U.S. Department of CommerceTechnology AdministrationNational Institute ofStandards and Technology

FY 2005 Annual Report

THE NISTVISITINGCOMMITTEEON ADVANCEDTECHNOLOGY

Report prepared by:Gail EhrlichVCAT Executive DirectorJanuary 2006

For information regarding the NIST Visiting Committeeon Advanced Technology, contact:

Gail EhrlichVCAT Executive DirectorNational Institute of Standards and Technology100 Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 1060Gaithersburg, MD 20899-1060(301) 975-2149Email: gail.ehrlich@nist.gov

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The Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology (VCAT) of the National Institute of Standardsand Technology (NIST) was established in its present form by the Omnibus Trade andCompetitiveness Act of 1988. The VCAT reviews and makes recommendations regardinggeneral policy for NIST, its organization, its budget, and its programs within the framework ofapplicable national policies as set forth by the President and the Congress. It submits an annualreport to the Secretary of Commerce for submission to the Congress. This fiscal year 2005annual report covers the December 2004 meeting through the September 2005 meeting.

The Committee reviews the Institute’s strategic direction, performance, and policies, andprovides the Secretary of Commerce, Congress, and other stakeholders with information on thevalue and relevance of NIST to the U.S. science and technology base and the economy. Over thepast year, the Committee has been active in assessing NIST’s progress in implementing itsstrategic plan, reviewing its strategic operational needs and sharing best practices for organiza-tional development in response to external drivers, providing guidance on the U.S. MeasurementSystem effort, and serving as a key interface to stakeholders. Throughout the year, theCommittee seeks to cover a significant portion of NIST’s program portfolio through direct dis-cussion with NIST leaders, scientists, and engineers. Reactions and observations are discussedcandidly with the NIST representatives and other guests involved at each meeting. Thisfeedback is positively received, and the Committee sees much evidence of constructive responseto it. At each quarterly meeting, the Committee also visits various NIST laboratories anddiscusses the research projects directly with the scientific and technical staff. These laboratorytours help the Committee assess NIST’s progress towards executing its Strategic Plan.

Members of the Committee are selected from industry and academia solely on the basis ofestablished records of distinguished service and are eminent in research, engineering, business,or other fields relevant to NIST’s mission. Appointed by the NIST Director for staggered three-year terms, the members have diverse backgrounds and provide a representative cross-section oftraditional and emerging U.S. industries. Three new members joined the Committee during2005: Dr. John F. Cassidy, Dr. E. David Spong, and Mr. W. Wyatt Starnes. This report high-lights the Committee’s findings and recommendations along with a summary of observations.Detailed meeting minutes and presentation materials are available on the NIST web site atwww.nist.gov/director/vcat.

Preface

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DR. JAMES W. SERUMPresidentSkiTek VenturesTerm expires Jan. 2007

MR. SCOTT C.DONNELLYSenior Vice PresidentGE Corporate Research &

DevelopmentGeneral Electric CompanyResigned July 2005

MR. GARY D. FLOSSDirectorQuality Assurance and

Continual ImprovementMarvin Windows and DoorsTerm expires Jan. 2008

MS. DEBORAH L. GRUBBE., P.E.VCAT Vice ChairVice President, Group SafetyBP InternationalTerm expires Jan. 2007

DR. DONALD B. KECKRetired Vice President,

Research DirectorCorning Inc.Term expires Jan. 2007

DR. JUAN M. SANCHEZVice President for ResearchUniversity of Texas, AustinTerm expires Jan. 2006

MR. THOMAS A. SAPONASRetired Senior Vice President

and Chief TechnologyOfficer

Agilent TechnologiesTerm expires Jan. 2007

MR. W. WYATT STARNESChairman & Chief

Executive OfficerSignaCert, Inc.Term expires Jan. 2008

Members of the 2005 Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology

DR. E. DAVID SPONGRetired PresidentIntegrated Defense SystemsThe Boeing CompanyTerm expires Jan. 2008

