U.S. Department of Commerce

Technology Administration

National Institute of

Standards and Technology

FY 2005 Annual Report

THE NIST

VISITING

COMMITTEE

ON ADVANCED

TECHNOLOGY
Report prepared by:

Gail Ehrlich

VCAT Executive Director

January 2006

For information regarding the NIST Visiting Committee

on Advanced Technology, contact:

Gail Ehrlich

VCAT Executive Director

National Institute of Standards and Technology

100 Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 1060

Gaithersburg, MD 20899-1060

(301) 975-2149

Email: gail.ehrlich@nist.gov
i

The Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology (VCAT) of the National Institute of Standards

and Technology (NIST) was established in its present form by the Omnibus Trade and

Competitiveness Act of 1988. The VCAT reviews and makes recommendations regarding

general policy for NIST, its organization, its budget, and its programs within the framework of

applicable national policies as set forth by the President and the Congress. It submits an annual

report to the Secretary of Commerce for submission to the Congress. This fiscal year 2005

annual report covers the December 2004 meeting through the September 2005 meeting. 

The Committee reviews the Institute’s strategic direction, performance, and policies, and

provides the Secretary of Commerce, Congress, and other stakeholders with information on the

value and relevance of NIST to the U.S. science and technology base and the economy. Over the

past year, the Committee has been active in assessing NIST’s progress in implementing its

strategic plan, reviewing its strategic operational needs and sharing best practices for organizational development in response to external drivers, providing guidance on the U.S. Measurement

System effort, and serving as a key interface to stakeholders. Throughout the year, the

Committee seeks to cover a significant portion of NIST’s program portfolio through direct discussion with NIST leaders, scientists, and engineers. Reactions and observations are discussed

candidly with the NIST representatives and other guests involved at each meeting. This

feedback is positively received, and the Committee sees much evidence of constructive response

to it. At each quarterly meeting, the Committee also visits various NIST laboratories and

discusses the research projects directly with the scientific and technical staff. These laboratory

tours help the Committee assess NIST’s progress towards executing its Strategic Plan.

Members of the Committee are selected from industry and academia solely on the basis of

established records of distinguished service and are eminent in research, engineering, business,

or other fields relevant to NIST’s mission. Appointed by the NIST Director for staggered threeyear terms, the members have diverse backgrounds and provide a representative cross-section of

traditional and emerging U.S. industries. Three new members joined the Committee during

2005: Dr. John F. Cassidy, Dr. E. David Spong, and Mr. W. Wyatt Starnes. This report highlights the Committee’s findings and recommendations along with a summary of observations.

Detailed meeting minutes and presentation materials are available on the NIST web site at

www.nist.gov/director/vcat.

Preface
ii

DR. JAMES W. SERUM

President

SkiTek Ventures

Term expires Jan. 2007

MR. SCOTT C.

DONNELLY

Senior Vice President

GE Corporate Research &

Development

General Electric Company

Resigned July 2005

MR. GARY D. FLOSS

Director

Quality Assurance and

Continual Improvement

Marvin Windows and Doors

Term expires Jan. 2008

MS. DEBORAH L. GRUBBE., P.E.

VCAT Vice Chair

Vice President, Group Safety

BP International

Term expires Jan. 2007

DR. DONALD B. KECK

Retired Vice President,

Research Director

Corning Inc.

Term expires Jan. 2007

DR. JUAN M. SANCHEZ

Vice President for Research

University of Texas, Austin

Term expires Jan. 2006

MR. THOMAS A. SAPONAS

Retired Senior Vice President

and Chief Technology

Officer

Agilent Technologies

Term expires Jan. 2007

MR. W. WYATT STARNES

Chairman & Chief

Executive Officer

SignaCert, Inc.

Term expires Jan. 2008

Members of the 2005 Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology

DR. E. DAVID SPONG

Retired President

Integrated Defense Systems

The Boeing Company

Term expires Jan. 2008

MR. EDWARD J. NOHA

Chairman Emeritus

CNA Financial

Corporation

Term expires Jan. 2007

DR. JOHN F. CASSIDY

Retired Senior Vice President

Science & Technology

United Technologies

Corporation

Term expires Jan. 2008

DR. LOU ANN HEIMBROOK

Vice President of

Global Operations

Merek & Co., Inc.

Term expires Jan. 2009

DR. APRIL M. SCHWEIGHART

VCAT Chair

Retired Product Business Manager

Motorola

Term expires Jan. 2006

MR. ROBERTT. WILLIAMS

Vice President

Track-Type Tractors Division

Caterpillar Inc.

Term expires Jan. 2009
iii

Prinicpal Findings and Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Strategic Direction and Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Outreach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Organizational Excellence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Budget . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Summary of Observations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Strategic Direction and Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Opportunities for Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

VCAT Panel on Best Practices for Organizational Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Sharpening the NIST Mission and Core Competency Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Implementation of Strategic Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Budget Initiatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Competence Funding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Strategic Working Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Homeland Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Biosystems and Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Nanotechnology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Information Knowledge Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Manufacturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Operating Units’ Operational Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Strategic Partnerships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

U.S. Measurement System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Extramural Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Advanced Technology Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Baldrige National Quality Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Performance Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Performance Metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Economic Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Board on Assessment of NIST Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Organizational Excellence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Technical Excellence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Baldrige at NIST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

People . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Outreach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Budget . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

NIST Laboratories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

ATP and Hollings MEP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Table of Contents
iv

APPENDIX A. Examples of Technical Excellence: Major Building and Fire Safety Investigations . . . . . . . . . 19

APPENDIX B. Examples of Technical Excellence: Lab Reviews Conducted by the VCAT in FY 2005 . . . . . 21

APPENDIX C. NIST Response to FY 2004 VCAT Annual Report Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

APPENDIX D. Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
1

The VCAT sincerely welcomes Dr. William Jeffrey as

the 13th Director of NIST. Although Dr. Jeffrey has

only been in this position for a few months, his focus on

a new vision for NIST and the strategies to fulfill this

vision are commendable. The Committee agrees with

these priorities and supports Dr. Jeffrey’s commitment to

identify strategic opportunities that will help NIST

establish investment strategies for responding to the

nation’s measurement and standards needs. Dr. Jeffrey’s

decisiveness is admirable and his understanding of the

government and perception of NIST is impressive. The

Committee applauds Dr. Hratch Semerjian for his outstanding leadership of NIST as the Acting Director from

November 2004 through July 2005 and greatly appreciates his strong support of the VCAT. 

With a high quality portfolio of programs, NIST is

uniquely positioned to promote U.S. innovation and

industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement

science, standards, and technology to enhance economic

security and improve the quality of life for all

Americans. These programs consist of the NIST

Laboratories, the Advanced Technology Program, the

Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership, and the

Baldrige National Quality Program, with each playing a

distinctive role in the nation’s technology infrastructure.

The Committee continues to strongly believe that NIST’s

measurement science, standards, and technology provide

the nation’s underlying scientific and technical infrastructure that supports industry, universities, and other

government agencies. Furthermore, as markets become

more global, it is even more critical that NIST maintains

a leadership role in promoting more open and fair international trade practices. 

While operating under a tight budget environment, NIST

has made significant contributions to many of the

President’s R&D priorities, including homeland security

and nanotechnology, and has responded rapidly to a

growing number of congressionally-mandated programs

and presidential directives. For example, NIST has been

playing a key role in response to the Help America Vote

Act (HAVA) of 2002 by providing leadership and

technical support for the development of voluntary

voting system guidelines. Most recently, NIST has

helped the nation respond to post-Hurricane Katrina

rebuilding and improvement efforts. NIST’s budget must

continue to grow to provide the innovation infrastructure

needed to respond to the measurement and standards

challenges related to the current and next generation of

technology. 

NIST has been receptive to the Committee’s guidance on

strategic planning, including the need for more strategic

partnerships and collaborations to leverage NIST’s

world-class technical expertise and highly specialized

equipment and facilities. The VCAT also continues to

advise NIST on strengthening its outreach activities for

increasing the Institute’s visibility. 

The Committee is pleased to have had the opportunity

during FY 2005 to meet separately with Deputy

Secretary of Commerce David Sampson; Dr. John

Marburger, Director, Office of Science and Technology

Policy (OSTP); and Ms Andrea Petro, a Program

Examiner in the Office of Management and Budget

(OMB). The members of the VCAT were encouraged to

learn of their strong support for technological innovation

and their recognition of the importance of measurements

and standards on international trade and the nation’s

economy. They also shared the Committee’s concern

that NIST lacked visibility and Dr. Marburger urged the

VCAT to continue to advise NIST stakeholders on the

value of NIST’s programs. In addition, Deputy Secretary

Sampson and Dr. Marburger emphasized the need for

NIST to engage in more partnerships and collaborations

to leverage its resources. The meeting with Ms. Petro

provided an excellent opportunity for a discussion on the

role of the VCAT, the importance of strategic evaluation

and performance evaluation, and NIST’s progress in

these areas. The VCAT appreciated each of these

meetings that highlighted NIST’s significant contributions to the nation. These meetings helped the VCAT

better understand the roles of the various organizations

with respect to NIST and ways in which the members of

the VCAT can better help NIST in the future. 

