G/TBT/GEN/186  
 
1 February 2016  
(16-0681)  Page: 1/1  
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  Original: English  
 
OIML ACTIVITIES RELATED TO THE WORK OF THE TBT COMMITTEE 
STATEMENT BY THE INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION OF LEGAL METROLOGY 
This document contains information provided by the OIML at the TBT Committee meeting of  
4-6 November 2015 under Agenda Item 4 (Update by Observers). 
 
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 1.  As I have reported at the last two TBT Committee meetings, the OIML is trying to improve its work in support of what we are now calling "C ountries and Economies with Emerging Metrology 
Systems" rather than "developing countries". In March 2015 we organised a seminar on Legal 
Metrology in Daily Life in China. As a follow-up to this successful event, last month we organised a further seminar, in association with the annual meeting of the International Committee of Legal 
Metrology. This event aimed to develop an OIML package for assistance to Countries and 
Economies with Emerging Metrology Systems (CEEMS). 
2.  This seminar included the participation of the UNIDO, the ACP EU TBT Programme and the 
BIPM, and its results enabled the International Committee of Legal Metrology to pass a resolution 
in support of the OIML's activities in this area. Any interested members can download the full text of the resolution from the OIML website ( https://www.oiml.org/en/stru cture/ciml/ pdf/50-ciml-
resolutions-english.pdf ). 
3.  This resolution is important for the OIML since it makes it clear that the needs of these 
countries should be considered and fully integrated into the OIML's work at all levels. It also gives the secretariat of the Organisation the remit to wo rk on training and capacity building issues in 
legal metrology. As a result, we are already working on some joint projects with UNIDO and the 
ACP EU TBT Programme. 
4.  The OIML would also like to bring to members' attention that it has become involved in 
implementation issues resulting from an amen dment to the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) 
Convention Chapter VI Regulation 2, by the Inte rnational Maritime Organisation. This amendment 
has been made due to a significant number of maritime accidents in which the inaccurate weight declarations of containers has been a contributory  factor. The regulations will now require, for the 
first time, that the gross mass of all shipping containers is obtained, using certified weighing 
equipment, before they are loaded onto ships instead of relying on a shipper's declaration. 
However, many port operators, shippers, and rela ted trade organisations are poorly prepared for 
the implementation deadline of 1 July 2016 and little equipment is currently installed to satisfy 
these regulations. In particular, they are concerned that the metrological and technical performance of the weighing instruments used, as well as the type approval and verification 
procedures for these instruments are left to the national regulations applicable in the shipper's 
country. They are worried that there is no requirement in the SOLAS regulations, nor in available guidance, that these national regulations should be based on applicable international standards, such as those provided by the International Reco mmendations published by the OIML. The OIML is 
closely following this issue, and would encourage members to look into the implementation of the 
SOLAS regulations in their countries, since inconsistent application could potentially create significant technical barriers to trade. 
 
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