National Conference on Weights and Measures

The National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM) is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to developing and regulating the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

technical standards for weights and measures

Units of measurement

A unit of measurement is a definite magnitude of a physical quantity, defined and adopted by convention and/or by law, that is used as a standard for measurement of the same physical quantity. Any other value of the physical quantity can be expressed as a simple multiple of the unit of...

. The organization's official mission

Mission statement

A mission statement is a statement of the purpose of a company or organization. The mission statement should guide the actions of the organization, spell out its overall goal, provide a path, and guide decision-making...

is to advance a healthy business and consumer climate through the development and implementation of uniform and equitable weights and measures standards using a consensus building process.

History

The first Weights and Measures Law was signed on March 2, 1799 by John Adams

John Adams

John Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...

. NCWM found its beginnings in 1905 in an effort to bring stakeholders together to set national standards for voluntary

Voluntary

Voluntary may refer to:* Voluntary * Voluntary or volunteer, person participating via volunteering/volunteerism- See also :* Voluntary action* Voluntariness, in law and philosophy* Voluntaryism, rejection of coercion...

adoption and implementation by the states

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

. The various model standards adopted by NCWM are published annually by the National Institute of Standards and Technology

National Institute of Standards and Technology

The National Institute of Standards and Technology , known between 1901 and 1988 as the National Bureau of Standards , is a measurement standards laboratory, otherwise known as a National Metrological Institute , which is a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce...

(NIST) in NIST Handbook 44: Specifications and Tolerances and Other Technical Requirements for Weighing and Measuring Devices, NIST Handbook 130: Uniform Laws and Regulations and NIST Handbook 133: Checking the Net Contents of Packaged Goods.

Organization

NCWM is headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska

Lincoln, Nebraska

The City of Lincoln is the capital and the second-most populous city of the US state of Nebraska. Lincoln is also the county seat of Lancaster County and the home of the University of Nebraska. Lincoln's 2010 Census population was 258,379....

. NCWM is governed by bylaws as adopted by its membership and policies as set by its board of directors

Board of directors

A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...

. NCWM administers the National Type Evaluation Program (NTEP). This program provides certification that a manufacturer of a particular model or family of weighing or measuring devices is capable of meeting the United States standards as adopted by NCWM. NTEP certification is now a requirement for new equipment placed in service in most states.

Membership

NCWM membership is open to any person. The membership year is October 1 to September 30.

Committees

There are three standing committees.

Specifications and Tolerances Committee
Laws and Regulations Committee
Professional Development
Professional development
Professional development refers to skills and knowledge attained for both personal development and career advancement. Professional development encompasses all types of facilitated learning opportunities, ranging from college degrees to formal coursework, conferences and informal learning...

Committee

Subcommittees and Task Groups

Fuels and Lubricants Subcommittee (FALS)
Task Groups
Action group
In sociology and anthropology, an action group or task group is a group of people joined temporarily to accomplish some task or take part in some organized collective action....

on Printer Ink and Toner Cartridge
Toner cartridge
A toner cartridge, also called laser toner, is the consumable component of a laser printer. Toner cartridges contain toner powder, a fine, dry mixture of plastic particles, carbon, and black or other coloring agents that make the actual image on the paper...

s
Task Group on Retail Motor Fuel Dispenser
Fuel dispenser
A fuel dispenser is a machine at a filling station that is used to pump gasoline, diesel, CNG, CGH2, HCNG, LPG, LH2, ethanol fuel, biofuels like biodiesel, kerosene, or other types of fuel into vehicles...

Price Posting and Computer Capability

National Type Evaluation Program (NTEP)

The development of the National Type Evaluation Program (NTEP) provides manufacturers the ability to be evaluated and certified one time with acceptance throughout the United States. NTEP is a means of ensuring national requirements are met before any equipment is allowed in the marketplace.

The NTEP Committee is responsible for oversight of NTEP. The Committee provides final review and approval of recommendations to amend NCWM Publication 14 Technical Policy, Checklists and Test Procedures and makes recommendations to the National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM) Board of Directors for amendments to NCWM Publication 14 Administrative Policy. The NTEP Committee also addresses NCWM’s involvement in international standards development and agreements related to type evaluation and certification.

NTEP Certificate of Conformance

NTEP certification is issued by NCWM upon successful completion of the evaluation process. This NTEP Certificate of Conformance indicates that the device manufacturer has demonstrated the ability to meet applicable requirements for commercial weighing and measuring equipment in the United States as specified in NIST Handbook 44: Specifications and Tolerances and Other Technical Requirements. NTEP certification is required in most states in the United States.