MR. EDWARD J. NOHAChairman EmeritusCNA Financial

CorporationTerm expires Jan. 2007

DR. JOHN F. CASSIDYRetired Senior Vice PresidentScience & TechnologyUnited Technologies

CorporationTerm expires Jan. 2008

DR. LOU ANN HEIMBROOKVice President of

Global OperationsMerek & Co., Inc.Term expires Jan. 2009

DR. APRIL M. SCHWEIGHARTVCAT ChairRetired Product Business ManagerMotorolaTerm expires Jan. 2006

MR. ROBERTT. WILLIAMSVice PresidentTrack-Type Tractors DivisionCaterpillar Inc.Term expires Jan. 2009

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Prinicpal Findings and Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Strategic Direction and Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Outreach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Organizational Excellence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3Budget . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Summary of Observations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Strategic Direction and Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Opportunities for Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4VCAT Panel on Best Practices for Organizational Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Sharpening the NIST Mission and Core Competency Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Implementation of Strategic Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Budget Initiatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Competence Funding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Strategic Working Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Homeland Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7Biosystems and Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8Nanotechnology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9Information Knowledge Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10Manufacturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Operating Units’ Operational Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Strategic Partnerships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

U.S. Measurement System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10Extramural Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Advanced Technology Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11Baldrige National Quality Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Performance Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Performance Metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12Economic Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12Board on Assessment of NIST Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Organizational Excellence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Technical Excellence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Baldrige at NIST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14People . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Outreach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Budget . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17NIST Laboratories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17ATP and Hollings MEP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Table of Contents

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APPENDIX A. Examples of Technical Excellence: Major Building and Fire Safety Investigations . . . . . . . . . 19

APPENDIX B. Examples of Technical Excellence: Lab Reviews Conducted by the VCAT in FY 2005 . . . . . 21

APPENDIX C. NIST Response to FY 2004 VCAT Annual Report Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

APPENDIX D. Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

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The VCAT sincerely welcomes Dr. William Jeffrey asthe 13th Director of NIST. Although Dr. Jeffrey hasonly been in this position for a few months, his focus ona new vision for NIST and the strategies to fulfill thisvision are commendable. The Committee agrees withthese priorities and supports Dr. Jeffrey’s commitment toidentify strategic opportunities that will help NISTestablish investment strategies for responding to thenation’s measurement and standards needs. Dr. Jeffrey’sdecisiveness is admirable and his understanding of thegovernment and perception of NIST is impressive. TheCommittee applauds Dr. Hratch Semerjian for his out-standing leadership of NIST as the Acting Director fromNovember 2004 through July 2005 and greatly appreci-ates his strong support of the VCAT.

With a high quality portfolio of programs, NIST isuniquely positioned to promote U.S. innovation andindustrial competitiveness by advancing measurementscience, standards, and technology to enhance economicsecurity and improve the quality of life for allAmericans. These programs consist of the NISTLaboratories, the Advanced Technology Program, theHollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership, and theBaldrige National Quality Program, with each playing adistinctive role in the nation’s technology infrastructure.The Committee continues to strongly believe that NIST’smeasurement science, standards, and technology providethe nation’s underlying scientific and technical infra-structure that supports industry, universities, and othergovernment agencies. Furthermore, as markets becomemore global, it is even more critical that NIST maintainsa leadership role in promoting more open and fair inter-national trade practices.

While operating under a tight budget environment, NISThas made significant contributions to many of thePresident’s R&D priorities, including homeland securityand nanotechnology, and has responded rapidly to agrowing number of congressionally-mandated programsand presidential directives. For example, NIST has beenplaying a key role in response to the Help America VoteAct (HAVA) of 2002 by providing leadership and

technical support for the development of voluntaryvoting system guidelines. Most recently, NIST hashelped the nation respond to post-Hurricane Katrinarebuilding and improvement efforts. NIST’s budget mustcontinue to grow to provide the innovation infrastructureneeded to respond to the measurement and standardschallenges related to the current and next generation oftechnology.

