USE OF NIST NAME IN ADVERTISING
Sections
5.03.04 Examples of Advertising
If additional guidance is needed, contact the NIST Deputy Chief Counsel.
"As the national standards laboratory of the United States, NIST maintains
and establishes the primary standards from which measurements in science
and industry ultimately derive. It is therefore sometimes desirable for
manufacturers or users of measurement standards to make appropriate reference
to the relationship of their calibrations to NIST calibrations. The following
considerations must be borne in mind, and shall be understood as constituting
an agreement on the part of the NIST customer to be bound thereby in making
reference to NIST calibration and test reports.
"The results of calibrations and tests performed by NIST are intended
solely for the use of the organization requesting them, and apply only
to a particular device or specimen at the time of its test. The results
shall not be used to indicate or imply that they are applicable to other
similar items. In addition, such results must not be used to indicate or
imply that NIST approves, recommends, or endorses the manufacturer, the
supplier, or the user of such devices or specimens, or that NIST in any
way 'guarantees' the later performance of items after calibration or test.
"NIST declares it to be in the national interest that NIST maintain
an impartial position with respect to any commercial product. Advertising
the findings on a single instrument could be misinterpreted as an indication
of performance of other instruments of identical or similar type. There
will be no objection, however, to a statement that the manufacturer's primary
standards have been periodically calibrated by NIST, if this is actually
the case, or that the customer might arrange to have NIST calibrate the
item purchased from the manufacturer.
"NIST does not approve, recommend, or endorse any product or proprietary
material. No reference shall be made to NIST or to reports or results furnished
by NIST in any advertising or sales promotion which would indicate or imply
that NIST approves, recommends, or endorses any product or proprietary
material, or which has as its purpose an intent to cause directly or indirectly
the advertised product to be used or purchased because of NIST test reports
or results.
"In its own activities as a scientific institution, NIST uses many different
materials, products, types of equipment, and services. This use does not
imply that NIST has given them a preferential position or a formal endorsement.
Therefore, NIST discourages references, either in advertising or in the
scientific literature, which identify it as a user of any proprietary product,
material, or service. Occasionally effective communication of results by
NIST to the scientific community requires that a proprietary instrument,
product, or material be identified in an NIST publication. Reference in
an NIST publication, report, or other document to a proprietary item does
not constitute endorsement or approval of that item and such reference
should not be used in any way apart from the context of the NIST publication,
report, or document without the advance express written consent of NIST."
The policy on the use of the NIST name has been expanded to include
NIST-traceable reference materials and NIST-developed software/algorithms.
Accordingly, NIST, in cooperation with commercial firms, may produce and
characterize reference materials which are directly traceable to NIST and
are, therefore, labeled "NIST traceable reference materials." Further,
commercial firms may produce computer software which incorporates NIST-developed
algorithms. The producer shall be allowed to cite NIST as the source of
those specific portions of the product by the inclusion of the phrase,
"Incorporates NIST-developed software/algorithm." These citations do not
mean, and should not be implied to mean, evaluation, endorsement, or certification
of commercial firms' products and services.
EXAMPLE 1
The XYZ Instrument Company reads a NIST technical paper in the open
literature describing the design of a new type of instrument developed
as part of a NIST research project. XYZ likes the design and decides to
manufacture and sell an instrument based on this design, which they refer
to as an "XYZ/NIST Instrument" both in their advertising and on the front
panel of the instruments.
COMMENTARY: While NIST encourages commercial firms to utilize the results
of NIST research to the greatest extent possible, the use of NIST's name
in association with a proprietary product in that manner is prohibited!
Even if the advertising copy and product literature were to make clear
NIST's lack of involvement in the commercial venture, the possible implication
that NIST is involved with this particular product is contrary to the policy
stated above that NIST maintain an impartial position with respect to commercial
products and also causes concern on the part of the manufacturers of competing
instruments.
RECOMMENDATION: In this case, the manufacturer should have limited mention
of NIST to stating that XYZ's design of the instrument is based on technical
information published by NIST (and reference the appropriate technical
paper) or based on a NIST design.
EXAMPLE 2
A manufacturer labels a product it manufactures as "NIST traceable"
or prominently displays this phase in its advertising.
COMMENTARY: Many Federal regulations and contracts require regulated
organizations or contractees to demonstrate that the measurements that
they make are "traceable" to national standards. NIST encourages this practice
but at the same time cannot condone the prominent display of its name on
proprietary products or in the advertising of them. This particular use
of NIST's name clearly implies NIST's endorsement contrary to our policy
as stated above.
RECOMMENDATION: The manufacturer in this case could have described in
some detail how their product is calibrated. This could include a discussion
of how their laboratory standards are related to national standards through
direct calibration by NIST or indirectly through an intermediate calibration
laboratory. As long as this description is factual and the NIST name is
not prominently displayed, NIST would encourage such practice.
EXAMPLE 3
An organization claims by virtue of NIST calibration or test reports,
that NIST "certifies" its standards.
COMMENTARY: NIST does not "certify" customer standards or products,
since the word "certify" carries a connotation of a warranty or guarantee.
Obviously, NIST cannot warrant or guarantee the quality or reliability
of standards or products calibrated by NIST once they leave NIST following
calibration. Even high quality standards do drift with time, and NIST test
reports make clear that the value assigned to a calibrated standard is
only valid in a rigorous sense at the time that the calibration was performed
at NIST.
RECOMMENDATION: Organizations should limit the use of NIST's name to
factual statements such as "Our standard cells are submitted to NIST for
recalibration at intervals of approximately two years."
EXAMPLE 4
An organization produces a reference material in cooperation with NIST,
samples the material, determines uniformity and characteristics, provides
samples to NIST for final characterization, and then sells the remainder
of the lot as NIST TRACEABLE REFERENCE MATERIALS.
COMMENTARY: These materials have been measured by the manufacturer and
by NIST for uniformity and characteristics. A well documented sampling
process and measurement chain exists. NIST favors the use of such materials
and may authorize the use of the term NIST TRACEABLE REFERENCE MATERIALS.
RECOMMENDATION: Use of the term NIST TRACEABLE REFERENCE MATERIALS is
restricted to reference materials that have been manufactured offsite,
rigorously sampled, and then characterized by NIST.
The term "NIST Traceable Reference Material" is permissible only for
reference materials which are (1) manufactured and characterized by a commercial
company, then (2) rigorously sampled, and (3) then finally characterized
by NIST using the samples from the original lot.
EXAMPLE 5
A software manufacturer labels a product as NIST-approved by virtue
of incorporating NIST-developed software or algorithms in the program.
COMMENTARY: NIST encourages industry use of NIST-developed software
or algorithms in commercial software and the acknowledgement by industry
of such use. However, NIST should not be represented as certifying or endorsing
commercial software because NIST has no control over how the software or
algorithms were incorporated and used.
RECOMMENDATION: The manufacturer can cite the incorporation of NIST-developed software or algorithms without implying that NIST has evaluated, endorsed, or certified the commercial software product.