VISITING COMMITTEE ON ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY (VCAT)

MINUTES OF THE FEBRUARY 4-5, 2015 MEETING

GAITHERSBURG, MD 

ATTENDANCE:

Visiting Committee 

Members Attending

Brooks, Rodney

Colwell, Rita

Garvey, Michael

Haymet, Tony

Holt, William

Padovani, Roberto

Prafullchandra, Hemma

Solomon, Darlene*

Tracy, John

VCAT Exec. Dir.

Lellock, Karen

NIST Leadership Board 

Boehm, Jason

Brockett, Del

Celotta, Bob

Fangmeyer, Robert

Harary, Howard

Jenkins, George

Kayser, Rich

Kimball, Kevin

Locascio, Laurie

May, Willie

Molnar, Michael

Neumann, Dan

Olthoff, Jim

Porch, Susanne

Rochford, Kent

Romine, Chuck

Royster, Cecelia

Salber, Stephen

Saunders, Mary

Singerman, Phillip

Wixon, Henry

NIST Staff 

Acierto, Linda

Allocca, Clare

Andrade, Dorianna

Arrisueno, Gladys

Bailey, Dawn

Balicao, Francisco

Baxter, Laura

Beall, Kellie

Belford-Gemar, Diane

Cherny, Paul

Chin, Joannie

Chou, Kevin

Currens, Chris

Delak, Katya

Denicola, Larry

Evans, Heather

Fasolka, Mike

FitzPatrick, Jerry

Frechette, Simon

Gan, Ron

Gayle, Frank

Gillerman, Gordon

Hight-Walker, Angela

Hogan, Mike

Holbrook, Dave

Holland, Diane

Ivy, Nahla

Jillavenkatesa, Ajit

Jones, Al

Kaiser, Debbie

Lin-Gibson, Sheng

Miner, Laurel

Nelson, Tonia

O’Brien, Tom

Parris, Reenie

Porter, Gail

Roberts, Kamie

Saundry, Claire

Schaefer, Christine

Semerjian, Hratch

Shaw, Stephanie

Small, Judy

Spivack, Richard

St. Pierre, James

Sullivan, Suzanne

Thorne, Roger

Watters, Bob

Yoon, Howard

Others 

Bhatia, Joe - ANSI

Faber, Al – Baldrige 

 Foundation

Harris, Warren – Baldrige 

 Foundation

Hawes, Bernadine – MEP 

 Advisory Board

Mayfield, Harry – Lewis-

 Burke Associates LLC 

Spires, Lonnie – Trescal 

Webber, Naomi – Lewis-

 Burke Associates LLC

Wessel, Vickie* - MEP 

 Advisory Board

Wilson, David - Morgan State 

 University

*Participated Remotely
Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Call to Order – Dr. Tony Haymet, VCAT Chair

Dr. Haymet called the meeting to order at 8:30 a.m. and pointed out the emergency exits. Dr. Haymet 

announced this would be Al Romig’s last meeting. Al was not able to attend the meeting as he is 

transitioning from Lockheed to a position as Executive Officer at the National Academy of Engineering. 

Dr. Haymet also announced the departure of Uma Chowdry who decided to end her term on the VCAT 

early. He thanked both Al and Uma for their service to the VCAT and NIST. Dr. Haymet concluded his 

remarks by outlining the schedule for the remainder of the meeting.

OVERVIEW AND SAFETY

NIST Update and Agenda Review – Dr. Willie E. May, Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for 

Standards and Technology and Acting NIST Director

Presentation Summary: Dr. May introduced two new VCAT members and an invited guest. Hemma 

Prafullchandra, CTO of HyTrust, Inc. joined the VCAT in October 2014. Mike Garvey, President of M-7 

Technologies began his appointment in late January. Dr. May also introduced David Wilson, President of 

Morgan State University attending as an invited guest as he completes the review and vetting process to 

join the VCAT.