Principal Findings and Recommendations
STRATEGIC DIRECTION AND

PERFORMANCE 

Findings — NIST is aggressively undertaking new

strategic planning activities to help ensure that

programs and investment strategies are better aligned

with NIST’s mission and national priorities. For

example, the VCAT commends NIST for its rapid

responsiveness in redirecting its measurement and

standards research to homeland security needs, one of

our nation’s highest priorities.

Recommendations:

• NIST has made a significant effort to refine its

mission statement this year and it is now clear,

concise, and appropriate. The staff should now make

the effort to assure that its programs are aligned with

this mission. This is critical for identifying the

Institute’s core competencies, developing program

priorities, and establishing investment strategies that

leverage NIST’s unique expertise and facilities and

help guide strategic partnerships and outreach activities. 

• While NIST has made significant progress in its

Homeland Security Strategic Focus Area by providing

valuable contributions to this national priority, NIST

should continue to develop more strategic approaches

and performance metrics in its other focus areas

related to nanotechnology, biosystems and health, and,

in particular, information and knowledge management.

In each of these rapidly growing areas, NIST has a

significant opportunity to increase its measurement

and standards expertise, in concert with industry, to

help the U.S. build and maintain a more innovative

and competitive market posture. 

• To help evaluate progress in implementing the NIST

Strategic Plan, NIST should continue to focus on the

development and reporting of specific short-term and

long-term metrics and other quantitative data, consistent with the Baldrige framework, which specifically

address each of the Strategic Focus Areas and

Strategic Working Groups. We commend NIST for

restructuring the FY 2005 Balanced Scorecard used to

define and evaluate NIST-wide performance goals and

metrics throughout all levels of the Institute and look

forward to reviewing the FY 2006 Balanced

Scorecard. 

• As NIST becomes more visible and the number of

potential partnerships increases, the VCAT encourages

NIST to finalize its partnership strategies, including a

set of selection criteria based on the nation’s priorities

and NIST’s existing and emerging core competencies.

In addition, each partnership should include a clear

commitment of resources, such as dollars, facilities, or

people, from all parties. 

• In recognition of the huge and ambitious effort

required by NIST to lead the critically needed U.S.

Measurement System (USMS) road mapping effort,

the VCAT strongly urges the Institute to better define

the scope of this effort, identify NIST’s role in the

USMS, and link this analysis to the Institute’s vision

and the next version of the Strategic Plan. The USMS

effort should focus on emerging competitive areas

rather than well-established areas that are no longer in

need of NIST support.

OUTREACH

Findings — NIST’s new and expanded outreach

activities reflect senior management’s commitment to

raise the visibility of NIST by more clearly demonstrating the value and impact of its programs to key

customers and stakeholders. 

Recommendations:

• NIST should continue its efforts to refine the NIST

message and provide examples of program impacts by

industry segments that demonstrate the value of NIST

to key customers and stakeholders. This outreach

should focus on influential industry executives and

other influential individuals in new and emerging

NIST contribution areas. 

• Program impacts should highlight how the capabilities of

the world-class Advanced Measurement Laboratory

(AML) have helped to increase NIST’s contributions to

the nation’s standards and measurement infrastructure.

2
3

The AML is already contributing strongly to the

emerging nanotechnology industry. NIST should

identify other opportunities to leverage this national

resource.

ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE

Findings — NIST’s world-class talent, continued

pursuit of organizational excellence, highly specialized facilities and equipment, and technical

merit have resulted in significant achievements

and numerous awards, including three Nobel

Prizes. These attributes continue to support

NIST’s world leadership capability in providing

the nation with the technical infrastructure needed

for economic growth and homeland security.

Recommendations:

• The dramatic emergence of biomedical

technology has created a unique opportunity and

challenge for NIST. Continued U.S. leadership

of this important field could be in jeopardy

without the contributions of NIST in measurement

technology and standards. This will require many new

skills and changing priorities for NIST investment. 

• The Committee recognizes the need to overcome the

serious deficiencies associated with NIST’s aging

facilities in Gaithersburg and Boulder; however, due to

budget constraints, the VCAT encourages NIST to

develop new business cases to help justify and prioritize the needed renovations and repairs that tie to its

Strategic Plan. This analysis should cover all of

NIST’s facilities, including the Advanced Chemical

Sciences Laboratory and the newly constructed AML.

• While NIST senior managers are to be commended for

developing and beginning to implement an action plan

that addresses operational and management issues

raised in the latest Employee Survey, specific metrics

should be developed to measure the success of these

important efforts, as outlined in the Baldrige process.

BUDGET

Findings — The substantial FY 2005 budget increase

for NIST and the Administration’s proposed FY 2006

budget request for NIST are encouraging. However,

NIST’s rapid response to a growing number of

unfunded congressionally-mandated programs and

presidential directives continue to threaten the

Institute’s capability to invest in core competencies

related to the current and next generation of

technology.

Recommendations:

• With the expectation of continuing tight government

budgets, NIST must invest its resources in areas of

high national needs where the Institute can have a significant impact on the growth opportunities for U.S.

industry. This will likely involve the redeployment of

existing resources to new and higher value-added contribution areas.

• The continuing debate between the Administration and

Congress over funding for the Advanced Technology

Program (ATP) and the Hollings Manufacturing

Extension Partnership (MEP) versus funding for the

NIST laboratories must be resolved. Once these

funding issues are resolved, NIST should be able to

conduct long-range strategic planning activities more

effectively.

Nobel laureate John L. (Jan) Hall, a scientist emeritus in NIST and a fellow

of JILA, is a co-winner of the 2005 Nobel Prize in Physics. He received this

award for his “contributions to the development of laser-based precision

spectroscopy, including the optical frequency comb technique.” JILA is a

joint research institution of NIST and the University of Colorado in Boulder.

© Geoffrey Wheeler
4

STRATEGIC DIRECTION AND

PERFORMANCE

NIST leadership is aggressively undertaking new

strategic planning activities to help ensure that programs

and investment strategies continue to be aligned with

NIST’s mission and national priorities. The VCAT is

pleased to learn that strategic planning will continue to

be a key focus area for the new NIST Director. 

Opportunities for Change

During the first quarter of FY 2005, NIST identified the

needs and opportunities that will enable the Institute to

continue to align its program portfolio more effectively

with external drivers. These needs and opportunities

were based on the annual review of operational plans, a

trend analysis of NIST’s strategic portfolio investments,

and input to the NIST Senior Management Board (SMB)

fall strategy retreat. 

The NIST Strategic Plan provides a framework for the

annual operational plans for each of the operating units

(OUs). The third annual Director’s review of the operational plans was held in October 2004 to ensure programmatic coordination and NIST-wide implementation

of the Institute’s long-range goals. Based on the data

extracted from these reviews, NIST performed a trend

analysis of its strategic portfolio investments from FY

2003-FY 2006 as shown in Figure 1 and Table 1. NIST

concluded that there are opportunities for better

alignment of NIST’s program portfolio with external

drivers, other agency-drivers have a large effect on

portfolio changes, and that the investment in core

metrology and measurements and standards has

decreased. 

In November 2004, the SMB held a fall retreat to gather

information about NIST’s strategic environment and to

synthesize the Institute’s response plans. The strategic

environment session included briefings on the postelection policy implications for NIST, the National

Measurement System, and NIST’s Strategic Working

Groups (SWGs). This retreat provided the first forum

for three SWGs to report in detail to the SMB on

external trends and opportunities in homeland security,

biosystems and health, and nanotechnology. Based on

these briefings, NIST recognized that despite the budget

climate, there are many programmatic growth opportunities for NIST in the Strategic Focus Areas and

elsewhere. Furthermore, this input highlighted

the need for NIST to be more responsive to

customer and market needs by developing more

effective NIST-wide interdisciplinary program

management, greater sensitivity to managing

risks, and more comprehensive marketing efforts.

The SWG chairs provided abbreviated versions

of these presentations to the VCAT, as well.

VCAT Panel on Best Practices for

Organizational Development 

The VCAT fully supported NIST in pursuing

the needs and opportunities for change as soon

as possible to best leverage the Institute’s

funding in 2005 and subsequent years. To help

NIST successfully implement these changes that

require special management attention, several

Committee members participated in a panel

Summary of Observations
presentation and discussion during the June 2005 VCAT

meeting to share industry’s best practices for developing

organizations that facilitate alignment of programs with

external drivers. The topics covered portfolio-level

investment decision-making processes, empowerment of

managers to respond rapidly to new opportunities, and

creation of more flexible staffing. To respond to new

growth areas in a resource-constrained environment, the

panel members emphasized the importance of a careful

evaluation and prioritization of an organization’s

customers based on the changing scientific and technical

needs of the nation. 

Sharpening the NIST Mission and Core

Competency Review

The new NIST Director is committed to maintaining

strategic planning as a high priority for NIST. As a first

step, Dr. Jeffrey has been focusing on sharpening the

NIST mission and goals with specific implementation

strategies to promote innovation and competitiveness.

Within this framework, NIST is in the process of identifying its top-level core competencies to help establish

NIST’s priorities and investment strategies that tie to the

NIST mission and respond to national priorities. NIST

core competencies will fall under the categories of measurement science, standards development and deployment, and technology development and deployment.

These core competencies also will help guide NIST’s

strategic partnerships as well as outreach activities.

The VCAT commends Dr. Jeffrey for his sense of

urgency in examining the NIST mission more

closely and identifying the Institute’s core competencies. 

