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The State of Maine and the federal government joined forces today
on an innovative technology initiative to benefit the economy in Maine
and the nation. Maine Governor Angus King, Jr. and Acting Under Secretary
of Commerce for Technology Gary Bachula signed a letter
of partnership that links a variety of organizations in Maine
with the U.S. Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology
in an expansion of current cooperative efforts.
The agreement was signed in a ceremony at the State Capitol building
in Augusta attended by state legislators, business leaders, and university
and NIST representatives. It is the first such partnership formed
by NIST with a state, and it will serve as a pilot for possible expansion
to other states if it is successful.
"We know that investments made by Maine in science and technology
will improve the competitiveness of our products and services in world
markets--and that will ensure benefits to the citizens of Maine as
active partners in a vibrant and balanced economy," said King.
"By focusing on technology and linking with NIST, Maine will
improve its ability to take advantage of the opportunities that lie
ahead," King said.
"NIST already has a track record of successful cooperation with
companies and other organizations in Maine, and we think this is an
ideal opportunity to expand our partnership with a state that is committed
to putting technology to better use in the New Economy," said
Commerce Secretary William Daley in Washington, D.C.
"I am excited about the prospect of this new teaming arrangement
which should yield positive returns not only to Maine, but to other
parts of the country which will benefit from the results of this cooperation.
It is a perfect fit for inclusion under the umbrella of the U.S. Innovation
Partnership," Bachula said.
That broader partnership was initiated by Commerce Secretary William
Daley, the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology
Policy, and the nation’s governors in 1997. It is designed to
foster the development of a national innovation system that explicitly
recognizes the roles and resources of the states and the federal government.
With the mission of promoting economic growth by partnering with
industry to develop and apply technology, measurements, and standards,
NIST has nearly a century of experience working with U.S. companies
and other organizations. NIST is a non-regulatory agency of the Commerce
Department’s Technology Administration,
which is headed by Bachula.
Existing relationships between Maine and NIST include:
- The Maine Manufacturing Extension Partnership, established in
1995, is a strong component of NIST’s nationwide Manufacturing
Extension Partnership.
- The Maine MEP serves Maine’s smaller manufacturers around
the state. NIST co-funds the Maine MEP, which has been a national
leader in providing Y2K computer "bug"-related assistance.
- Maine’s Division of Quality Assurance and Regulations works
with NIST’s Office
of Weights and Measures to protect consumers and to ensure equity
in the marketplace.
- The Margaret Chase Smith Quality Association, which promotes economic
development in Maine by helping organizations to achieve business
and quality excellence, bases its criteria for making awards on
criteria developed by the NIST Baldrige National Quality Program.
- NIST’s Building and Fire
Research Laboratory works with Maine officials on building and
fire codes to ensure public safety.
- Maine’s state and local law enforcement agencies and laboratories
use standards and research data developed by NIST’s
Office of Law Enforcement Standards in areas ranging from body
armor and concealed weapons detection to forensic use of DNA.
- NIST’s laboratories provide critical elements of the measurement
and standards infrastructure relied upon by companies and other
organizations in Maine for conducting business and ensuring that
consumers receive quality goods and services.
Teams from Maine and NIST have identified several promising areas
for expanding current relationships through a combination of formal
and informal arrangements. Specific areas that will be explored under
this new partnership include:
- NIST and the Technology Administration
will offer technical assistance to Maine in designing an infrastructure
to maximize the economic impact of its expanding funding for science
and technology. NIST staff with experience in managing both technology
development and technology extension programs will improve Maine’s
ability to work with other important resources, such as the State
Science and Technology Institute and other federal agencies. This
effort will involve both NIST’s
Manufacturing Extension Partnership and Advanced
Technology Program.
- Businesses in Maine have identified measurement and technical
needs as they find ways to apply optical technology—involving
the use of light—in measurement and inspection, production
process diagnostics, machine vision, and remote sensing. NIST
Physics Laboratory researchers who specialize in optics will
provide technical assistance to those companies.
- NIST building researchers will team with experts in the University
of Maine’s Advanced Engineered Wood Composite Center to explore
the commercial and technical feasibility of using wood composite
materials in new and existing construction that would enable the
state to make the best use of a changing tree stock available in
the state.
- NIST will help to plan and fund a study of Maine small businesses’
understanding and use of the Baldrige
criteria for performance excellence which serves as a guidebook
for organizational improvement. The study will identify opportunities
for improving the criteria to encourage their use by small businesses.
- Companies in Maine’s active composite materials industry
will compare notes with NIST Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory
experts in composites to consider collaborations that could
include transfer of NIST-developed technologies, and joint research
on measurement test methods for process monitoring and quality control
measurements in composites production and new technology areas and
markets.
- NIST’s
Office of Standards Services will work with Maine to improve
the ability of the state’s companies to export to Europe and
other global markets. The joint effort will aim to establish mechanisms
in Maine for assessing a product’s conformity to foreign government
requirements.
- Special training will be provided by NIST for Maine’s weights
and measures officials, and NIST will work with the state on a pilot
project for comparing measurements of mass which could serve as
a model for the rest of the country.
Maine and NIST officials will monitor progress on the new partnership
and report annually on the status of this pilot program.
Note to Editors and Correspondents: Additional
material is available by calling NIST Public and Business Affairs
at 301/975-2758 or by going to: www.nist.gov/public_affairs/news.htm
on the World Wide Web. Materials include statements
by Members of Congress from Maine, the letter
of partnership and fact sheets on past and current Maine-NIST
connections and new initiatives being
explored as well as Bachula's
remarks..
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