including background information, regional association reporting, and recommendations for items that were proposed for changes to these NIST Handbooks at the 2023 NCWM Annual meeting. We anticipate publication of the 2024 NIST Summary in November 2024 Legal Metrology Special Publication Series: NIST SP 2200 webpage!
4. Past NCWM Annual Meeting Reports. NIST OWM maintains an online collection of NIST Special Publications that served as the official reports from the National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM) Annual meetings from 2008 to 2021. The NCWM is responsible for publishing meeting reports from 2022 onwards. Upon request, a USB compilation of NCWM Annual Reports from 1905 to 2021 in Adobe Acrobat PDF format is available.
As always, we welcome your input in feedback to improve our products and services to better meet the needs of our stakeholders.
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 National Legal Metrology Program (NLMP) Info Hours
OWM's National Legal Metrology Program (NLMP) is hosting a new series of Weights and Measures Information Hours. Each "Info Hour" session (one-hour duration) will feature relevant weights and measures topics while providing a forum for technical discussions and Q&A. This informal meeting format will also allow networking with NLMP staff and other subject matter experts (SMEs) by sharing common knowledge, unique experiences, and other insights. All are welcome to attend, learn, and exchange information!
International Legal Metrology: All Your Questions Answered!
- Do you know what is international legal metrology and how it differs from national or domestic legal metrology?
- Have you wondered what the difference is between a NIST Handbook and an OIML Recommendation or Guide?
- Are you confused about the difference between NTEP Certificates and the OIML Certification System?
- Have you ever had an interest in learning more about instrument certification processes and Standards Development Organizations (SDOs) outside the U.S.?
The International Legal Metrology program within OWM has provided a new series of International Legal Metrology FAQs with helpful links to answer the most common questions.
The OWM staff in this program represents the U.S. in international legal metrology SDOs, such as the International Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML). Together with global metrology counterparts and other international stakeholders, OWM staff amend and draft the specifications and requirements in documentary standards to adopt the latest technological developments in international legal metrological applications. Because OWM operates both nationally and internationally, we share our knowledge and experience from current international engagements with the U.S. weights and measures community including the National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM).
As a resource, OWM provides a short page on National Metrology Systems: A Framework for Global Trade which provides further background on how international legal metrology systems operate. This includes access to a high-level BIPM/OIML brochure on the topic that may also be of interest.
We welcome any other questions you might have, whether they be general in nature or very specific to your current issues that may have “international” implications. We will be sure to provide you with an answer and/or help direct you to other resources and contacts.
We would love to hear from you. Please contact Jan Konijnenburg (jan.konijnenburg@nist.gov) for more information or to simply talk and learn more about the international legal metrology program including how you can get involved.
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Webinars Now Recorded and Available On-Demand!
The NIST Office of Weights and Measures (OWM) National Legal Metrology Program (NLMP) is pleased to announce that several webinars are now recorded and available for use at your leisure as a resource to assist the weights and measures community with ongoing education. These on-demand recordings of webinars are available on our e-Learning Resources page, which is part of the overall OWM Products and Services webpage.
Announcing OWM’s New (Web and Excel Searchable) Technical Article Library
OWM staff have consistently published newsletter articles over the years to keep our customers and stakeholders informed on current weights and measures issues and topics of interest.
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 Credit: Redux Agency
The Reason the U.S. Doesn't Use the Metric System
It is now common knowledge that the U.S. is one of a handful of countries that still use non-SI measurements in our daily lives and in many commercial transactions. In fact, the U.S. system is considered a hybrid system, in which both U.S. customary and metric system measurements are used routinely. In the grocery store, we commonly use a mix of milliliters, liters, grams, kilograms, quarts, pints, and pounds. In contrast, a visit to the doctor's office will involve (mostly) SI units, as healthcare measurements are commonly conducted (and recorded) using the metric system.
Welcome Tobias (Toby) Herman!
OWM is pleased to have Tobias (Toby) Herman from the Physical Measurement Laboratory at NIST join us on a 1-year detail assignment with the Laboratory Metrology program.
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OWM Welcomes Scott Simmons as NIST Associate
NIST OWM is pleased to welcome Scott Simmons as a new NIST Associate and metering device and petroleum safety training specialist.
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Welcome Back to OWM, Dinelka
The Office of Weights and Measures (OWM) is happy to welcome back Dinelka Jagoda, who is serving as a 2024 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program fellow, conducting Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education research in the Metric Program under her mentor, Elizabeth Benham. Her 2024 SURF fellowship project portfolio will focus on projects related to measurements in daily life, infographic creation, and publishing metric outreach posters. Dinelka's research will explore International System of Units (SI) adoption and best practices within the U.S. healthcare and hospitality industry sectors.
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Weights and Measures in the News
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National Geographic
By: Erin Blakemore
June 18, 2024
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CNN
By: Samantha Delouya
April 19, 2024
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Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP)
White House directs NASA to develop lunar time standard based on the International System of Units.
April 2, 2024
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