Implementation of Strategic Plan

NIST is continuing to implement the Strategic Plan

through the use of budget initiatives, competence

funding, Strategic Working Groups (SWGs),

Operating Unit (OU) operational plans, and

strategic partnerships. These mechanisms will help

the Institute build on existing core competencies

and expand capacity in its strategic areas.

Budget Initiatives — NIST is continuing to develop programmatic budget initiatives in strategic areas. In FY

2005, NIST received modest increases of $3 million for

advances in manufacturing in support of nanomanufacturing research and nanoelectronics, and $6 million for

advances in measurement science, standards, and

services in support of competence and quantum information services. A significant increase of $18 million was

appropriated to NIST for measurements and standards

for public safety and security, including $2 million in

support of advanced fire fighting technologies; $2

million in support of biometric identification standards

related to the USA PATRIOT Act; $10 million in support

of cybersecurity activities; and $4 million for the Office

of Law Enforcement Standards to fund the highest

priority homeland security research projects. Congress

also provided an additional $500 thousand in support of

NIST’s activities related to the Help America Vote Act.

No additional funding was provided for NIST’s budget

initiatives related to biosystems and health. 

The Committee is encouraged by the President’s FY

2006 budget request that includes significant increases in

strategic initiatives for NIST, including $19.6 million for

advances in manufacturing; $3 million for measurements

and standards for homeland security; and $17.2 million

for new measurement horizons for the U.S. economy and

5
6

science. A breakdown of the major programs within

these initiatives is shown in Table 2.

Competence Funding — The NIST-wide competence

fund is continuing to support high priority, fundamental

research within NIST. In FY 2005, $1.9 million was

used to provide “seed” funding for a new set of five-year

competence projects. In addition, the $2.8 million1

available from the FY 2005 funded competence initiative

was used to support short-term awards for competence

projects in measurement services and for a one-time

“exploration” competition. These one-time “exploration” projects are intended to lead to new measurement

science and new technology in such areas as metrology

for the development of organic radio frequency identification (RFID), nanoscale detectors for quantifying electromagnetic fields, and thermodynamic

temperature ratio measurements in support of

next generation temperature scales. 

For FY 2006, six new five-year competence

projects totaling $5.1 million per year have been

selected that will focus on strengthening NIST’s

core strength in measurement science as shown in

Figure 2. For future years, NIST plans to request

development of proposals based on a gap analysis

of the Institute’s core competencies. 

Strategic Working Groups — Beginning in 2003,

NIST established three SWGs as an important

mechanism in helping NIST-wide planning activities in strategic areas: Homeland Security,

Biosystems and Health, and Nanotechnology.

These SWGs are now fully operational and are

beginning to make progress. Comprised of multi-disciplinary technical staff from NIST, the SWGs have been

assessing external trends in strategic areas, coordinating

activities with other agencies and organizations, and

providing valuable input to the Director and the SMB.

These SWGs have been developing sequentially with

different priorities related to their program areas. Each

SWG has completed inventories of current NIST’s

research projects in their respective areas to allow

informed strategic planning. The VCAT is pleased to

learn that NIST is addressing some of the SWGs

operational issues that were shared at the SMB

fall strategy retreat held in early FY 2005.

Recently, the NIST Director requested the SWGs

to explore and recommend options for investment

strategies in their respective areas. A fourth SWG

for Information and Knowledge Management is

still in the planning stages and a fifth SWG for

Manufacturing may be established. Setting priorities across Strategic Focus Areas is currently

carried out within the OU with cross-OU collaboration enhanced by the SWGs. In the future, the

priority-setting process will change as the OUs

1 $2.8 million in new competence funding reflects the post-rescission and other adjustments to base.
7

strategically focus on NIST’s critical areas and make

decisions based on funding, facilities, and competencies.

• Homeland Security - Established as the first SWG in

2003, the Homeland Security SWG has significantly

helped to coordinate NIST activities with national priorities, resulting in NIST’s rapid response to homeland

security needs in a wide range of areas as described

below. Based on an extensive inventory of NIST’s

current and proposed homeland security projects and

competencies, an understanding of the customers’

technology needs, and recognition of NIST business

practices, the Homeland Security SWG developed a

strategic vision and mission for NIST’s involvement in

Homeland Security as shown in Figure 3. Their

analysis of customer needs included interactions with

key stakeholders and a massive literature search on

homeland security documents, such as those published

by the Administration, the Department of Homeland

Security (DHS), and the Department of Justice. For

example, the National Strategy for Homeland Security

published by the Office of Homeland Security in 2002

identified several science and technology initiatives.

This document is still guiding our nation’s activities

and NIST’s expertise is needed in many of these areas. 

Every NIST laboratory is now involved in homeland

security activities with a total STRS investment of $68

million in FY 2005. As recommended by the VCAT, the

Homeland Security SWG developed seven performance

metrics to assess NIST’s success in meeting the nation’s

priorities in homeland security as shown in Figure 4.

NIST electrical engineers Chris Holloway and Galen

Koepke place transmitters in a protected air vent at the

old Washington Convention Center prior to the implosion

of the building on December 18, 2004. This experiment

is aimed at improving emergency radio communications

for first responders.

Photo credit: NIST
8

The SWG then applied these metrics to NIST’s

activities demonstrating the Institute’s outstanding progress and significant contributions to

homeland security. NIST’s accomplishments

include the development of measurements and

standards in such areas as biological agents;

radiation dosimetry; nuclear, radiological, and

explosive materials; emergency response

equipment; biometrics; cryptology; critical

infrastructure protection; and personal protection equipment. Furthermore, NIST plays a

major role in responding to three homeland

security presidential directives for standards for

the nation’s critical infrastructure, screening

procedures, and personal identity of federal

employees and contractors. In fact, OSTP cited

NIST’s major homeland security accomplishments in

its April 2005 publication, Science and Technology: A

Foundation for Homeland Security, as shown in

Figure 5. In addition, NIST is a key component of the

DHS standards portfolio. NIST staff members also

serve in leadership positions in standards organizations with an interest in homeland security. For

example, Mary Saunders is co-chair of the American

Standards Institute (ANSI’s) Homeland Security

Standards Panel and Kathleen Higgins is chair of the

ASTM Committee E-54 on Homeland Security

Applications. The VCAT is impressed with NIST’s

extensive involvement in national homeland security

planning and policy activities, including membership

on several NSTC subcommittees. 

For the future, NIST will continue to review roadmaps

and other external documents to identify the Institute’s

unique competencies that are still needed to impact

the nation’s homeland security needs. The Committee

applauds the Homeland Security SWG for its efforts

in providing productive working relationships with

stakeholders, a NIST-wide perspective in homeland

security, guidance and advice, and a NIST “face” in

homeland security.

• Biosystems and Health - Formed in early 2004, the

Biosystems and Health SWG has been focusing on

assessing external trends and strategic opportunities

for NIST with input from across NIST and from

stakeholders in industry and other government

agencies. One of the goals was to identify and

analyze projects of mutual interest across the NIST

OUs. The Biosystems and Health SWG used several

NIST researcher Tammy Oreskovic deposits smooth muscle cells onto

a polymer scaffold. Oreskovic and colleagues study what conditions

produce the best cell growth and use a bioreactor (foreground) to

test whether the resulting engineered tissues can withstand mechanical stresses similar to those produced by a beating heart.

© Geoffrey Wheeler
analysis tools to help guide their

decisions including the criteria from

Michael E. Porter’s 1980 publication,

Competitive Strategy: Techniques for

Analyzing Industries and Competitors.

Based on their assessments, the SWG

is developing strategy papers that

outline the need for NIST’s growth in

nanobiosensing, bioimaging, and

systems biology. For example, in the

area of biosensing, the National Cancer

Institute and the Food and Drug

Administration are seeking NIST’s

expertise for developing imaging

standards for lung cancer tumors. This

is one of several NIST’s interactions

with the Department of Health and

Human Services (HHS). As recommended by stakeholders, a USMS

workshop will be held on bioimaging

to further explore the measurement and

standards needs and the importance of

NIST in this area. Members of this

SWG also have been assigned as representatives to other USMS workshops

efforts to keep track of other USMS

activities in biosystems and health.

The VCAT is pleased to learn that the

Biosystems and Health SWG is planning to develop

milestones and metrics of success for bioimaging and

nanobiosensing by mid-December 2005. 

• Nanotechnology - The Nanotechnology SWG was

formed in August 2004 to help align NIST programs

with the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI),

increase awareness of NIST’s nanometrology activities, and develop a users’ access program to leverage

NIST’s nanofabrication facility in the AML. Since its

inception, the Nanotechnology SWG has been actively

involved with the NNI through the National Science

and Technology Council (NSTC) Subcommittee on

Nanoscale Science, Engineering and Technology,

including contributions to a series of reports that

outline strategic objectives for the NNI. Other

examples of NIST’s interactions with the NNI include

hosting the NNI Interagency Grand Challenge

Workshop on Instrumentation and Metrology with

over 200 metrologists from across the nation and participating in the NNI Research Directions II

Workshop. The Nanotechnology SWG is currently

conducting an assessment of NIST nanotechnology

projects to identify the gaps and investment options

where NIST needs to improve its skills and resources

in nanotechnology research to achieve the highest

impact. The Nanotechnology SWG also has begun a

search for a world-class expert in nanofabrication to

work at NIST and help increase the Institute’s contributions in this area. In addition, an assessment and

development of a business plan for a National

Nanomanufacturing and Nanometrology Facility

(N3F) at NIST is underway. 

