BIPM Liaison Report to WTO TBT Committee March 2018

BIPM Liaison Report to WTO TBT Committee – March 2018

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THE VISION, MISSION AND OBJECTIVES OF THE BIPM

The BIPM is an intergovernmental organization established by the Metre Convention, through which Member States act together on matters related to measurement science and measurement standards.

Its vision is to be universally recognised as the world focus for the international system of measurement.

Its mission is to work with the NMIs of its Member States, the RMOs and strategic partners world-wide and to use its international and impartial status to promote and advance the global comparability of measurements for:

− Scientific discovery and innovation, − Industrial manufacturing and international trade, − Improving the quality of life and sustaining the

global environment.

THE OBJECTIVES OF THE BIPM

− To represent the world-wide measurement community, aiming to maximize its uptake and impact.

− To be a centre for scientific and technical collaboration between Member States, providing capabilities for international measurement comparisons on a shared-cost basis.

− To be the coordinator of the world-wide measurement system, ensuring it gives comparable and internationally accepted measurement results.

Fulfilling our mission and objectives is underpinned by our work in:

- capacity building, which aims to achieve a global balance between the metrology capabilities in Member States;

- knowledge transfer, which ensures that our work has the greatest impact.

BIPM MEMBERSHIP

As of March 2018 the BIPM had 59 Member States, and 42 Associate States and Economies of the General Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM). Ethiopia and Tanzania became Associate States of the CGPM as from 1 January 2018. Unfortunately, Yemen ceased to be an Associate State at the beginning of 2018 due to persistent non-payment of its subscriptions.

Montenegro became a Member State as from 24 January 2018, after having been an Associate State of the CGPM for more than seven years.

The State of Kuwait became an Associate State of the CGPM as from 23 March 2018.

A number of other states are in discussion with the BIPM regarding the procedure to become an Associate State of the CGPM.

BIPM DEPARTMENTS

In order to fulfil its mission to ensure and promote the global comparability of measurements, the BIPM operates laboratories in the fields of physical metrology, time, ionizing radiation and chemistry. These laboratories act as centres for scientific and technical collaboration between Member States providing capabilities for international measurement comparisons on a shared-cost basis. They coordinate international comparisons of national measurement standards agreed to be of the highest priority, and they establish and maintain appropriate reference standards for use as the basis of key international comparisons at the highest level and provide selected calibrations from them.

In the following sections, we provide highlights the work they have undertaken during 2017.

Chemistry

Twenty visiting scientists from NMIs (on secondment to the BIPM from between three to eighteen months) participated in the Chemistry Department Programme in 2017. Four comparisons were run by the department during this period, involving ninety three participations by NMIs. Five comparison reports were published as well as five papers in peer reviewed journals.

In the area of air quality measurement standards, the BIPM continued to contribute to the CCQM-GAWG Ozone Cross-Section Task Group, organizing the review of input data by the group and drafting of the first version of the paper summarizing the recommended best value and uncertainty for the ozone cross-section to be used in the key comparison BIPM.QM-K1.

In the area of greenhouse gas standards, measurements on 46 standards of CO2 in air submitted for the CCQM-K120 comparison were completed at the BIPM, including Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), isotope ratio infrared spectrometer (IRIS) and gas chromatography with a flame ionization detector (GC-FID) methods for mole fraction and isotope ratio value assignment’. The Draft A report of the comparison has been prepared.

Ionizing Radiation

The BIPM has established a new comparison service for primary standards for high-energy photon radiotherapy, in response to the growing use of accelerators for cancer therapy. The service has been set up at the DOSEO facility, a specialist radiotherapy and medical imaging research centre at Gif-sur-Yvette, France. The beam has been characterized in terms of absorbed dose rate to water using the BIPM primary standard. NMI standards of absorbed dose to water can now be compared with the BIPM standard at this facility (BIPM.RI(I)-K6). The first such comparison took place with the KRISS (Republic of Korea) in November 2017 and the results are expected to be published in 2018.

Thirteen dosimetry comparisons were undertaken by the Ionizing Radiation Department during 2017 and thirty-six calibrations of national secondary dosimetry

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standards were carried out for nine NMIs and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The cornerstone of the BIPM’s work in radionuclide metrology is high-stability ionization chambers - the ‘Système Internationale de Référence (SIR)’, which now covers 68 radionuclides. Comparisons were carried out for six radionuclides during 2017 and updates to Key Comparison Reference Values for nine radionuclides were agreed by the Consultative Committee for Ionizing Radiation (CCRI).