Dr. May shared information on a recent safety incident unveiled during the Material Measurement 

Laboratory’s (MML) 100% chemical inventory. Vials of uranium material that date back many years were 

discovered in one the laboratories and appropriate actions were implemented. As a result, MML decided 

to implement a safety stand down day and inspect all cabinets, drawers, and hoods for other materials. 

Other NIST laboratories took similar action. As a result of these inspections, 160 materials were found 

and properly transferred to the radiation safety program.

Dr. May provided information on a number of organizational updates, research activities and staff 

accomplishments. Dr. May updated the VCAT on the hiring of key NIST leadership position, noting that 

the announcement of the new MEP Director should be made in the coming weeks and the vacancy for 

the Director of NIST’s Standards Coordination Office would be posted soon.

Dr. May updated the VCAT on the progress of the operational improvement teams focused on 

acquisitions, agreements, human resources, and legal services. Each group engaged stakeholders 

across the organization and developed suggestions to overcome barriers and challenges. Having 

received reports from three of the teams, Dr. May, Mary Saunders, and Phil Singerman have been 

reviewing the recommendations, and a NIST Town Hall meeting is scheduled to share the findings and 

discuss implementation plans.

Dr. May presented information on the President’s FY16 NIST Budget request of $1,119.7M which is 

+$255.8M over FY15. The FY16 request breaks down into Scientific and Technical Research and 

Services: $754.7M (+$79.2M), Industrial Technology Services: $306M (+$167.9M), Construction of 

Research Facilities: $59M (+$8.7M), and includes one-time funding for two NNMI institutes.

Several recent staff awards and recognitions were shared, including Robert Celotta, Daniel Pierce and 

John Unguris for their work on development of electronic spin sources and detectors. Gretchen Campbell 

was recognized for her work with Bose-Einstein condensates, and Ian Spielman received an award for 

the development of quantum simulations using ultra cold atoms.

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Dr. May provided information on NIST external review panels and their recent work. The NRC Board on 

Assessments reviews the quality of NIST research against the finest academic institutions in the world, 

and other organizations. This year NIST had two labs (Materials Measurement and the Engineering 

Laboratory) assessed and the reviews are done on a rolling basis, so over about three years, NIST will 

have an assessment on the quality of the research across the organization. 

To examine the effectiveness of NIST’s measurement service programs, primarily the standard reference 

materials, calibration services, and the standard reference data services, NIST invited a panel of 

members from other national metrology institutes to provide input on NIST’s capabilities from a global 

perspective and allow for key comparisons. 

A number of new programmatic efforts were highlighted including, Quantum Information and Computer 

Science (QuICS), a partnership between University of Maryland, NIST and the NSA focused on 

maintaining the Nation’s leading role in quantum information science. NIST is also partnering with the 

NFL, Under Armour, and GE to develop state of the art materials for impact mitigation. The Head Health 

Challenge will accept abstracts through March and in April winning abstracts will be invited to submit a full 

proposal and sample material.

In the areas of Public Safety Communications, the results of the Wireless Spectrum Auction will provide 

NIST with $300M through 2022 to be used to support public safety communications research and will 

include partnerships with industry and other federal agencies.

Dr. May concluded his presentation with several program updates for the VCAT. In the area of disaster 

resilience, NIST is holding several more workshops in 2015 as the draft framework continues to be 

developed and refined. NIST has been working to raise awareness and adoption of the practices outlined 

in the Cybersecurity Framework along with gathering feedback on the use of the framework. NIST plans 

to continue outreach on the framework and identify opportunities for improvements. All of the 

subcommittees under the Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC), the practice-focused 

organization supporting the National Commission on Forensic Science, have been formed and members 

now total 422 spanning areas such as toxicology, digital evidence, and DNA analysis and many others. 

NIST's Center of Excellence program continues to expand with expected announcements of the 

organizations selected for the community resilience center later in February and forensic science center 

to be announced Spring 2015.

Discussion: The group discussed the following topics:

• NIST FY 2016 budget request and initiatives.

• The renovation needs of existing NIST buildings and infrastructure.

• The role industry will play in the standards development process related to forensic science.

For more information, see Dr. May’s presentation.