9

Photo credit: NIST

Physicist Thomas LeBrun uses a special joystick to manipulate nanowires with “optical

tweezers.” A highly focused laser beam attracts microscopic objects and can be used to

pick up and precisely position nanocomponents for building semiconductor circuits or

biosensors smaller than a red blood cell. Tools for manipulating nanocomponents will

help accelerate research on the performance of new nanotechnologies.
• Information and Knowledge Management - An

Information and Knowledge Management SWG has

been in the planning stages for over a year. The

Committee is very disappointed with the lack of

progress, and highly encourages NIST to establish this

SWG to help the Institute develop a NIST-wide

strategy and tactics for implementing the Information

and Knowledge Management Strategic Focus Area

where there is a huge opportunity for NIST’s research

to make a significant impact across many industry

sectors. 

• Manufacturing - NIST is considering establishing an

SWG for manufacturing to help coordinate the

Institute’s efforts in this area that take place in almost

every OU and program at NIST. This action is in

response to the Administration’s increased emphasis

on manufacturing, especially in the area of interoperability where, according to three prospective economic

studies, NIST has an important role and can make a

significant impact. In addition, Dale Hall, the Director

of NIST’s Manufacturing Engineering Laboratory,

serves as the acting chair of the NSTC’s Interagency

Working Group on Manufacturing R&D, which was

established in 2004 to provide policy guidance on the

federal manufacturing effort and to promote communication and collaboration among its fourteen member

agencies. 

Operating Units Operational Plans — The third annual

Director’s review of the annual operational plans for

each of the OUs was held in October 2004 to ensure programmatic coordination and NIST-wide implementation

of NIST’s long-range goals in FY 2005. Based on this

review, NIST identified needs and opportunities to help

the Institute better align its program portfolio with

external drivers, as described under the “Opportunities

for Change” section of this report (page 4). The VCAT

is looking forward to receiving a summary of the FY

2006 review. 

Strategic Partnerships — NIST is continuing to

establish new strategic partnerships with industry, universities, and other government agencies as a way to

leverage the Institute’s programmatic impacts on the

nation’s priorities and to take advantage of expertise

outside of NIST. For example, in December 2004, NIST

formed a significant new partnership with

DaimlerChrysler, Ford Motor Company, and General

Motors whereby scientists and engineers from each of

these organizations will engage in pre-competitive

research activities to improve the manufacturing competitiveness of the U.S. automotive industry. During FY

2005, NIST also signed Memoranda of Understanding

(MOUs) with HHS to collaborate on programs that facilitate the development and delivery of innovative medical

technologies and with Utah State University to enhance

collaborations in the development and calibration of

optical sensors for defense, homeland security, weather

prediction, and climate research. NIST also is exploring

strategic partnerships in specific program areas with

several other organizations. 

As NIST becomes more visible and the number of

potential partnerships increases, the need for a welldefined plan for strategic partnerships that best meet the

nation’s needs is critical. The VCAT has encouraged

NIST to finalize its partnership strategies, including a set

of selection criteria based on the nation’s priorities and

NIST’s existing and emerging core competencies. The

NIST Director has expressed his commitment to develop

guidelines for establishing new strategic partnerships.

One important criterion will be identifying a clear commitment of resources from all parties prior to entering

into an MOU. 

U.S. Measurement System 

Following several years of discussions with the SMB

and the VCAT regarding the importance of defining a

process for developing a 21st century view of the

nation’s measurement system and reaffirming a dynamic

leadership role for NIST, the Institute publicly launched

an ambitious USMS Initiative in April 2005 to address

this challenge. NIST is leading a USMS road mapping

effort to assess and identify crucial current and future

measurement-related needs of the entire U.S. economy,

including both the private and public sectors. By road

mapping America’s priority measurement needs and

10
11

reporting regularly to USMS customers and

stakeholders on the state of the USMS, NIST

plans to create, over time, a strong private-public

partnership that will strengthen the U.S. infrastructure for innovation. 

The new NIST Director refined the USMS effort

to reflect available resources within the existing

organization structure and to leverage the

extensive knowledge and expertise of the NIST

staff. While maintaining the original timetable

as shown in Table 3, the revised plan calls for

NIST to conduct an in-depth assessment for an

initial set of 3-5 sectors led by various teams

with participation throughout the Institute. The

VCAT agrees that this new approach can provide

NIST with valuable “lessons learned” before proceeding to the next set of sectors. According to the

revised plan, the initial sectors could be related to semiconductors, nanotechnology, biosciences, homeland

security, the environment, or automotive. The Committee

is recommending that the USMS effort focus on

emerging competitive areas rather than well-established

areas that are no longer in need of NIST support. NIST

is in the process of developing an extensive USMS

measurement needs database that already includes more

than 300 existing roadmaps and workshop reports. In

addition, NIST is conducting focused technical USMS

workshops and these results also will be included in the

database. 

The USMS effort is now a component of NIST’s

strategic planning efforts for identifying national needs

and the NIST role. The Committee commends NIST for

embarking on this critical effort and strongly urges the

Institute to better define the scope of the first road

mapping activity, identify NIST’s role in the USMS, and

link this analysis to the Institute’s vision and the next

version of the Strategic Plan to leverage its unique capabilities in the highest priority areas most effectively. The

VCAT is pleased to learn that in the long-term NIST

plans to develop budget initiatives based on the analysis

of NIST’s role in support of the USMS. 

Extramural Programs

Advanced Technology Program — The goal of the ATP

is to accelerate the development of innovative technologies for broad national benefit by co-funding R&D partnerships with the private sector. ATP investments align

well with NIST’s strategic focus areas in projects

conducted externally as well as in the NIST laboratories.

For example, ATP recently completed an evaluation of

768 projects awarded since 1990 and identified 109

projects that have a direct impact on homeland security

in nine categories of national importance2. These

projects total $518.5 million in ATP cost-shared awards.

Although there have been significant economic benefits

to the nation associated with the ATP, the program is

faced with the challenge of operating under financial

instability as the Administration and Congress continue

to debate ATP’s future. 

Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership — The

Hollings MEP is a nationwide network of local centers

offering technical and business assistance to smaller

manufacturers. Despite the dramatic FY 2004 budget

reduction of 63 percent for the MEP, the national system

was maintained while operating with only $40 million in

FY 2004. This budget reduction was a huge challenge

for the management as they explored different operating

2 The Nation’s Homeland Security and the NIST Advanced Technology Program, March 2005
plans. The Economic Development Administration

provided $7 million directly to the Centers. MEP also

began working more closely with other agencies,

including the Department of Labor and the Department

of Defense, to help them reach small firms. As a result of

this reduction, about 320 field and headquarters

personnel lost their jobs causing morale problems and

about 50 of the more than 400 field locations were

forced to close. Other negative impacts included some

fragmentation of the system as some Centers sought

other sources of support that took them away from the

MEP mission, financial instabilities, and loss of trust in

the federal partner. The positive impact of the budget

reduction was that the value of the MEP “brand” was

significantly increased at the federal level and full

funding was restored in FY 2005. In addition, MEP’s

leadership was able to examine the strengths and weaknesses of the system and explore opportunities to work

with other federal agencies. 

The MEP impacts are impressive. In a new survey of

the MEP clients covering projects completed in FY 2003,

4,865 clients around the country reported that as a result

of the MEP services, they realized almost $686 million

in cost savings; invested $912 million in modernization,

including plant and equipment, information systems, and

workforce training; increased or retained $4.1 billion in

sales; and created and retained 50,315 jobs. As another

example, the MEP is supporting improvements in manufacturing supply chains as illustrated by the successful

Wisconsin MEP Original Equipment Manufacturer

Supplier Development Consortium in which 236

Wisconsin suppliers participate. This consortium held

over 60 supplier conferences in 2005. In addition, the

MEP centers are involved with the Hurricane Katrina

recovery efforts. For example, the MEP centers in the

gulf coast region have been surveying small manufacturers in their area to determine the extent of their needs

and identify ways in which the MEP network can

provide assistance. 

The VCAT commends MEP’s leadership and success in

exploring new opportunities to make MEP an even more

effective program that will help the nation’s small and

medium-sized manufacturers become more competitive

and recognizes the importance of a stabilized budget to

more efficiently reach this goal. MEP should continue its

extensive outreach efforts to ensure that the program’s

stakeholders are aware of the program’s valuable contributions to the competitiveness of our nation’s smaller

manufacturers.

Baldrige National Quality Program — The VCAT

continues to recognize the Baldrige program as one of

the government’s most highly leveraged and effective

programs that help organizations achieve performance

excellence. The program reached a major milestone in

2005 with the receipt of the 1,000th application for the

prestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.

Vice President Cheney presented the 2004 Baldrige

Award to four recipients in a ceremony held in July

2005. These recipients represented four of the five

Baldrige Award categories: manufacturing, small

business, education, and health care. About 1,200 individuals attended the Quest for Excellence® Conference

XVII where the 2004 Baldrige Award recipients shared

their exceptional performance practices, their journey to

performance excellence, and their lessons learned. There

were 64 applications submitted for the 2005 Baldrige

Award, of which 50 percent represent the health care

industry. 

