In This Issue:
NIST to STEP into New Role
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NIST to STEP into New Role
Now that efforts to develop global product data exchange standards have attained self-sustaining "international momentum," NIST has begun to shift out of its 15-year-long role as secretariat of the body guiding the evolution of STEP, the global Standard for the Exchange of Product model data. In a letter, NIST recently advised the American National Standards Institute that it intends to transition from its role as administrator of manufacturing and enterprise integration standards to focus on its technical contributions to these standards instead. As the U.S. member of the International Organization for Standardization (known as ISO), ANSI named NIST in 1984 as the secretariat for the ISO Subcommittee on Industrial Data. ANSI is expected to re-assign the secretariat to a different organization by October 1999.
The quest to create a universal, unambiguous language for exchanging product information among computers grew out of NIST manufacturing research. STEP officially adopted as ISO 10303 in 1994--has committed implementations from all of the top 10 vendors of computer-aided design systems. Major automotive and aerospace manufacturers have adopted STEP-based technologies and are spreading them to their supply chains.
The subcommittee also works on standards in support of parts libraries, manufacturing management data, and oil and gas industry data, with more than 250 people now meeting quarterly to continue this development. In order to further the evolution and increase the capabilities enabled by these standards, NIST will continue to develop testing methodologies and make other technical contributions to the standards.
For more information, contact Lisa Phillips, (301) 975-5021; or Steven Ray, (301) 975-3524.
Media Contact:
Mark Bello, (301) 975-3776
Miners Get a Break as Machine Lays Down the Line
UN-REEL, Inc., a small manufacturer in Reliance, Wyo., produces custom equipment for the mining industry. With the assistance of the Mid-America Manufacturing Technology Center-Wyoming, an affiliate of the nationwide NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership, the company recently released a new product that solves a long-standing problem for miners.
Historically, underground workers have had to move machine cable--the power lines for equipment used in the mines--by hand. UN-REEL's Power Cable Management System eliminates the troublesome manual winding and unwinding process, freeing miners to concentrate on extracting ores and other natural resources. MAMTC-Wyoming helped UN-REEL in designing, testing and marketing of the new product. It is currently being announced in trade publications for the mining industry.
The company predicts increased sales from the PCMS. The NIST MEP is a nationwide network of manufacturing extension centers helping smaller manufacturers in all 50 states and Puerto Rico. Smaller manufacturers can call (800) MEP-4-MFG (637-4634) to reach the MEP center serving their region, or check out the MEP World Wide Web site at http://www.mep.nist.gov.
For more information on MAMTC, contact Marianne Hudson, (913) 649-4333.
Media Contact:
Jan Kosko, (301) 975-2767
Candidates for AES to be Announced at Upcoming Conference
A new code designed to scramble information in the 21st century gets a bit closer to reality later this month when computer security experts gather in Ventura, Calif., to begin evaluating 15 encoding formulas developed by leading cryptographers from around the world. The mathematical formulas, called algorithms, are at the heart of computerized encryption systems. Researchers from 12 different countries submitted candidate algorithms, which will be made public at the First Advanced Encryption Standard Candidate Conference, Aug. 20-22, 1998.
Following the announcement of the candidates for the Advanced Encryption Standard, cryptographers will be invited to "attack" them and attempt to break the codes. Additionally, computer security experts at NIST will evaluate the algorithms for factors such as security and speed. NIST also will accept comments on the candidate algorithms from the public, academic and research institutions, and industry.
The goal of this first round of evaluation efforts is to reduce the field to five or fewer candidates, which will undergo more intensive testing and evaluation. The AES is intended to provide security for encrypted data for 30 years. It will replace the Data Encryption Standard currently used by many federal agencies and businesses.
Reporters, editors and others who wish to receive a copy of the planned Aug. 20, 1998, news release announcing the 15 candidates for the AES can sign up by phoning or sending e-mail to the media contact listed above or by faxing a request to (301) 926-1630.
Media Contact:
Philip Bulman, (301) 975-5661
Wanted: Baldrige Award Examiners for 1999
NIST is looking for volunteers from a wide variety of business and not-for-profit organizations to serve a one-year term on the board of examiners for the 1999 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.
"There is prestige and pride associated with being a Baldrige examiner. You gain external recognition and validation while contributing to a national program that seeks to improve U.S. competitiveness in all sectors," said Roberto Saco, regional quality officer, American Express TRS Co., and a Baldrige Award senior examiner.
Examiners evaluate applications for the award, prepare feedback reports to applicants citing strengths and opportunities for improvement and recommend award winners to the NIST director. Qualifications include expertise in business, education or healthcare management processes and results and knowledge of practices and improvement strategies that lead to organizational excellence. The board consists of about 300 members, including nine judges and about 60 senior examiners.