Safety Update – Richard Kayser, Chief Safety Officer

Presentation Summary: With regard to safety metrics, Dr. Kayser reviewed NIST’s actual number of 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recordable and Days Away, Restricted, or 

Transferred (DART) cases from FY 2011 – FY 2014, emphasizing that both metrics have decreased over 

this time period. Most of NIST’s OSHA recordable and DART cases continued to be due to slips, trips, 

and falls. 

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Dr. Kayser updated the VCAT on the shared standard of safety performance effort focused on eliminating 

common safety issues at NIST. Initially the effort was focused on three areas: using electrical cords 

safely, eliminating slip, trip, and fall hazards, and properly labeling chemical containers. NIST has decided 

to expand the scope of the standards to include safe storage practices while continuing efforts in the 

other areas. 

NIST is planning to establish an enhanced workplace inspection program that includes OU-led teams of 

inspectors along with safety professionals from the NIST safety office. Through this process, semiannual 

inspections of work areas that involve hazardous activity will be conducted in addition to the annual 

inspections of common areas and office spaces. 

Dr. Kayser provided an update on the actions stemming from the 2014 safety climate survey, including a 

focus on employee rights, unsafe conditions and practices, incident reporting, safety training, 

management observations, and re-emphasizing the importance of safety in individual performance 

appraisals.

Discussion: The group discussed the following topics:

• Continued progress on the improving safety culture at NIST.

• Need for continued/regular clean-up efforts to avoid the issue of legacy materials. 

For more information, see Dr. Kayser’s presentation.

Changes to Congressional Landscape - Likely Priorities and Impact to NIST- Linda Acierto, Senior 

Legislative Policy Advisor, Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs

Presentation Summary: Ms. Acierto outlined recent changes to the Congressional committees with 

NIST oversight responsibilities. She provided information on the individual members sitting on both the 

appropriations and authorizing committees and their knowledge of NIST programs and activities. Ms. 

Acierto indicated that there are some members joining the committees not familiar with the NIST portfolio 

of activities. NIST is working to provide these members and their staff with briefings on the work of NIST. 

Several areas of interest to the Committees include how NIST is supporting cybersecurity, industry, 

standards development, technology transfer, advanced technologies, economic competitiveness and job 

creation. Ms. Acierto also highlighted how the work and focus of NIST crosses into many other House 

and Senate Committees beyond those with direct oversight. 

For more information, see Ms. Acierto’s presentation.

Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation Act of 2014 (RAMI) – Mike Molnar, Director, 

Advanced Manufacturing Office

Presentation Summary:

Mr. Molnar provided a review of the impetus of the National Network of Manufacturing Institutes (NNMI), 

highlighting the original vision outlined by the President and the recent bi-partisan support resulting in the 

authorization of the NNMI in the Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation Act (RAMI). With the 

RAMI legislation, DOC and NIST must establish 1) a “Network for Manufacturing Innovation Program” to 

convene and support a network of Institutes; 2) new “Centers for Manufacturing Innovation”, using open 

topic, open competition process; and 3) a National Program Office, to oversee and carry out the program. 

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Mr. Molnar provided an update on the NNMI pilot institutes that now include additive manufacturing, 

digital manufacturing, lightweight and modern metals, smart power, and advanced composites. He 

indicated there are three more NNMIs - integrated photonics, smart manufacturing, and flexible hybrid 

electronics – planned for FY 2015. For FY2016, there are plans for five more Institutes based on agencyled topics from USDA, Energy and Defense. In addition, the Department of Commerce is anticipating 

funding two Institutes through the open topic competition. 

Mr. Molnar also outlined the work NIST has been doing to support the entire network. He shared draft 

ideas for a network structure that includes an executive committee, governance board, technical advisory 

board, and an executive director as well as Network Council to provide a strong advisory board presence. 

Mr. Molnar discussed initial plans for starting the FY2016 Commerce-led Institute by running a two-stage 

competition. Stage I would involve planning grants to begin to identify the technology areas and industry 

partners in FY2015. Stage II would be for the actual Institute applications and open to all Stage I 

awardees. 