Performance Evaluation 

The VCAT encourages NIST to continue to improve its

performance evaluation system as a way to be more

responsive to a diverse stakeholder community and to

the internal needs of the organization. 

Performance Metrics — The VCAT commends NIST

leadership for restructuring the FY 2005 Balanced

Scorecard that includes a new section for evaluating

programs and new types of customer satisfaction

methods, as recommended by the Committee. The

Balanced Scorecard, introduced in 2004, is used internally to define and evaluate NIST-wide performance goals

and metrics throughout the Institute. These goals

represent the top priorities of NIST’s senior managers in

four key areas: programs, people, resources, and

12
13

customers. Each priority area includes a set of corresponding goals, evaluation metrics, and accountability

mechanisms. All of the elements of the Balanced

Scorecard were incorporated in the senior management

performance plans. Many of the program goals are

aligned with other OMB and Department of Commerce

(DoC) metrics. For example, the NIST/DoC FY 2005

Plan for Success includes a set of evaluation metrics in

five high priority areas. The VCAT appreciated the

opportunity to review the “stoplight” mid-year progress

report on the Balanced Scorecard and looks forward to

receiving regular updates as well as expressing a willingness to provide more guidance on its status and implementation. 

While NIST has a performance measurement and evaluation system that responds to such government-wide initiatives as the Government Performance and Results Act

of 1993, the President’s Management Agenda, and the

Program Assessment Rating Tool, the Institute needs to

develop a system to help evaluate progress in implementing the NIST Strategic Plan. To meet this

challenge, NIST should continue to focus on the development and reporting of specific short-term and longterm metrics and other quantitative data, consistent with

the Baldrige framework, which address each of the

Strategic Focus Areas and SWGs. The VCAT is pleased

to learn that NIST has just completed a first step in the

Baldrige process, as described in the “Organizational

Excellence, Baldrige at NIST” section of this report

(page 15). 

Economic Studies — NIST initiated two new economic

studies in FY 2005. A retrospective study will cover the

economic assessment of the role and impact of measurement in the entire U.S. semiconductor industry to help

examine NIST’s value. The other study will be a

prospective economic assessment of the costs to the U.S.

biotechnology industry from inadequate technological

infrastructure and should help to validate NIST’s role in

this emerging area. The Committee commends NIST for

initiating these important studies and urges the Institute

to continue to carry out more prospective and retrospective economic studies to help validate NIST’s role in

emerging technologies and to guide strategic planning. 

Board on Assessment of NIST Programs — The

National Research Council Board on Assessment of

NIST Programs serves as another evaluation tool for

NIST by providing qualitative peer review of NIST laboratory programs. It was customary for the Board to

report its findings and recommendations to the VCAT

each year. However, the Board began a new biennial

review process in FY 2004 and their latest report was not

available to share with the VCAT in FY 2005. The

Committee is looking forward to a briefing on the

Board’s technical report as soon as possible.

ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE

NIST’s capability to provide the nation with the technical

infrastructure needed for economic growth and homeland

security is supported by world-class talent, highly specialized facilities and equipment, and the continued

pursuit of organizational excellence, as illustrated by

numerous technical achievements. The VCAT commends

NIST for continuing to address facility improvement

needs, increase safety awareness, explore Baldrige

processes for NIST, and respond to staff concerns as a

way to further increase NIST’s effectiveness. 

Facilities 

NIST must have modern and highly specialized facilities

for its scientists and technical staff to remain at the

forefront of measurement science, standards, and technology to meet the needs of the 21st century and to

advance the U.S. technological competitiveness. To

meet these needs, NIST developed a long-range

Facilities Improvement Plan in February 1998 that was

updated in June 2004 and February 2005 (addendum).

NIST is making progress against this plan and is

addressing the major construction, renovation and maintenance needs associated with the aging and deteriorated

buildings in Gaithersburg and Boulder. No additional

support was provided for safety, capacity, maintenance

and major repairs (SCMMR) in FY 2005, but the VCAT

is hopeful that increased support for the maintenance of

the older buildings as well as preventive maintenance for

the sophisticated AML will be available as requested in

the FY 2006 President’s budget request. Major construction of Boulder’s Central Utility Plan (CUP) received
14

additional funding in FY 2005 which will complete

phase 1 of this project, and the FY 2006 President’s

budget request includes funding to complete the CUP

that will supply heating, chilled water, and compressed

air to all of the lab buildings on the Boulder site. Also,

Boulder’s Primary Electrical Service project is now

complete and has helped to significantly reduce power

problems. On the Gaithersburg campus, a major

asbestos removal project has been underway in one of

the older General Purpose Laboratories. Once this

project is completed, the staff from the NIST North

campus, located across the street from the main campus,

will move to this building. 

The unique AML was awarded the distinction of “high

honors” in R&D Magazine’s 2005 Lab of the Year

Competition. Regarded as the most technologically

advanced research facility of its kind in the world, the

AML was judged by representatives from the architectural, scientific and laboratory equipment communities,

as well as the magazine’s editors. The VCAT had the

opportunity to tour several state-of-the-art research facilities in the AML that demonstrated vast

improvements in measurement capabilities

made possible by its unique features. These

tours and unique facilities are described in

Appendix B, Examples of Technical Excellence.

The AML is already contributing to the

emerging nanotechnology industry. NIST

should continue to seek strategic partnerships

that can help leverage this unique national

facility.

The NIST Center for Neutron Research

(NCNR), the nation’s premier neutron facility,

received an increase of $6 million in FY 2005

for capability improvements as well as

increased operating costs. These improvements

will help to significantly expand the NCNR’s

collaboration with industrial, government, and

academic researchers in materials science,

biotechnology, chemistry, engineering, and

physics. 

NIST should continue to evaluate its facility improvements based on the Institute’s current and future research

and staffing needs. The VCAT encourages NIST to

develop new business cases to help justify and prioritize

the needed renovations and repairs in program areas that

tie to its Strategic Plan. This analysis should cover all of

NIST’s facilities, including the Advanced Chemical

Sciences Laboratory and the newly constructed AML. 

Technical Excellence

NIST continues to be a high-performing organization

with outstanding achievements in ground-breaking scientific research, key contributions to major building and

fire safety investigations, and rapid responsiveness to

congressionally-mandated programs and presidential

directives in FY 2005. For example, NIST is home to

three Nobel Laureates, including John Hall, a scientist

emeritus in NIST and the University of Colorado, who

shares the 2005 Nobel Prize in Physics for “contributions

to the development of laser-based precision spectroscopy.” Other achievements include the development

of a leading new experimental method for defining the

In a clean room located in the AML, NIST researchers develop metrology tools

for nanoparticle manipulation and for studying atomic and molecular frictional

forces. The research results will help improve the durability of micro- and nanodevices (such as tiny motors, positioning devices or encoders) as well as the

assembly of nanoparticles to form new materials.

Courtesy HDR Architecture, Inc./Steve Hall © Hedrich Blessing
kilogram, the improvement of the NIST Atomic Fountain

Clock, and the design of chip-scale refrigerators. NIST’s

significant research contributions in the building and fire

safety investigation of the World Trade Center (WTC)

disaster clearly demonstrate that NIST is a world leader

in structural and fire analysis. A summary of NIST’s

building and fire safety investigations of the WTC

disaster as well as the deadly Rhode Island nightclub fire

of 2003 is provided in Appendix A. As an example of

NIST’s responsiveness to congressionally-mandated

programs, the Institute reached a major milestone in May

2005 by submitting the first draft of the voluntary voting

system guidelines to the Election Assistance Commission

within nine months as required by HAVA. 

As these and many other examples indicate, NIST has

renowned scientists and engineers as well as some of the

world’s most specialized measurement facilities. With

these assets, NIST is well-positioned to remain at the

forefront of advancing measurement science, standards,

and technology to enhance economic security and

improve the quality of life for all Americans (see

Appendix B for additional illustrative examples of

NIST’s technical excellence.) 

Baldrige at NIST

The VCAT is extremely pleased to learn that NIST is

beginning to embrace the Baldrige process more systematically. To help the organization become more familiar

with quality and performance excellence issues, NIST

established a Baldrige at NIST study group comprised of

the next generation of NIST leaders. With guidance from

Harry Hertz, the Director of the National Baldrige

Quality Program, this group developed a draft

Organizational Profile, a first step in the Baldrige

process. In addition, Technology Services, one of

NIST’s major OUs, has begun implementing the

Baldrige process to improve their wide-range of services.

The Committee is eagerly looking forward to NIST’s

progress in implementing Baldrige which should help the

Institute achieve an even higher level of organizational

excellence.

People

NIST senior management recognizes the importance of

responding to the concerns raised in the 2004 Employee

Survey. Focus groups comprised of NIST staff reviewed

the survey results and helped prioritize specific areas for

the NIST management response. Based on this

feedback, NIST developed and began to implement an

action plan to improve operations and management.

15

NIST researchers (left to right) Steven Jefferts, Elizabeth Donley,

and Tom Heavner with NIST F1, the world’s best clock (as of

Sept. 2005). The clock uses a fountain-like movement of cesium

atoms to determine the length of the second so accurately that--if

it were to run continuously--it would neither lose nor gain one

second in 60 million years.