If funding is approved by Congress, 1999 will be the first year that not-for-profit education and healthcare organizations will be eligible to apply for the Baldrige Award. Applications for the board will be available in November 1998.
Additional information is available by calling (301) 975-2036 or by visiting the Baldrige Award web site at http://www.quality.nist.gov/examr99/.
Media Contact:
Jan Kosko, (301) 975-5661
Keck Foundation to Fund Optical Lab at JILA
The W.M. Keck Foundation of Los Angeles has awarded a $962,000 grant to establish an optical measurement laboratory at JILA, a Boulder, Colo., interdisciplinary institute for research and graduate education in the physical sciences operated jointly by NIST and the University of Colorado at Boulder.
Much of JILA's work involves the use of lasers, lenses, mirrors and other optical devices, so the new laboratory will provide a world-class resource for optical metrology. Scheduled to open in the summer of 1999, the facility--to be known as the W.M. Keck Optical Measurement Laboratory--also will play a critical role in improving the ability to use light to study the properties of the Bose-Einstein condensate, a fourth state of matter (created by supercooling atoms to near-absolute zero) first observed in 1995 at JILA.
Media Contact:
Collier Smith (Boulder), (303) 497-3198
Fact Sheet Highlights Progress on NSMP Projects
The semiconductor industry continues to introduce a dizzying array of manufacturing innovations, leading to smaller and more complex integrated circuits and electronic components. But these breakthroughs pose an obvious challenge: scientists and engineers must invent new ways to measure tiny dimensions and quantities, such as the dimensions of minuscule circuits, ultrathin layers of insulation and the power outputs of lasers. Without such measurements, new products cannot be tested accurately and characterized for commercial distribution.
To help American industry shoulder the research and development burdens associated with new measurement technologies, NIST launched the National Semiconductor Metrology Program in 1994. The program, managed by NIST's Office of Microelectronics Programs, was designed to meet the most critical measurement needs identified by industry, including those listed in the Semiconductor Industry Association's National Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors.
NIST published a progress report on six of the NSMP's current projects for the recent Semicon West '98 conference. The project summaries included are: Innovative Microscope Ready to Measure Industry Samples, NIST Enters Negotiations to License Revolutionary Microcalorimeter, New Reliability Testing Technique Saves Months of Time, Standard Reference Materials Improve Silicon Wafer Resistivity Testing, More Accurate Dopant Profiling Possible from Scope Images, and Ultra-Precise Tool for Calibrating Water-Vapor Detectors Unveiled. The progress report is available by sending an e-mail message to media@nist.gov, faxing a request to (301) 926-1630 or directly at http://www.nist.gov/public_affairs/factsheet/nsmp.htm. An overview of the NSMP may be found at http://www.eeel.nist.gov/810.01/nsmpover.html.
For further information, check out http://www.eeel.nist.gov/omp on the World Wide Web or contact Robert I. Scace, Office of Microelectronics Programs, A317 Technology Bldg., NIST, Gaithersburg, Md. 20899-0001, (301) 975-4400, fax (301) 975-6513, nsmp@nist.gov.
Media Contact:
Emil Venere, (301) 975-5745
Proposals Sought for Precision Measurement Grants
NIST is seeking project proposals for two research grants for fiscal year 2000 in the field of precision measurement and fundamental constants. NIST Precision Measurement Grants are awarded each year to faculty members of U.S. universities or colleges for work in determining values for fundamental constants, investigating related physical phenomena or developing new, fundamental measurement methods. Each Precision Measurement Grant of $50,000 for one year may be renewed by NIST for up to two additional years for a total of $150,000.
Prospective candidates must submit summaries of their proposed projects and biographical information to NIST by Feb. 1, 1999. The application should include a pre-proposal summary of not more than five double-spaced pages outlining the objective, motivation and technical approach of the research and the amount and source of current funding for the research, together with a concise biographical sketch of the applicant and a list of the applicant's most important publications.
On the basis of this material, four to eight semifinalists will be selected to submit more detailed proposals. Submit 10 copies of the pre-proposal summary to Barry N. Taylor, B161 Technology Bldg., NIST, Gaithersburg, Md. 20899-0001.
For more information, contact Taylor at (301) 975-4220, or visit the Precision Measurement Grants World Wide Web page at http://physics.nist.gov/ResOpp/grants/grants.html.
Media Contact:
Linda Joy, (301) 975-4403
U.S. Department of Commerce
Technology Administration
National Institute of Standards and Technology
Editor: Michael
Newman
HTML conversion: Crissy Wines
Last updated: August 3, 1998
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