The use of beta- and alpha-emitting radionuclides is expanding in radio-immunotherapy. Work has therefore continued on extending the SIR methodology to cover beta-emitting radionuclides; extensive validation studies were carried out on a possible technique (in collaboration with NIST (USA) and NIM (China). This work will continue in 2018, with the establishment of a similar system for alpha-emitters to follow.

Time

A major objective for the Time Department in 2017 has been the improvement of the uncertainty of [UTC-UTC(k)], the result of the key comparison in time that gives traceability to the SI second to local realizations of UTC in the national institutes. This has been achieved by tackling different aspects of UTC computation that have an impact on the uncertainty: the statistical uncertainty of time transfer; the programme of repeated calibrations harmonized with the RMOs; and improvement of the algorithms.

The calibration campaigns put in place in coordination with the RMOs have progressed as expected. The node laboratories in the regions (G1 laboratories) have been re-visited with BIPM calibration equipment as per the agreement to perform recalibrations every two years. A calibration uncertainty of 1.5 ns can be confirmed for these laboratories. The results of calibrations organized by the NMIs within the RMOs have been reported and integrated into the UTC system. Results of GPS calibrations are available on the BIPM website.

BIPM Circular T continues to be published monthly, giving traceability to the SI second via UTC to its local realizations in national laboratories. It is the most frequent key comparison, with one evaluation of the key comparison reference value UTC and the degrees of equivalence [UTC - UTC(k)] every five days for the 77 participants that together contributed data from about 500 atomic clocks in 2017.

Physical Metrology

The BIPM Physical Metrology Department is at the forefront of the work towards a new definition of the kilogram. The BIPM served as the pilot laboratory for the Consultative Committee for Mass and Related Quantities (CCM) Pilot Study of future realizations of the kilogram.

A new experimental set-up for the Kibble Balance has been designed and assembled. It includes a more stable suspension that facilitates coil alignment and a stiffer mass loading and exchanger system, which will allow a

mass of up to 1 kg to be used. The refined experiment is operational in both air and vacuum. It now works with a 1 kg mass and a velocity of 1 mm/s, both of which contribute to improving the signal-to-noise ratio. Two programmable Josephson voltage standards were successfully completed and are now routinely used to calibrate the DVMs. Preliminary measurements show a day-to-day repeatability of several parts in 107. The type B uncertainty of a few parts in 107 is still limited by the alignment and the voltage measurement. A detailed study was carried out to evaluate the effect of the coil-current on the magnetic field. It has been demonstrated that this effect has to be taken into account at the present level of uncertainty of Kibble balances.

The ensemble of reference mass standards (ERMS) is now fully operational, with all mass standards stored in their specific environments: air, nitrogen, argon and vacuum.

An important achievement in the field of electrical metrology was the organization of two successful on-site comparisons of quantum Hall resistance (QHR) standards, with the CMI (Czech Republic) and the METAS (Switzerland).

In addition to its comparison programme for electrical quantities, the department has provided about 70 calibrations to NMIs in the field of resistance, capacitance and voltage.

BIPM PUBLICATIONS - METROLOGIA Launched in 1965 and published by IOP Publishing on behalf of the BIPM since 2003, Metrologia is an international journal dealing with pure and applied metrology.

Published six times per year, Metrologia covers the fundamentals of measurements, particularly those dealing with the seven base units of the SI (metre, kilogram, second, ampere, kelvin, candela, mole) or proposals to replace them.

The journal also publishes papers that contribute to the solution of difficult measurement problems and which improve the accuracy of derived units and constants that are of fundamental importance to physics.

In addition to regular papers, the journal publishes review articles, issues devoted to single topics of timely interest and occasional conference proceedings. Letters to the Editor and short communications (generally three pages or less) are also considered.

In support of the CIPM MRA, the web-based Technical Supplement to Metrologia publishes final reports of key and supplementary comparisons.

Metrologia announced its highest ever Impact Factor of 3.411 for 2016. This represents growth of over 36 % on its 2015 Impact Factor, and confirms Metrologia's position as the leading international journal in pure and applied metrology.