NIST has been receptive to the Committee’s guidance onstrategic planning, including the need for more strategicpartnerships and collaborations to leverage NIST’sworld-class technical expertise and highly specializedequipment and facilities. The VCAT also continues toadvise NIST on strengthening its outreach activities forincreasing the Institute’s visibility.

The Committee is pleased to have had the opportunityduring FY 2005 to meet separately with DeputySecretary of Commerce David Sampson; Dr. JohnMarburger, Director, Office of Science and TechnologyPolicy (OSTP); and Ms Andrea Petro, a ProgramExaminer in the Office of Management and Budget(OMB). The members of the VCAT were encouraged tolearn of their strong support for technological innovationand their recognition of the importance of measurementsand standards on international trade and the nation’seconomy. They also shared the Committee’s concernthat NIST lacked visibility and Dr. Marburger urged theVCAT to continue to advise NIST stakeholders on thevalue of NIST’s programs. In addition, Deputy SecretarySampson and Dr. Marburger emphasized the need forNIST to engage in more partnerships and collaborationsto leverage its resources. The meeting with Ms. Petroprovided an excellent opportunity for a discussion on therole of the VCAT, the importance of strategic evaluationand performance evaluation, and NIST’s progress inthese areas. The VCAT appreciated each of thesemeetings that highlighted NIST’s significant contribu-tions to the nation. These meetings helped the VCATbetter understand the roles of the various organizationswith respect to NIST and ways in which the members ofthe VCAT can better help NIST in the future.

Principal Findings and Recommendations

STRATEGIC DIRECTION ANDPERFORMANCE Findings — NIST is aggressively undertaking newstrategic planning activities to help ensure thatprograms and investment strategies are better alignedwith NIST’s mission and national priorities. Forexample, the VCAT commends NIST for its rapidresponsiveness in redirecting its measurement andstandards research to homeland security needs, one ofour nation’s highest priorities.

Recommendations:• NIST has made a significant effort to refine its

mission statement this year and it is now clear,concise, and appropriate. The staff should now makethe effort to assure that its programs are aligned withthis mission. This is critical for identifying theInstitute’s core competencies, developing programpriorities, and establishing investment strategies thatleverage NIST’s unique expertise and facilities andhelp guide strategic partnerships and outreach activi-ties.

• While NIST has made significant progress in itsHomeland Security Strategic Focus Area by providingvaluable contributions to this national priority, NISTshould continue to develop more strategic approachesand performance metrics in its other focus areasrelated to nanotechnology, biosystems and health, and,in particular, information and knowledge management.In each of these rapidly growing areas, NIST has asignificant opportunity to increase its measurementand standards expertise, in concert with industry, tohelp the U.S. build and maintain a more innovativeand competitive market posture.

• To help evaluate progress in implementing the NISTStrategic Plan, NIST should continue to focus on thedevelopment and reporting of specific short-term andlong-term metrics and other quantitative data, consis-tent with the Baldrige framework, which specificallyaddress each of the Strategic Focus Areas andStrategic Working Groups. We commend NIST forrestructuring the FY 2005 Balanced Scorecard used to

define and evaluate NIST-wide performance goals andmetrics throughout all levels of the Institute and lookforward to reviewing the FY 2006 BalancedScorecard.

• As NIST becomes more visible and the number ofpotential partnerships increases, the VCAT encouragesNIST to finalize its partnership strategies, including aset of selection criteria based on the nation’s prioritiesand NIST’s existing and emerging core competencies.In addition, each partnership should include a clearcommitment of resources, such as dollars, facilities, orpeople, from all parties.

• In recognition of the huge and ambitious effortrequired by NIST to lead the critically needed U.S.Measurement System (USMS) road mapping effort,the VCAT strongly urges the Institute to better definethe scope of this effort, identify NIST’s role in theUSMS, and link this analysis to the Institute’s visionand the next version of the Strategic Plan. The USMSeffort should focus on emerging competitive areasrather than well-established areas that are no longer inneed of NIST support.