NTEP Authorized Laboratories

There are ten NTEP authorized laboratories:

California
Grain Inspection Packers and Stockyard Administration (GIPSA)
Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration
The Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that facilitates the marketing of livestock, poultry, meat, cereals, oilseeds, and related agricultural products, and promotes fair and competitive trading practices for the...
Kansas
Maryland
NIST Force Group
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Measurement Canada
Measurement Canada
Measurement Canada is a Canadian government agency of Industry Canada whose mission is "to ensure equity and accuracy where goods and services are bought and sold on the basis of measurement, in order to contribute to a fair and competitive marketplace for Canadians." The agency is headed by a...

National Type Evaluation Technical Committees (NTETC)

NTEP serves as a means of assurance that a device will be manufactured in accordance with United States standards for commercial weighing and measuring devices. These standards are adopted by the NCWM and published in NIST Handbook 44: Specifications and Tolerances and Other Technical Requirements. NCWM utilizes special committees called National Type Evaluation Technical Committees (NTETC) to develop the technical policies, checklists and test procedures that are used for the evaluation and certification process. These criteria are published annually in NCWM Publication 14.

Sector members include authorized laboratories, manufacturers, technical advisors and the NTEP Administrator. The sectors provide a forum for consensus building among the evaluators and the technical experts who design and market the equipment. There are five NTETC Sectors, each specializing in a particular area of commercial weighing and measurement.

Belt-Conveyor Scale Sector
Grain Analyzer Sector
Measuring Sector
Software Sector
Weighing Sector

Meetings

NCWM offers many meetings throughout the year to allow every person a voice in the issues facing the weights and measures community today. The meetings have direct impact on the national standards. The two largest conferences are the annual meeting and the interim meeting. The Interim Meeting is held in January as a forum to develop agenda items to amend the United States weights and measures standards contained in NIST Handbooks 44, 130, and 133 and determine each proposals status for the Annual Meeting. The Annual Meeting is held in July and focused on additional development of the items and to vote on proposed amendments to the national standards. The 2010 Annual Meeting was in St. Paul, Minnesota from July 11–15.

2011 Meetings

Interim Meeting: January 23–27, 2011 / Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
Annual Meeting: July 17–21, 2011 / Missoula, Montana
Missoula, Montana
Missoula is a city located in western Montana and is the county seat of Missoula County. The 2010 Census put the population of Missoula at 66,788 and the population of Missoula County at 109,299. Missoula is the principal city of the Missoula Metropolitan Area...

NCWM also holds numerous NTETC Sector meetings throughout the year. Each sector specializes in a particular area of commercial weighing and measurement.

National Outreach

NCWM works in partnership with four regional associations to facilitate a grassroots approach to standards development. They are the Central, Northeastern, Southern and Western Weights and Measures Associations. These associations are stand-alone organizations composed of volunteer leadership from the public and private sectors of the weights and measures community. The leadership and committee structure of these associations is traditionally very similar to that of NCWM.

Regional associations serve as the gateway for new proposals to amend the national standards. Any person or organization may submit a proposal to one or all of the regions by completing NCWM Form 15. The regional committees will conduct open hearings, deliberate and determine whether these new items will be forwarded to the national committees for further consideration. Regional associations also serve as a means to continue development of items on the agendas of the national committees. Finally, these associations provide an opportunity for state and local officials and private companies to conduct training events, build relationships and work together toward common goals of quality standards that are interpreted and applied uniformly.

Publications

The public can have a direct role in developing the laws and regulations for weights and measures by participating in the standards development process. The standards are subject to amendment on an annual basis. They are adopted by NCWM and contained in the following NIST Handbooks and NCWM Publications.

NIST Handbook 44 Specifications, Tolerances and Other Technical Requirements for Weighing and Measuring Devices
NIST Handbook 130 Uniform Laws and Regulations in the Areas of Legal Metrology and Engine Fuel Quality
NIST Handbook 133 Checking the Net Contents of Packaged Goods
NCWM Publication 14 Administrative Policy
NCWM Publication 14 Grain Moisture Meters & Near Infrared Grain Analyzers
NCWM Publication 14 Measuring Devices
NCWM Publication 14 Weighing Devices
NCWM Publication 14 CD

External links

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