Discussion: 

• A potential NIST role in supporting the existing NNMI centers by serving as the central budget 

clearinghouse for funding the Institutes.

• The types of topics and industries that submitted NNMI ideas under the request for information 

effort initiated several years ago.

• The role that geographic diversity plays in the selection of the NNMI sites.

For more information, see Mr. Molnar’s presentation.

VCAT ANNUAL REPORT

Deliberations and Presentation on Observations, Findings, and Recommendations of 2014 Annual 

Report

Dr. Haymet reviewed the draft 2014 VCAT Annual Report and solicited comments from the members as 

well as NIST leadership on the initial observations, findings, and recommendations for deliberation by the 

Committee in the following areas:

• NIST Safety Program 

• NIST Cryptographic Standards Program

• NIST Disaster Resilience Program

• NIST Role in Advanced Communication

The Annual Report will also comment on NIST’s efforts in advanced manufacturing and the VCAT 

thoughts on the NIST budget and planning efforts. The final report will be available on the VCAT website 

at http://www.nist.gov/director/vcat/index.cfm.

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HOLLINGS MANUFACTURING EXTENSION PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM

State of the Program - Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership Program - Phillip Singerman, 

Associate Director IIS, Vickie Wessel, Chair, MEP Advisory Board, Bernadine Hawes, Member, 

MEP Advisory Board

Presentation Summary: Ms. Wessel provided an overview of the MEP Advisory Board and its priorities 

in the areas of technology acceleration and local board governance. She indicated the Board is also 

reviewing the progress of the recompetition of the MEP system and supporting cost share changes for the 

program. Dr. Singerman highlighted the MEP mission, program structure, strategic focus, and annual 

budget. He discussed the individual identities of the local centers and their connection to the national 

program. Ms. Hawes provided the perspective from a local board member and outlined the focus, 

structure and impacts of the Delaware Valley Industrial Research Center (DVIRC) serving the 

Philadelphia region of the state of Pennsylvania. Both Ms. Hawes and Ms. Wessel provided additional 

details on the work of the MEP Advisory board and their individual subcommittees. The subcommittee

focused on technology acceleration has defined the concept broadly to include tech transfer, knowledge 

transfer, technology transition, technology diffusion and deployment. The subcommittee on board 

governance is working to increase the connectivity between the national program and the local boards 

and to ensure there is strong accountability at the local level. 

Discussion: 

• MEP’s focus and structure compared to large consulting organizations.

• The use of the Baldrige criteria in evaluating individual MEP centers.

• How individual centers reach manufacturers in their region.

For more information, see the presentation material.

BALDRIGE PERFORMANCE EXCELLENCE PROGRAM

State of the Program - Baldrige Performance Excellence Program - Bob Fangmeyer, Director 

BPEP, Warren Harris, Member, Baldrige Board of Overseers, Al Faber, President & CEO, Baldrige 

Foundation

Presentation Summary: Mr. Fangmeyer presented an evolution of the Baldrige program and how the 

program and the criteria have changed over time to provide a framework for performance excellence. The 

framework promotes a systems approach to leadership and performance improvement that facilitates 

increased alignment, integration, and optimization of everything an organization does. Mr. Fangmeyer 

outlined the program’s budget history and explained how it no longer receives federal funding. He also 

provided several example highlighting the performance and impact of the program and changes to the 

program’s business model and operations to adjust to the loss of the federal investment.

Representing a company that has embraced the framework as well as a member of the Baldrige Board of 

Overseers, Mr. Harris provided an in-depth summary of how the Tata Group adopted the Baldrige 

framework. This includes annual assessments conducted by internal staff with the findings reported back 

to the Board of Directors. The Tata Group has seen significant financial gains over the period they have 

been employing the framework.

Mr. Faber outlined the plans for the Baldrige Foundation focused on fundraising, advocacy, board 

development and foundation operations. He presented the Foundation’s multi-tiered outreach efforts, 

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including direct mailings, social media outlets, and annual conferences focused on promoting the 

Program and garnering support and stewardship.