© Geoffrey Wheeler
16

The VCAT encourages NIST to continue to provide

employees with immediate feedback and updates on the

action plan. In addition, NIST should develop specific

performance metrics to measure the success of these

important efforts, as outlined in the Baldrige process. 

Safety

NIST is continuing to embark on new safety practices

and awareness activities to help improve its safety

record. As reported in the 2004 Employee Survey, the

NIST staff considered safety an important issue and

provided high scores to NIST as a safe workplace.

NIST’s increased safety-related activities should help to

continue this trend. For example, NIST finalized the

Personal Protective Equipment policy, created a new

office safety manual, developed a new safety training

module for new employees, provided blood-borne

pathogen awareness training to the staff in the Plant

Division, offered new safety training classes under

contract with HHS, and improved building evacuation

practices. As a further demonstration of NIST’s commitment to improving safety, the leadership encouraged all

employees to participate in a NIST Safety Day held in

Boulder and Gaithersburg with many activities involving

safety awareness in and out of the workplace. 

NIST has an impressive safety record in comparison to

the Department of Energy (DOE) laboratories and other

government agencies. In FY 2004, NIST’s total case

rate and lost workday incident frequency rate (LWIFR)

compared favorably to its peers at the DOE laboratories,

as shown in Table 4. Although NIST’s total number of

recordable safety incidents in FY 2005 is expected to

increase slightly over FY 2004, this number should be

lower than FY 2000 through FY 2003. NIST’s total lost

workdays also is expected to increase over FY 2004 as a

result of three cases with an unusual high number of lost

work days totaling 220. These three cases involved a

police officer, a carpenter’s helper, and a computer

scientist. The VCAT encourages NIST to continue discussions with other research laboratories to identify

additional safety practices that could help NIST further

improve its safety record.

OUTREACH

NIST is continuing to expand its external outreach activities more strategically to key stakeholders to increase

their awareness, appreciation, and support of the

Institute. For FY 2005, NIST developed a comprehensive outreach plan that included a specific set of priority

activities aimed at Congress, industry associations,

partners, the Administration, the media, and the public.

In addition, NIST identified a set of priorities for the use

of new and more effective communication tools. To help

evaluate its progress in carrying out the new outreach

plan, NIST should refine its initial set of performance

measures used in FY 2004. 

Over the past year, NIST outreach activities have

increased significantly. For example, the NIST Director

and the Acting Director have held numerous meetings

with members of Congress and their staff, hosted several

Congressional visits to the Gaithersburg and Boulder

laboratories, and provided briefings and testimony on

NIST’s key investigative reports, such as the collapse of

the WTC and progress on HAVA-related activities. As a

more strategic approach for outreach to industry, NIST

recently established a “key customer” outreach program

that targeted specific companies and contacts in fourteen

industry segments for NIST senior managers to develop

a one-on-one relationship. As part of this program, the
17

senior leadership has had key engagements with highlevel executives in such companies as Boeing, Ford

Motor Company, Fluke, and Agilent to understand their

current and future needs and to educate them about

NIST and its impact on their organization. In addition,

the NIST Director has been conducting outreach with

major manufacturers, customers of NIST services, and

other federal agencies responsible for addressing

national priorities to identify possible areas for collaborations and partnerships. The VCAT is pleased that

NIST is becoming more strategic and more proactive in

its outreach efforts with senior executives in industry. 

While increasing its face-to-face interactions with key

customers and stakeholders, the Institute needs to place a

greater emphasis on developing new communication

tools that clearly demonstrate the value of NIST. The

VCAT commends NIST for its commitment to refine the

NIST message for use in its outreach activities and looks

forward to seeing this message in a new set of outreach

material that provides examples of program impacts by

industry segments. Program impacts also should

highlight how the capabilities of the world-class AML

have helped to increase NIST’s contributions to the

nation’s standards and measurement infrastructure as a

way to attract more interest in this national resource. The

Committee also was impressed with the initial revision

of the NIST Overview presentation for outreach activities and provided several suggestions for further

improvement, including the development of customized

versions for specific audiences. 

As emphasized in the presentations by Michael Holland

from OSTP and Kei Koizumi from the American

Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS),

federal agencies need to communicate clearly the value

of their programs and their priority setting process to

policy officials as a way to gain more support from the

Administration and Congress. The VCAT is hopeful that

NIST will continue to focus on the development of

improved communication tools as a high priority to

increase the Institute’s visibility even further. 

BUDGET

NIST Laboratories

Increased funding for the NIST laboratories in FY 2005

and the President’s FY 2006 budget request is a

welcome return to a positive change in NIST resources

that will help support strategic initiatives and strengthen

NIST core competencies needed to increase our nation’s

innovation and competitiveness. However, the amount

of funding available for core metrology programs in the

NIST laboratories has been eroding over the past several

years as the Institute has had to compensate for huge

new responsibilities in response to a series of unfunded

congressionally-mandated programs, such as projects

related to the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction

Program and the National Construction Safety Team Act,

presidential directives, inadequate adjustments-to-base,

and unfunded salary increases. Based on the extremely

tight budget projections for non-security discretionary

spending in the next few years, NIST must invest its

resources in areas of high national needs where the

Institute can have a significant impact on the growth

opportunities for U.S. industry. This will likely involve

the redeployment of existing resources to new and

higher-value added contribution areas.

The VCAT appreciated the opportunity to learn more

about the Administration’s priority-setting process for

the federal R&D portfolio as well as R&D funding

trends in the federal government as described by representatives from OSTP and AAAS. Both of these

speakers provided an excellent context for understanding

the complexities of the budget process and the challenges associated with reducing the budget deficit while

addressing the President’s priorities. 

Facilities

NIST’s facilities continue to require additional funding

to help shape NIST’s capabilities and productivity well

into the 21st century. Additional investments are needed

to overcome remaining problems associated with deteriorated and obsolete laboratory facilities in Gaithersburg
18

and Boulder and to support necessary preventive maintenance for the AML, as described under the “Summary of

Operations, Organizational Excellence, Facilities”

section of this report (page 13). 

ATP and Hollings MEP 

The funding uncertainty for the ATP and the Hollings

MEP continued in FY 2005 and FY 2006 and must be

resolved. The VCAT is concerned that the continuing

debate between the Administration and Congress over

funding these programs versus the laboratories is having

a negative impact on NIST’s long-term strategic

planning process.

© Robert Rathe

NIST physicist Richard Steiner adjusts the electronic kilogram, an

experimental apparatus for defining mass in terms of the basic properties of nature. The advance may move the scientific community

closer to redefining the kilogram, the only one of the seven basic

units of the international measurement system still defined by a

physical artifact.
19

World Trade Center Investigation

In June 2005, Shyam Sunder, the WTC lead investigator,

provided a fascinating and detailed presentation of

NIST’s response to the WTC disaster, including background information and a summary of the draft report

and recommendations released for public comment on

June 23, 2005. His overview included results from

elaborate computer modeling, photographs, and videos in

support of the analysis of the WTC collapse sequence.

An unprecedented amount of data collection was

required for reconstructing the exact sequence of events

beginning with the impact of the aircraft, to the fire

dynamics, to progression of local failures that initiated

the building collapse. NIST intends to continue to work

closely with the building and fire safety communities to

ensure that the recommendations are given proper consideration. The Committee commends NIST for its

extensive and excellent efforts in the building and fire

safety investigation of the WTC disaster. In particular,

NIST’s ability to overcome the many challenges of the

investigation, including leading and managing a team of

over 225 individuals from NIST and other organizations

and coordinating efforts with the 9/11 Commission and

local authorities is admirable. 

The final WTC towers report was released on October

26, 2005. The report called on the organizations that

develop building and fire safety codes, standards, and

practices- and the state and local agencies that adopt

them- to give immediate and serious consideration to

implementing the recommendations from NIST’s investigation of the fires and collapses of the WTC. Based on

the findings of the most detailed examination of a

building failure ever conducted, the report features 30

recommendations designed to improve the safety of tall

buildings, their occupants and first responders. The NIST

recommendations are contained within 43 separate

reports totaling some 10,000 pages that cover: specific

improvements to building standards, codes and practices;

changes to, or the establishment of, evacuation and

emergency response procedures; and

research and other appropriate actions

needed to help prevent future building

failures. A web-based system with information on the status of the WTC recommendations will be established for the

public to track their implementation.

NIST’s investigation of the WTC towers

fires and collapses was conducted under

the National Construction Safety Team Act.

Additional information about this investigation is available at http://wtc.nist.gov.

Investigation of The Station

Nightclub Fire

On June 29, 2005, NIST released a report

that called for some significant changes

to further strengthen the model building

and fire safety codes based on the

findings from its investigation of The

Station nightclub fire in West Warwick,

Rhode Island, that killed 100 people on

February 20, 2003. The report contains

Appendix A: Examples of Technical Excellence:

Major Building and Fire Safety Investigations

In 2005, NIST completed a three-year building and fire safety investigation of the

probable causes for the post-impact collapse of World Trade Center Towers 1 and 2

following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. As part of the investigation, NIST structural

experts examined about 250 pieces of steel recovered from the site. NIST researchers

Stephen Banovic (left) and Frank Davis take inventory.