OUTREACHFindings — NIST’s new and expanded outreachactivities reflect senior management’s commitment toraise the visibility of NIST by more clearly demonstrat-ing the value and impact of its programs to keycustomers and stakeholders.

Recommendations:• NIST should continue its efforts to refine the NIST

message and provide examples of program impacts byindustry segments that demonstrate the value of NISTto key customers and stakeholders. This outreachshould focus on influential industry executives andother influential individuals in new and emergingNIST contribution areas.

• Program impacts should highlight how the capabilities ofthe world-class Advanced Measurement Laboratory(AML) have helped to increase NIST’s contributions tothe nation’s standards and measurement infrastructure.

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The AML is already contributing strongly to theemerging nanotechnology industry. NIST shouldidentify other opportunities to leverage this nationalresource.

ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCEFindings — NIST’s world-class talent, continuedpursuit of organizational excellence, highly spe-cialized facilities and equipment, and technicalmerit have resulted in significant achievementsand numerous awards, including three NobelPrizes. These attributes continue to supportNIST’s world leadership capability in providingthe nation with the technical infrastructure neededfor economic growth and homeland security.

Recommendations:• The dramatic emergence of biomedical

technology has created a unique opportunity andchallenge for NIST. Continued U.S. leadershipof this important field could be in jeopardywithout the contributions of NIST in measurementtechnology and standards. This will require many newskills and changing priorities for NIST investment.

• The Committee recognizes the need to overcome theserious deficiencies associated with NIST’s agingfacilities in Gaithersburg and Boulder; however, due tobudget constraints, the VCAT encourages NIST todevelop new business cases to help justify and priori-tize the needed renovations and repairs that tie to itsStrategic Plan. This analysis should cover all ofNIST’s facilities, including the Advanced ChemicalSciences Laboratory and the newly constructed AML.

• While NIST senior managers are to be commended fordeveloping and beginning to implement an action planthat addresses operational and management issuesraised in the latest Employee Survey, specific metricsshould be developed to measure the success of theseimportant efforts, as outlined in the Baldrige process.

BUDGETFindings — The substantial FY 2005 budget increasefor NIST and the Administration’s proposed FY 2006

budget request for NIST are encouraging. However,NIST’s rapid response to a growing number ofunfunded congressionally-mandated programs andpresidential directives continue to threaten theInstitute’s capability to invest in core competenciesrelated to the current and next generation oftechnology.

Recommendations:• With the expectation of continuing tight government

budgets, NIST must invest its resources in areas ofhigh national needs where the Institute can have a sig-nificant impact on the growth opportunities for U.S.industry. This will likely involve the redeployment ofexisting resources to new and higher value-added con-tribution areas.

• The continuing debate between the Administration andCongress over funding for the Advanced TechnologyProgram (ATP) and the Hollings ManufacturingExtension Partnership (MEP) versus funding for theNIST laboratories must be resolved. Once thesefunding issues are resolved, NIST should be able toconduct long-range strategic planning activities moreeffectively.

Nobel laureate John L. (Jan) Hall, a scientist emeritus in NIST and a fellowof JILA, is a co-winner of the 2005 Nobel Prize in Physics. He received thisaward for his “contributions to the development of laser-based precisionspectroscopy, including the optical frequency comb technique.” JILA is ajoint research institution of NIST and the University of Colorado in Boulder.

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STRATEGIC DIRECTION ANDPERFORMANCENIST leadership is aggressively undertaking newstrategic planning activities to help ensure that programsand investment strategies continue to be aligned withNIST’s mission and national priorities. The VCAT ispleased to learn that strategic planning will continue tobe a key focus area for the new NIST Director.