Discussion:

• How the framework is different from other quality initiatives such as ISO

• The process and structure the Tata Group uses assessing each of its business units.

For more information, see the presentation material.

February 5, 2015

NIST INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS AND ENGAGEMENTS

Context Setting and Examples of Current NIST Global Engagements - Willie E. May, Acting Under

Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and Acting NIST Director

Presentation Summary: Dr. May outlined many of the mechanisms NIST uses in its international 

engagements, including participating in international metrology and standardization organizations, 

developing agreements with specific countries, activities with other Federal agencies, and discrete 

activities at the laboratory staff level. He described specific engagements through international metrology 

and standardization organizations in the areas of metrology, documentary standards, conformity 

assessment, and trade and export. He asked the VCAT to provide input into other aspects NIST should 

consider when deciding to engage in discretionary international activities. He also asked the VCAT for 

thoughts on emerging issues that may call for NIST to engage internationally.

For more information, see Dr. May’s presentation.

Stakeholder Perspective: Joe Bhatia, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), American 

National Standards Institute (ANSI)

Presentation Summary: Mr. Bhatia discussed the U.S. standardization system and the role that ANSI 

plays alongside of NIST with a focus on the public/private partnership nature. He provided an overview of 

the interface with a number of regional and international bodies. He outlined how ANSI facilitates on 

behalf of both the private sector and the government. He also provided information on the current trends 

in international standardization and commercial areas that affect industry. He described how ANSI is a 

membership organization, domestically, regionally, internationally with members and representatives from 

industry, trade associations, professional societies, and government agencies. 

Mr. Bahtia outlined how the U.S. standardization system is very diverse and market-driven. While it is 

private sector-led, the U.S. government plays a pivotal role, and NIST and ANSI have worked together 

coordinating and collaborating on standards development and conformity assessment. Mr. Bahtia shared 

that the partnership in the U.S. is key. By working together responses to national priorities, international 

challenges, and technical and innovation changes can be effectively developed. This dynamic makes the 

U.S. standardization system quite unique in the world.

Discussion: 

• Industry support and participation in the ANSI organization.

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• Scale and size of the ANSI organization.

• Impact, scope and diversity of the organization.

For more information, see Mr. Bhatia’s presentation.

Stakeholder Perspective: Lonnie Spires, President USA Operations, Trescal

Presentation Summary: Mr. Spires presented an overview of Trescal explaining that it is a third-party 

calibration laboratory operating on the global scale with nearly 2,000 employees, 71 laboratories, and 95 

customer satellite sites. Mr. Spires outlined several global measurement challenges, including advanced 

communication and mobile technologies with a focus on the importance of developing the next generation 

measurements in these areas. In his role as President of NCSL, Mr. Spires talked about the long 

standing partnership with NIST and the collaborations around training and standards development. Mr. 

Spires outlined some of growing international opportunities in South America and the potential for NIST. 

He also highlighted increased opportunities for next generation measurement and calibration services 

and the importance of ensuring global competence in measurement with a focus on educating, training,

and developing metrologists.

For more information, see Mr. Spires’ presentation.

Discussion:

The discussion session was opened to Dr. May, Mr. Bhatia, and Mr. Spires and included the following 

topics:

• The importance of NIST international activities and the need to take a strategic approach to the 

increased involvement.

• The growing impact ITAR requirements are having on all industries.

• NIST’s success in serving as a coordinating body across federal agencies and the importance of 

using that to educate and train federal counterparts on the importance of standards development. 

• Continued support for staff exchanges and visits with other NMIs to develop relationships with 

their foreign counterparts.

CLOSE AND ADMINISTRATIVE BUSINESS

There were no public comments offered.

The VCAT discussed the June 2015 meeting and potential topics to be addressed in upcoming meetings. 

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 11:30 a.m. on February 5, 2015

I hereby certify that to the best of my knowledge, the forgoing minutes are accurate and complete.

Karen Lellock, Executive Director, NIST Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology

Dr. Tony Haymet, Chair, NIST Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology

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