26.06.2007
Since 1999 exists a German-Japanese agreement on the mutual recognition of the test results of non-automatic weighing instruments. The rapid metrological progress of the past few years in the field of weighing technology has made a revision necessary. For this reason, a comprehensive extension of the agreement has been signed on June 5, 2007 by PTB and the National Metrology Institute of Japan.
Already in 1999, a bilateral agreement on the mutual recognition of the test results of non-automatic weighing instruments (NAWI) was signed between the former Japanese National Research Laboratory of Metrology (NRLM), today: National Metrology Institute of Japan (NMIJ), and the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB). In 2001, this agreement was revised and extended so that it covered weighing instruments with a maximum capacity up to 1 t. In addition, NAWIs of accuracy class I and the modules “indicator “ and “weighing module“ were included.
The rapid metrological progress of the past few years in the field of weighing technology has made a second revision necessary. For this reason, a comprehensive extension of the agreement has recently (on June 5, 2007) been signed by PTB and the NMIJ. Signatories were Dr. Mitsuru Tanaka, director of NMIJ, and Dr. Roman Schwartz, head of PTB Division “Mechanics and Acoustics“ (see Figure 1). The new version of the bilateral agreement now covers NAWIs with clearly higher maximum capacities (Max = 5 t). Another important improvement is the inclusion of load cells in accordance with OIML Recommendation R 60, having the specifications described therein: accuracy classes C and D, maximum capacities up to 20 t, number of scale division values up to 6000, humidity test in accordance with SH and CH.
This second revision confirms and consolidates the excellent relations between the national metrological institutes of Germany and Japan. In addition to the extension, the new agreement has another important advantage for German manufacturers of weighing instruments, namely the planning reliability: Independent of the discussions presently going on at the international level in connection with the Mutual Acceptance Arrangement (MAA) of OIML, this bilateral, revised Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) guarantees the mutual recognition of the test results of weighing instruments and load cells also in the future. Apart from the MoU, it may, however - due to an amended legislation in Japan which entered into force in December 2006 – be necessary to present a test sample in exceptional cases (e.g. for purely mechanical weighing instruments); moreover, the amendment has led to an increase in the approval fees in Japan.
Figure 1: Dr. Mitsuru Tanaka, director of NMIJ, and Dr. Roman Schwartz, head of PTB Division “Mechanics and Acoustics“, after signing the new version of the bilateral cooperation agreement (MoU) in Tsukuba / Japan. In the background (from left to right): Dr. Yoshio Hino, director of the International Metrology Cooperation Office, Mrs. Hiroe Sakai, OIML secretariat in the International Metrology Cooperation Office, and Dr. Yukinobu Miki, director of the Metrology Management Center of the NMIJ
Contact person:
Dr. R. Schwartz, Abt. 1, roman.schwartz@ptb.de
Dr. P. Zervos, FB 1.1, panagiotis.zervos@ptb.de