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REVISION OF THE SI

The BIPM is leading the international effort towards the revision of the SI. The ongoing work includes proposals for new definitions of the kilogram, ampere, kelvin, and mole in terms of fixed numerical values of the Planck constant, elementary charge, Boltzmann constant, and Avogadro constant, respectively. Measurement uncertainty targets have been set so that redefinition of the units should not impact trade issues. At its meeting in October 2017, the CIPM decided to take the next step towards the expected redefinition of the base units of the SI at the 26th CGPM, which will take place in Versailles in November 2018. Draft Resolution A “On the revision of the International System of Units (SI)” was submitted to the BIPM Member States in February 2018 as a part of the Convocation. The CIPM has reviewed the work carried out by its Consultative Committees over recent years, particularly the recommendations confirming that the conditions necessary to progress to redefinition have been fulfilled. The CIPM also agreed that the latest and final values for the constants that will be used to revise the SI should be published. These have been calculated by the CODATA Task Group on Fundamental Constants, and have been published in Metrologia in October 2017. Work is advanced on the new mise en pratiques that will allow the definitions to be realized in practice at the highest level. In addition, the 9th edition of the SI brochure is being finalized in anticipation of redefinition and is open for consultation. The Task Group for the "Promotion of the SI" set up by the CIPM has prepared a range of promotional materials, including the “SI Brand Book” and SI Logo graphic files. The Note for users was prepared by the Consultative Committees of the CIPM in 2017. It was created to raise awareness of the revision of the SI. BIPM LIAISONS The BIPM has a series of ongoing institutional and technical relationship and interacts with over 30 international organizations, intergovernmental organizations and international bodies.

The interaction with liaisons is intended to:

• promote the use of the International System of Units, the SI;

• update the international community about BIPM activities and effectively disseminate information about metrology in the context of quality infrastructure;

• exchange knowledge in the use of measurement standards, develop measurement techniques and methods, and agree on strategies for achieving common goals;

• mutually contribute to capacity building activities such as through lectures or the development of training materials.

The BIPM works with its liaisons through a wide range of forums, including the quadripartite arrangement with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) and the International Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML) as well as via working groups (WGs), such as those operated by the Joint Committee for Guides in Metrology (JCGM). The BIPM was particularly pleased to note the release of ISO/IEC 17025:2017 – General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories in November 2017. The BIPM participated in all ISO CASCO (Committee on Conformity Assessment) WG 44 meetings and drafting group meetings that led to the revision of ISO/IEC 17025. The BIPM also collaborates with a number of international organizations to support developing countries through the DCMAS Network (a network on metrology, accreditation, standardization and conformity assessment for developing countries). The new definition of “Quality Infrastructure” was adopted at the annual meeting of the DCMAS Network in June 2017 under the chairmanship of the OIML and participation from the World Bank. The BIPM, the OIML and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) cooperate closely within the DCMAS Network. As a result of this strategic partnership these organizations have jointly developed a new brochure "The role of metrology in the context of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals", which was published in May 2017 and which highlights the contribution of metrology to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It has already been translated into Russian. This new brochure is a successful continuation of two additional brochures dedicated to the role of standards and the role of accreditation in the context of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals that were published in 2016. The study describes the operation of the BIPM and particularly identifies the economic impact mechanisms of the CIPM MRA and quantifies them in economic terms, particularly those related to international trade. It will be developed and published within the OECD initiative “A partnership for effective international rule-making” during 2018-2019. This study will be one in a series of the OECD studies of 2014-2016. WORLD METROLOGY DAY Each year on 20 May, the world-wide metrology community celebrates the signing of the Metre Convention in 1875. The project is run jointly by the BIPM and OIML. This year's theme is “Constant evolution of the International System of Units” with the poster design being supported by METAS, the Swiss NMI, and many countries are expected to organize events. See www.worldmetrologyday.org for more information. The 2019 theme will be chosen in consultation with the OIML and will take into account the implementation date for the revised SI of 20 May 2019. The theme will likely reflect the application of the SI following its revision. The 2019 poster will be designed by one of the NMIs from the APMP (Asia Pacific Metrology Programme).

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THE CIPM

Among other decisions in 2017 the CIPM:

• noted that the agreed conditions for the redefinition are now met and decided to submit draft Resolution A to the 26th meeting of the CGPM and to undertake all other necessary steps to proceed with the planned redefinition of the kilogram, ampere, kelvin and mole.

• considered the issue of the engagement of Associate States with very-low GDP and with emerging metrology systems in the activities of the BIPM and decided to exempt a subset of very ‘small’ Associate States with the UN coefficient of 0.02 or less from increase over time, of their subscriptions to 90 % of that which they would pay as a Member State.

• decided that the status of liaison within the context of the Consultative Committees will be decided upon in each case by the CIPM.

All CIPM Decisions are available on the BIPM webpages.