Photo Credit: NIST
20

ten recommendations for increased occupant safety in

nightclubs based on the investigation and comments

received from the draft report. These recommendations

reinforce the current model codes and propose additional

changes that will make them even more effective. NIST

will work with major organizations representing state

and local officials to encourage them to seriously

consider these recommendations. A special web site will

be established for NIST to track progress in adopting its

recommendations. NIST conducted its investigation of

The Station nightclub fire under the National

Construction Safety Team Act.

At a robotic sample preparation station, NIST staff members John Butler and Susan Ballou discuss a

NIST project for improving forensic analysis of human DNA. Butler developed a concept for reducing

the size of DNA fragments needed for a definitive identification, which has proven useful in

analyzing damaged or degraded DNA. Methods based on the concept were used to help identify

victims of the World Trade Center collapse on Sept. 11.

© Robert Rathe
21

Technical excellence is evident in many of NIST’s

programs as reflected by the increasing number of prestigious awards bestowed upon the technical staff for outstanding accomplishments; NIST’s responsiveness to

congressionally-mandated programs and presidential

directives in high visibility areas; NIST’s technical

accomplishments that are featured in the scientific

media; and the high quality research presented to the

VCAT members during selected laboratory tours. 

Examples of prestigious external awards that recognize

NIST accomplishments include Scientific American’s

“Research Leader of the Year” to Deborah Jin for the

creation of a new state of matter; the Presidential Rank

Award for Distinguished Senior Professional to David

Wineland; and the Arthur S. Flemming Awards to four

NIST researchers. In addition, William Phillips was

appointed to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences.

Scientific journals and other news media also have highlighted NIST technical achievements. 

At each meeting, the VCAT members tour selected NIST

laboratories to gain an appreciation of the high quality

technical work and staff expertise. These tours also

provide the Committee with an excellent opportunity to

examine how the technical programs support the NIST

Strategic Plan. Due to a schedule change, the

Committee did not visit the Boulder campus in FY 2005,

but will resume these annual visits in December 2005.

Provided below is a brief summary of the FY 2005 tours

that illustrate the technical excellence of NIST’s

programs, their impact to the nation, and their relationship to the NIST Strategic Plan. In addition, the

Committee was extremely impressed with each of the

researchers’ depth of knowledge and enthusiasm as they

described their exciting projects. 

Homeland Security

Weapons and Protective Systems for Law Enforcement –

The Office of Law Enforcement Standards (OLES)

serves the interests of the criminal justice and public

safety communities (state and local law enforcement,

corrections, fire service, other first responders, and

courts) by developing performance standards for

equipment; methods for examining evidentiary materials;

users guides; and Standard Reference Materials, as well

as performing other scientific and engineering research.

Appendix B. Examples of Technical Excellence:

Lab Reviews Conducted by the VCAT in FY 2005 

With funding from the National Institute of Justice, NIST's Office of

Law Enforcement Standards develops test methods and standards to

ensure the performance of equipment used by police, corrections

officers, and first responders. Nathaniel Waters, a NIST engineering

technician, examines a bullet-resistant vest being tested. NIST recently

upgraded its ballistics facility used for such research.

© Robert Rathe
OLES has six program areas: weapons and protective

systems; detection, inspection, and enforcement technologies; chemical systems and materials; forensic

sciences; public safety communication standards; and

critical incident technologies. The VCAT witnessed a

very interesting body armor ballistic test. 

The Weapons and Protective Systems area provides ongoing technical support and research for the National

Institute of Justice (NIJ) standards for ballistic-resistant

body armor (bullet-resistant vests), which OLES first

developed for NIJ in 1972. The body armor program is

part of NIJ’s successful Law Enforcement and

Corrections Standards and Testing Program, through

which companies may have their products voluntarily

certified as compliant with the standard. Ballisticresistant body armor has been credited with saving more

than 2,500 lives, and the program’s evaluations of new

materials and ballistic threats and its revisions of the

standard help ensure the continued effectiveness of this

technology. This project area also develops and supports

other equipment performance standards vital to the

safety of law enforcement and corrections personnel,

including stab-resistant body armor; ballistic helmets;

riot helmets and face shields; bomb suits; metallic

handcuffs; and firearms.

Nanotechnology

Mechanics, Adhesion and Friction at Nanoscale –

Tomorrow’s micro- and nano-scale devices and materials

will be the engine for our nation’s economic growth, permeating every industrial sector. As the sizes of these

devices shrink, surface forces become dominant,

governing how tiny device components interact with

each other, as well as how nanoparticles can be

assembled to form new materials. Understanding and

control of these forces are critical to successful development of competitive industries in the United States.

NIST pioneers precise measurements of mechanical

properties, friction, and surface forces using unique

instrumentation. 

Located in a clean room in the AML, with tight temperature and vibration control, the laboratory allows

researchers to view surfaces, probe material mechanical

properties, and measure the interaction forces accurately.

Collaborating with U.S. instrument-makers, NIST

researchers have developed an integrated system of

micro- and nano-scale instruments that include a custombuilt three-dimensional sensor for friction measurement,

ultra-high-vacuum scanning probe microscopes, and new

adhesion and surface force measurement capabilities, as

well as applying and disseminating NIST force

metrology to ensure the accuracy of the test results.

Manufacturing

NIST Dimensional Metrology: Ultra-High Accuracy

Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) – Arguably the

most accurate instrument of its type in the world, this

NIST-enhanced ultra-high-accuracy Moore 48 CMM

housed in the AML is key to NIST calibrations and

research that help U.S. manufacturers of all sizes to meet

ever more demanding dimensional requirements and to

reliably machine and assemble parts with increasingly

complex features. Ensuring proper performance of

CMMs is fundamental to manufacturing performance at

nearly every level of supply chains. NIST dimensional

calibrations and a series of innovative measurement references provide the nation’s manufacturers with compelling

evidence (technically termed “traceability”) that their

parts and final products are of uniformly high quality, satisfying customer specifications and, as warranted, regulatory requirements. With this customized CMM, NIST

provides its customers, many of whom are smaller manufacturers and private-sector calibration service

companies, with access to state-of-the-art capabilities that

are beyond their budgets, yet critical to their quality

assurance systems, and thus those of their customers. In

addition, NIST researchers actively participate and often

lead efforts to develop international standards regarding

the use and performance of CMMs, the primary inspection tool in many manufacturing sectors.

Competence: Nanotechnology

Microforce Realization and Measurements – This

project is another outstanding example of how NIST

competence funds have been successfully used in an

22
23

intra-laboratory collaboration to carry out

core measurement research that is at the

heart of the NIST mission. Competence

funding was first provided to this project in

FY 2000 to develop competence in specialized instrument design appropriate for the

realization, measurement, and repeatable dissemination of microforces that begins to

address the emergent force metrology needs

of a growing class of nanotechnologies. This

competence, enabled by a new laboratory in

the AML, has formed the basis of a metrological infrastructure for instruments, such as

atomic force microscopes, nanoindenters,

and micro-electromechanical systems

(MEMS) that operate in force regions

between nanonewtons and millinewtons.

Competence: Measurement Science

NIST Combinatorial Methods Center

(NCMC) – The NCMC, established in 2001

with competence funding, specializes in

developing combinatorial and high-throughput metrologies for polymer materials

science. Originally applied to drug

discovery, combinatorial and high-throughput methods are now exploited for catalysis,

coatings, and materials science. With an

open source, non-proprietary, model, the NCMC established a new type of consortium that now includes 21

industrial, academic, and government members. Current

research activities include microfluidic technologies for

the analysis of complex multiphase formulations,

gradient library methods for nanomaterials and

nanometrology development, and rapid quantitative

analysis of adhesion and mechanical properties of

coatings and films.

Measurement Science and Standards

Large Fire Metrology Laboratory – NIST maintains a

world-class large fire laboratory to improve fire

metrology capabilities for the country, conduct model

validation/verification tests in intermediate and large

scale settings, and set standards for fire testing. This

laboratory is equipped with three separate calorimeters

rated at 1 megawatt, 3 megatwatts and 10 megawatts

heat release rates, respectively. The VCAT witnessed a

spectacular test of a residential bed mattress under the 3

megawatts calorimeter. NIST worked to understand how

bed fires proceed from the ignition of bedclothes to the

full involvement of the bed and its foundation and

developed a novel infrared technique for measuring the

intensity of heat transfer from the bedclothes.

Recognizing that routine testing of mattresses could not

depend on a standard set of bedclothes, NIST used the

data to develop a unique double burner that accurately

simulates the threat from such a fire to both the top and

sides of the mattress and its foundation. In addition to

developing the test methodology, NIST also determined

© Geoffrey Wheeler

NIST physicist Ray Simmonds holds a protective box containing “artificial atoms”

that might be used in quantum computers. Next to him is a cryogenic refrigerator

that cools the box to temperatures near absolute zero. 
24

the relationship between the size of the fire and the heat

release rate that would lead to flashover, i.e., where the

full room bursts into flame and starts the fire spreading

rapidly to the rest of the building. This led directly to the

acceptable levels of heat release rate for the mattresses.

Bed fires in homes cost the nation nearly 500 lives, over

2000 serious injuries, and $250 million in property loss

every year. Safety standards now adopted by the

California Bureau of Home Furnishings are based on the

testing methods and hazard analysis developed in this

laboratory. NIST is now working with the Consumer

Product Safety Commission who is considering adopting

a modified version of these standards, which is estimated

to cut national losses from bed fires in half.

