The CIML President, Dr Roman Schwartz, reported on the key activities and membership changes that had taken place during the year. At the end of his report he handed over the presidency to Dr Bobjoseph Mathew (Vice-Director of the Federal Institute of Metrology METAS, Switzerland), who was elected for a six-year term at the 57th CIML Meeting in 2022. The Committee thanked Dr Schwartz for his presidential leadership during the period 2017–2023, awarded him an OIML Medal, and made him an Honorary Member.
As there were no candidates for the position of CIML First Vice-President following the call for candidates made in November 2022, another call for candidates will be circulated in November 2023. Mr Bill Loizides (Australia) was appointed as CIML Second Vice-President for a six-year-term with immediate effect.
The BIML Director, Mr Anthony Donnellan, reported on the activities and achievements of the BIML and its staff. For the 58th CIML Meeting, Mr Donnellan’s report focussed on the extensive and critical role that the International Bureau of Legal Metrology (BIML) performs to raise awareness of, and to promote, international legal metrology.
As a result of the significant efforts and resources deployed to manage Member debt, again this year no OIML Member States nor Corresponding Members were delisted.
The five-year terms of Mr Donnellan and Mr Dunmill (BIML Assistant Director) were renewed by the Committee.
The accounts for 2022 were presented and were approved by the CIML. Mr Donnellan reported that the Organisation continues to be in a strong financial position, although late payments still present an underlying risk to the OIML and rising inflation continues to be a challenge. He stated that expenses remain generally within expectations, and that the OIML Operating Reserve had not been accessed during this period.
A summary of the detailed discussions held during the Regional Legal Metrology Organisations Round Table (RLMO RT) held on 26 September 2023 was presented by the RLMO RT Chairperson, Dr Charles Ehrlich. Organisations in liaison (BIPM, CECIP, IAF, ILAC) submitted written reports on their activities and CECIP gave an oral presentation.
The BIML gave a report on the progress of the technical work of the Organisation, and lists of high-priority projects and publications were approved by the Committee. The Committee also thanked the French and German co-conveners of TC 9/SC 1/p 1 for their work on the revision of R 76:2006 Non-automatic weighing instruments and approved the temporary transfer of the convenership of the Project Group to the BIML.
The following publications were approved by the Committee:
- Revision of OIML B 6:2019 Directives for OIML technical work (Parts 1 and 2);
- Amendment of OIML B 17:2012 Policies and rules for the reimbursement of travel expenses incurred by CIML Members of Honour and invited guests in attending OIML events;
- Revision of OIML B 19:2022 Terms of Reference for the Advisory Group on matters concerning Countries and Economies with Emerging Metrology Systems (CEEMS AG);
- New Basic Publication OIML B 22 Policy and rules for the reimbursement of travel expenses incurred by the CIML President in attending legal metrology related events;
- Revision of OIML D 31:2019 General requirements for software-controlled measuring instruments (as amended in 2020).
The following new projects were approved by the CIML:
- Revision of OIML D 31:2023 General requirements for software-controlled measuring instruments;
- New Recommendation DC electricity metering.
Mr Chris Pulham spoke about communication with OIML stakeholders and gave a presentation on the OIML Bulletin, focussing on the highly successful concept of “Mentors” and plans for future editions, including adding a “Letters to the Editor” section and exploring possibilities to introduce more technical, peer-reviewed articles. Members were encouraged to submit topics and articles for future editions.
The OIML Certification System (OIML-CS) Management Committee (MC) Chairperson, Mr Mannie Panesar, reported on the activities of the OIML-CS, including the MC meeting held at METAS, Switzerland in March 2023. He welcomed India as the newest OIML Issuing Authority to join the OIML-CS, and he spoke about plans for the growth and future development of the OIML-CS. Mr Panesar’s term as MC Chairperson and Mr Bill Loizides’ term as MC Deputy Chairperson both come to an end on 31 December 2023. Mr Marc Schmidt was appointed as the new MC Deputy Chairperson and he will take on the role of Acting MC Chairperson for a 12-month period from 1 January 2024. A new MC Chairperson will be appointed at the 59th CIML Meeting in 2024. OIML R 111:2004 Weights of classes E1, E2, F1, F2, M1, M1-2, M2, M2-3 and M3 has been added to the scope of the OIML-CS.
Mr Jaco Marneweck, CEEMS Advisory Group (CEEMS AG) Chairperson, gave an update on the activities of the CEEMS AG. Mr Chakra Yodmani (Deputy Director General of the Department of Internal Trade) presented details of the NEXT (Novelty and innovation – Enhancement in protection and services – EXperiences and intelligence – Transparency and accountability) Legal Metrology Systems (LMS) programme, called the “Chiang Mai Declaration”. The Committee welcomed the proposal and tasked the CEEMS AG with working on its implementation.
The Chairperson of the OIML Digitalisation Task Group (DTG), Dr Sascha Eichstädt, reported on the Seminar held on 16 September 2023 “The future of the OIML in the digital era”. The outcome of this Seminar will enable the DTG to develop a roadmap for the OIML’s work in this area.
Concerning OIML activities on e-Learning and other online training, the Committee requested the BIML, in consultation with the DTG, the CEEMS AG, the OIML-CS MC, and the RLMO RT, to draft an e-Learning concept which should take into account OIML G 23:2022 Guide to the use of online technology for conducting CEEMS activities in a post-COVID world and the outcomes of the OIML seminars held in 2019 and in association with the 58th CIML Meeting.
In addition to Dr Schwartz, an OIML medal was awarded to Mrs Mairead Buckley for her contribution to the work of the OIML. Letters of Appreciation were presented to Dr Marko Esche, Mr Han Jianping, Dr Rainer Kramer, and Mr Mannie Panesar for their contributions to the work of the OIML.
Lastly, two tentative invitations were presented to the Committee to host the 59th CIML Meeting in 2024. The CIML Members for Japan and P.R. China were invited to confirm their intentions to the BIML by the end of November 2023. If two eligible invitations are received, an online vote will take place to decide which offer to accept.
The 58th CIML Meeting Resolutions, documents, and presentations are available on the OIML website at https://www.oiml.org/en/structure/ciml/sites.