CIPM MRA AND KCDB

The CIPM MRA is the 'Mutual Recognition Arrangement of National Measurement standards and of calibration and measurement certificates issued by National Metrology Institutes'. Participation in the CIPM MRA continues to grow: it has been signed by representatives of 102 institutes – from 57 Member States, 42 Associates of the CGPM (Ethiopia is the latest signatory), and four international organizations – and covers a further 157 institutes designated by the signatory bodies. Resolution 5 adopted at the 25th meeting of the CGPM (2014), recognized 15 successful years of CIPM MRA operation and called for a review of its implementation and operation. The main challenge in the future is the workload associated with the underpinning comparisons and peer review processes, and how to take advantage of the confidence that has been established to ensure the CIPM MRA remains sustainable as participation continues to grow. A working group (WG) was established to undertake a consultation and review, including hosting workshops to ensure the widest possible input. The WG published its report, which is available on line at https://www.bipm.org/en/cipm-mra-review/. The meeting of the CIPM ad hoc WG on Implementing the Recommendations from the Review of the CIPM MRA is scheduled for 12-13 March 2018. In respect of implementing the WG recommendations a new database – KCDB 2.0 is being developed and the implementation will continue through 2018. At the end of February 2018, the BIPM key comparison database (KCDB) included a total of 24 972 Calibration and Measurement Capabilities (CMCs):

• 18 794 in Physics, • 6 178 in Chemistry.

Although countries published CMCs over the last six months, the total number of CMCs has remained static

over the same period and increased by only 0.3 % over the last 12 months. CMCs from Associates increased by 6 % during the last 12 months indicating a steady increase in the short term. Over the last year, the participation of Associates in comparisons (both for key and supplementary comparisons) increased by 9 %.

At the end of February 2018, the KCDB covered 1529 published comparisons; 996 key comparisons and 533 supplementary comparisons.

BIPM WORKSHOPS

BIPM Symposium: The Fundamental Constants of Physics was organized by the CIPM Consultative Committee for Units (CCU) to celebrate the work accomplished towards a redefinition of the SI in terms of invariant physical constants. It was held at the BIPM on 7 September 2017

The main topics of the discussion were: the profound nature of the different fundamental physical constants; the different types of fundamental constants as well as their role in the evolution of physical theory, in particular in gravitation, cosmology and in string theory. The role of the fundamental constants in the forthcoming definition of the SI was examined.

The Symposium aimed at promoting scientific exchange among the NMIs and leading scientists in the field of fundamental constants.

BIPM Workshop: The Quantum Revolution in Metrology was held on 28-29 September 2017 with the objective to promote scientific exchange among the NMIs and with leading researchers on the applications of quantum-based technologies to metrology.

CAPACITY BUILDING AND KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER (BIPM CBKT) PROGRAMME

The BIPM launched a new Capacity Building and Knowledge Transfer Programme (BIPM CBKT Programme) in 2015 aimed at countries and economies with emerging metrology systems (CEEMS).

The programme is wholly supported by sponsors and a number of CBKT projects have been held and more are planned. So far 190 participants from 66 countries have participated in CBKT events, including 100 participants who have taken part in training at the BIPM.

The CBKT programme has become a great success in a short space of time, with a number of successful projects being held so far, including:

• A four day course “TC Leadership” (7-10 February 2017, Sèvres, France), which was organized as a joint initiative with EURAMET. It was designed for experienced TC members within twelve EURAMET member countries (18 participants) who have already been involved in the CIPM MRA and its processes. It provided participants with: an understanding of the importance of metrology in the global quality infrastructure; aspects of mechanisms of the CIPM MRA; specific requirements of various

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metrology areas on comparisons; and representation of CMCs and regional requirements of EURAMET on the operation of the CIPM MRA.

• NIST sponsored an 11-day course "Sound beginning in the CIPM MRA" (13-24 November 2017, Sèvres, France). It was aimed at technical staff (those responsible for metrology service development and/or quality systems) from NMIs that have signed the CIPM MRA but have not yet submitted CMCs (or are early in the process).

• The EURAMET - BIPM Training (7-8 November 2017, Madrid, Spain) was focused on the processes related to evaluation of quality systems and peer-review of the NMI/DI technical capabilities within the framework of the CIPM MRA.

• The APMP-DEC "Leadership course" (4-8 December 2017, Thailand) was designed to provide new or future leaders of APMP-DEC NMIs, including new TC Chairs and Chair-elect depending on availability of places and who have shown potential for leadership, with the skills, knowledge and tools to help them participate in the mechanisms of the CIPM MRA.