Cryptographic Algorithm Validation Program (CAVP) –

The CAVP demonstrations provided an overview of

NIST’s highly successful algorithm testing program and

live testing of cryptographic algorithm implementations

through the Cryptographic Algorithm Validation System

(CAVS). The validation test tools exercise an algorithm

implementation to provide assurance that the algorithm

has been used correctly based on the specifications given

in the associated cryptographic standard. Statistics show

that 25 percent of the algorithm implementations

submitted for testing and perceived to be ready to go to

market were found to be incorrect. The CAVS allows

these errors to be quickly isolated and corrected before

the products are used by industry and federal agencies.

Testing is required to validate a cryptographic-based

product against NIST’s Federal Information Processing

Standard (FIPS) 140-2: Security Requirements for

Cryptographic Modules. In addition to use in the federal

sector, validation through NIST’s Cryptographic Module

Validation Program (CMVP) is recognized worldwide by

ISO standardization and international industry acceptance. Both Canada and the United Kingdom specify

FIPS 140-2 validation for use within their federal

structure and the CMVP serves as a model for programs

in other countries. NIST validated algorithms and

modules can be found in use on every continent to help

protect information, secure electronic transactions, and

even protect communications with the International

Space Station.

Measurement Science

Immersive Visualization Interacting with Data in Three

Dimensions – Computational and laboratory experiments

are generating increasing amounts of scientific data.

Often, the complexity of the data makes it difficult to

devise a priori methods for its analysis, or the data is

from new landscapes, such as the nano-world, where scientists have limited experience. NIST is developing

immersive visualization capabilities that allow scientists

to interact with data objects in a three-dimensional

landscape rather than simply viewing pictures of them.

The VCAT witnessed three demonstrations with applications for cement and concrete flow, tissue engineering,

and the behavior of smart gels used in the drug and food

industry. By permitting such visual exploration, scientists can more easily perceive complex relationships in

their data, quickly ascertaining whether the results match

expectations.
25

At the September 2005 VCAT meeting, the NIST Director provided a status report on how the Institute is addressing

each of the twelve recommendations from the FY 2004 VCAT Annual Report (see Table 5). Beginning in FY 2004,

NIST committed to provide detailed progress reports to the Committee on these and other VCAT recommendations.

This reporting system is intended to close the loop between the VCAT’s observations, recommendations, and NIST’s

response. By engaging in extended discussions with the NIST leadership on a variety of topics presented over the

course of the meetings, the VCAT is better able to advise the Institute on its policies, organization, budget, and

programs to help NIST best support the nation’s scientific and technical needs.

Appendix C. NIST Response to FY 2004 VCAT

Annual Report Recommendations

Table 5. NIST Response to FY 2004 VCAT Annual Report

Recommendations

VCAT Recommendations NIST Status

Immediately increase NIST budget to fund strategic

initiatives and to compensate for unfunded

Congressional mandates, inadequate adjustments to

base, and unfunded salary increases.

Continue to invest in core competencies required to

provide measurement and standards capabilities for

the future.

Obtain budget increases to equip the AML, improve

the NCNR, and modernize Boulder labs.

Stabilize funding for MEP and ATP.

The President’s budget request for FY 2006 supports

this objective while balancing other national priorities

including cutting the budget deficit. Final budget for FY

2006 awaiting Congressional appropriations.

Strategic planning is a key focus area for the new

Director. A list of top level NIST core competencies and

newly funded competence projects was provided in the

September NIST Update presentation. Clearer alignment

between critical areas and investment decisions will be

made.

Plans are being developed for the N3F and AML to

maximize usage and impact on the nation. This may

include increasing their priorities within existing budgets.

The FY 2005 budget included $6.9M CRF to fund the

current phase of the Boulder Central Utility Plant (CUP)

upgrade. 

The FY 2006 Presidential budget request includes:

• $9.4M CRF to complete CUP upgrade

• $6.5M CRF for Boulder Building 1 design

• $4M CRF for Boulder Building 4 design &

renovation

• $8.1M increase to SCMMR base

This is an ongoing issue and is subject to FY 2006

Congressional appropriations.

Budget
26

Develop a longer-term comprehensive plan for

marketing capabilities to key customers and

stakeholders.

VCAT will continue to advise NIST’s stakeholders on the

strategic direction and value of NIST.

Develop specific short-term and long-term metrics and

other quantitative data consistent with the Baldrige

Framework. Reflect this in the 2005 Balanced

Scorecard.

Expand efforts in the Strategic Focus Areas. In particular, closely examine NIST’s role in biosciences and the

pharmaceutical industries.

NIST is working on refining a common “NIST message”

to use in outreach activities.

NIST SMB has established a “key customer” outreach

program.

The Director has been reaching out to major manufacturers, customers of NIST services, and agencies responsible for addressing national priorities. Examples include

Boeing, Ford, and USCAR.

OU Directors have been charged with doing the same,

by sector.

Thank you for your commitment and success in advising

NIST’s stakeholders. Your work to advise NIST’s stakeholders including DOC, OMB, OSTP, and Congress is

very much appreciated.

The “Building the Next Generation Leaders” leader

program established a Baldrige at NIST study group that

is working with Harry Hertz. They have developed a draft

Organizational Profile, the first step in the Baldrige

process.

Technology Services has also begun implementing the

Baldrige process to improve their services.

David Spong gave a talk to NIST staff about Baldrige. 

The FY05 Balanced Scorecard (provided to the VCAT in

June) was improved with the addition of a new section

on programs based on your recommendations and

aligned with OMB and Commerce metrics.

The NIST Performance Measurement and Evaluation

System overview was distributed at this meeting.

The Nano and Bio SWG has been tasked with developing a list of high priority options to consider for budget

initiatives.

Outreach

Strategic Direction and Performance
27

Continue to explore opportunities for extensive collaborations and partnerships to take advantage of expertise

outside of NIST. Update the strategic plan to include

strategies for identifying where partnerships should be

appropriate, targeting specific partnerships, and

achieving these partnerships.

Integrate the analysis of NIST’s role in the National

Measurement System into the next version of the

Strategic Plan.

Continue to upgrade aging buildings and facilities.

NIST’s Safety Council should benchmark safety

practices with other organizations and seek additional

advice from VCAT members with expertise in this field.

NIST has carefully cataloged its research activities

related to Biosystems and Health.

NIST has developed a fact sheet to inform the pharmaceutical industry about NIST’s research and services. 

NIST is developing an internal document to enunciate

our strategy and to guide our strategic planning on partnerships.

We are evaluating strategies for using MOUs as part of

this effort.

An example of the kind of successful partnership relationship NIST plans to develop is USCAR.

USMS is one component of our strategic planning efforts

for identifying national needs and NIST’s role. The

planned series of targeted workshops will provide critical

outside input to our strategic planning process.

The highest priority items for facilities are renovations in

Boulder.

Longer term priorities are renovations in Gaithersburg.

Details from the FY 2006 budget request are presented

in an earlier slide.

This comparison data was presented in the NIST update

presentation.

Organizational Excellence
28

AAAS American Association for the Advancement of Science

AML Advanced Measurement Laboratory

ANSI American National Standards Institute

ASTM ASTM International, originally known as the American Society for Testing and Materials

ATP Advanced Technology Program 

CAVS Cryptographic Algorithm Validation System

CMVP Cryptographic Module Validation Program

CMM Coordinate Measuring Machine

CRF Construction of Research Facilities

DHS Department of Homeland Security

DoC Department of Commerce

DOE Department of Energy

FIPS Federal Information Processing Standards

FY Fiscal Year

HAVA Help America Vote Act 

HHS Department of Health and Human Services

HS Homeland Security

I/KM Information and Knowledge Management

ISO International Organization for Standardization

JILA A joint research institute of NIST and the University of Colorado at Boulder

LWIFR Lost Workday Incident Frequency Rate

MEP Manufacturing Extension Partnership

MOU Memorandum of Understanding

N3F National Nanomanufacturing and Nanometrology Facility

NCMC NIST Combinatorial Methods Center

NCNR NIST Center for Neutron Research

NIJ National Institute of Justice

NIST National Institute of Standards and Technology

NSTC National Science and Technology Council

NNI National Nanotechnology Initiative

OA Other Agency

OLES Office of Law Enforcement Standards

OMB Office of Management and Budget

OSTP Office of Science Policy and Technology

OU Operating Unit

RFID Radio Frequency Identification

SCMMR Safety, Capacity, Maintenance and Major Repairs

SMB Senior Management Board

STRS Scientific Technical Research and Services

SWG Strategic Working Group

US-VISIT United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology Program

USMS U.S. Measurement System

VCAT Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology

WTC World Trade Center

Appendix D. Abbreviations 
Cover Photo Credits (clockwise from top)

1. © Robert Rathe

2. Beamie Young/NIST

3. Courtesy HDR Architecture, Inc./Steve Hall © Hedrich Blessing

4. Gail Porter/NIST

5. © Robert Rathe

6. © Geoffrey Wheeler

7. © Robert Rathe

8. Courtesy HDR Architecture, Inc./Steve Hall © Hedrich Blessing

9. Gail Porter/NIST