Stephen Benjamin, director of the NCDA&CS Standards Division, was recently voted chairman-elect for the National Conference on Weights and Measures
Stephen Benjamin, director of the NCDA&CS Standards Division, was voted chairman-elect of the National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM) during the organization’s annual meeting July 17-21 in Missoula, Mont.
Most recently, Benjamin served as the Southern Weights and Measures Association (SWMA) representative to the Board of Directors. From 2006 to 2008, he served on the NCWM Laws and Regulations Committee.
The NCWM develops and implements uniform weights-and-measures standards for the benefit of consumers across the country. The national membership consists of about 2,100 state regulators and industry leaders, representing four regional associations.
Most of the legislation passed by the conference comes out of three active committees: Professional Development, which creates training material for technicians and inspectors; Laws and Regulations, which develops specific rules for adoption by states; and Specifications and Tolerances, which addresses production requirements for measuring devices.
The department’s Standards Division is probably most known for its work inspecting gas pumps and price scanners, but the NCWM addresses a wider variety of issues that may not automatically be associated with weights and measures.
For example, a task group has been assigned to investigate and develop regulations for ink and toner cartridges. A proposal from the SWMA would require cartridge manufacturers to print the volume of ink in a cartridge on its label. Opponents feel the cartridges should just include performance information, such as sheets per cartridge, instead of information on volume.
These are the types of discussions Benjamin can look forward to moderating when he assumes the NCWM chairman position next year. This year, Benjamin will visit regional meetings and act as chairman as needed in the current leader’s absence. The position is a volunteer position and all travel expenses to the regional meetings are covered by the NCWM.
You can learn more about the National Conference on Weights and Measures at its website. You also can learn about some of the inspections performed by the NCDA&CS Standards Division by following the links below:
Scale inspections
Gas pump inspections
Taxi cab meter inspections