• The "Effective participation in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC)" (13-14 February 2018, Sèvres, France) course sponsored by METAS and aimed at supporting institutes to transfer knowledge on how to work effectively with receivers and equipment during a calibration campaign and to improve their contributions to the computation of UTC through participation in BIPM Circular T/Key Comparison CCTF-K001.UTC.

The BIPM CBKT programme also encompasses laboratory activities on an ongoing basis:

• The 2016-2018 "Metrology for Safe Food and Feed in Developing Economies" project is up and running. This project is designed to allow NMIs to work together to strengthen mycotoxin metrology infrastructure; provide knowledge transfer to scientists developing capabilities in this area, including periods as visiting scientists at the BIPM; and enable NMIs to provide mycotoxin calibrant and matrix reference materials and proficiency test materials to support mycotoxin testing laboratories within their countries. As of today, eight participants from seven countries have participated in this initiative. The Workshop on Standards and Methods of Analysis for Mycotoxins is scheduled to be held in Pretoria, South Africa, on 4–8 June 2018.

• A second laboratory-based BIPM CBKT activity is the 2016-2019 “Metrology for Clean Air” initiative. During 2017 this project attracted twelve visiting scientists from NMIs, spending between three months and one year at the BIPM.

The further such projects include:

• The 2017–2018 "Support for GULFMET key comparison of Zener voltage standards" project. This is designed to support GULFMET (Gulf Association for Metrology) in the organization of one of its first key comparisons, GULFMET.EM.BIPM-K11, a comparison of Zener voltage standards, coordinated by the Standards and Calibration Laboratory (SCL) of Hong Kong, China. Two countries from the GULFMET region are participating in this comparison.

• The BIPM and the NMI of Turkey (TÜBİTAK UME) are running a joint training initiative entitled: 2018 & 2019 "BIPM - TÜBİTAK UME project placements". The initiative will provide opportunities for young metrologists to gain in-depth knowledge and experience by conducting research on a subject of their choosing for a period of one to three months in TÜBİTAK UME's laboratories. The first placement cycles will begin on 1 April 2018.

• The BIPM and COOMET joint initiative COOMET – BIPM "Sound beginning in the CIPM MRA" Workshop is aimed at those NMIs that have signed the CIPM MRA but not yet declared CMCs in the KCDB (or are in early stages in the process).

BIPM is grateful to the sponsors who made the above projects possible.

A number of other BIPM CBKT projects are under development and support from sponsors is always welcomed.

Full details are available at:

http://www.bipm.org/en/cbkt/

BIPM ANNUAL REVIEW AND WORK PROGRAMME 2016-2019

The BIPM Annual Review 2016/2017 is available online.

The BIPM began a new four year Work Programme (WP) in January 2016. The WP is publicly available on the BIPM website: http://www.bipm.org/en/bipm/.

ANNEX

59 BIPM Member States

(as of March 2018)

42 CGPM Associates (States or Economies*)

(as of March 2018)

Argentina

Australia

Austria

Belgium

Brazil

Bulgaria

Canada

Chile

China

Colombia

Croatia

Czech Republic

Denmark

Egypt

Finland

France

Germany

Greece

Hungary

India

Indonesia

Iran (Islamic Republic of)

Iraq

Ireland

Israel

Italy

Japan

Kazakhstan

Kenya

Korea (Republic of)

Lithuania

Malaysia

Mexico

Montenegro

Netherlands

New Zealand

Norway

Pakistan

Poland

Portugal

Romania

Russian Federation

Saudi Arabia

Serbia

Singapore

Slovakia

Slovenia

South Africa

Spain

Sweden

Switzerland

Thailand

Tunisia

Turkey

United Arab Emirates

United Kingdom

United States of America

Uruguay

Venezuela

Albania

Azerbaijan

Bangladesh

Belarus

Bolivia

Bosnia & Herzegovina

Botswana

CARICOM* (11 members:

Antigua and Barbuda Barbados Belize Dominica Grenada Guyana Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Suriname Trinidad and Tobago)

Chinese Taipei*

Costa Rica

Cuba

Ecuador

Estonia

Ethiopia

Georgia

Ghana

Hong Kong (China)*

Jamaica

Kuwait

Latvia

Luxembourg

Macedonia (former Yugoslav Republic of)

Malta

Mauritius

Moldova (Republic of)

Mongolia

Namibia

Oman

Panama

Paraguay

Peru

Philippines

Qatar

Seychelles

Sri Lanka

Sudan

Syrian Arab Republic

Tanzania (United Republic of)

Ukraine

Viet Nam

Zambia

Zimbabwe

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