The workshop will be held at the NIST headquarters in Gaithersburg, Md., May 31 to June 1, 2000. Combinatorial methodology is a set of tools and techniques the chemical and materials science communities will use in the future to accelerate discovery and development of new materials to meet 21st century needs. Manufacturers, as well as international weights and measures organizations, can now easily access accepted specifications and tolerances for scales and other measuring devices in NIST Handbook 44. They also can view model weights and measures laws and regulations, which have been adopted by most states, in NIST Handbook 130. NIST s Office of Weights and Measures posted these documents to increase their dissemination and availability, thereby promoting uniformity of weights and measures in the marketplace.
Uniformity protects consumers and benefits businesses by ensuring fair competition.
Handbook 44, Specifications, Tolerances, and Other Technical Requirements for Weighing and Measuring Devices , contains information needed to design or test weighing and measuring devices for use in commerce. Its codes cover a wide variety of devices such as those used to dispense home heating oil and gasoline, food store scales, taxi meters, odometers and fabric measuring devices. Handbook 130, Uniform Laws and Regulations in the Areas of Legal Metrology and Engine Fuel Quality , encourages standardization in weights and measures laws within the United States. The handbook contains 10 different model laws and regulations, plus the recommended procedure for verifying the accuracy of retail pricing. It includes regulations prescribing the method of sale for commodities and packaging and labeling requirements.