Opportunities for Change

During the first quarter of FY 2005, NIST identified theneeds and opportunities that will enable the Institute tocontinue to align its program portfolio more effectivelywith external drivers. These needs and opportunitieswere based on the annual review of operational plans, atrend analysis of NIST’s strategic portfolio investments,and input to the NIST Senior Management Board (SMB)fall strategy retreat.

The NIST Strategic Plan provides a framework for theannual operational plans for each of the operating units(OUs). The third annual Director’s review of the opera-tional plans was held in October 2004 to ensure pro-

grammatic coordination and NIST-wide implementationof the Institute’s long-range goals. Based on the dataextracted from these reviews, NIST performed a trendanalysis of its strategic portfolio investments from FY2003-FY 2006 as shown in Figure 1 and Table 1. NISTconcluded that there are opportunities for betteralignment of NIST’s program portfolio with externaldrivers, other agency-drivers have a large effect onportfolio changes, and that the investment in coremetrology and measurements and standards hasdecreased.

In November 2004, the SMB held a fall retreat to gatherinformation about NIST’s strategic environment and tosynthesize the Institute’s response plans. The strategicenvironment session included briefings on the post-election policy implications for NIST, the NationalMeasurement System, and NIST’s Strategic WorkingGroups (SWGs). This retreat provided the first forumfor three SWGs to report in detail to the SMB onexternal trends and opportunities in homeland security,biosystems and health, and nanotechnology. Based onthese briefings, NIST recognized that despite the budgetclimate, there are many programmatic growth opportuni-

ties for NIST in the Strategic Focus Areas andelsewhere. Furthermore, this input highlightedthe need for NIST to be more responsive tocustomer and market needs by developing moreeffective NIST-wide interdisciplinary programmanagement, greater sensitivity to managingrisks, and more comprehensive marketing efforts.The SWG chairs provided abbreviated versionsof these presentations to the VCAT, as well.

VCAT Panel on Best Practices forOrganizational Development

The VCAT fully supported NIST in pursuingthe needs and opportunities for change as soonas possible to best leverage the Institute’sfunding in 2005 and subsequent years. To helpNIST successfully implement these changes thatrequire special management attention, severalCommittee members participated in a panel

Summary of Observations

presentation and discussion during the June 2005 VCATmeeting to share industry’s best practices for developingorganizations that facilitate alignment of programs withexternal drivers. The topics covered portfolio-levelinvestment decision-making processes, empowerment ofmanagers to respond rapidly to new opportunities, andcreation of more flexible staffing. To respond to newgrowth areas in a resource-constrained environment, thepanel members emphasized the importance of a carefulevaluation and prioritization of an organization’scustomers based on the changing scientific and technicalneeds of the nation.

Sharpening the NIST Mission and CoreCompetency Review

The new NIST Director is committed to maintainingstrategic planning as a high priority for NIST. As a firststep, Dr. Jeffrey has been focusing on sharpening theNIST mission and goals with specific implementationstrategies to promote innovation and competitiveness.Within this framework, NIST is in the process of identi-fying its top-level core competencies to help establishNIST’s priorities and investment strategies that tie to theNIST mission and respond to national priorities. NISTcore competencies will fall under the categories of meas-urement science, standards development and deploy-ment, and technology development and deployment.These core competencies also will help guide NIST’s

strategic partnerships as well as outreach activities.The VCAT commends Dr. Jeffrey for his sense ofurgency in examining the NIST mission moreclosely and identifying the Institute’s core compe-tencies.

Implementation of Strategic Plan

NIST is continuing to implement the Strategic Planthrough the use of budget initiatives, competencefunding, Strategic Working Groups (SWGs),Operating Unit (OU) operational plans, andstrategic partnerships. These mechanisms will helpthe Institute build on existing core competenciesand expand capacity in its strategic areas.

Budget Initiatives — NIST is continuing to develop pro-grammatic budget initiatives in strategic areas. In FY2005, NIST received modest increases of $3 million foradvances in manufacturing in support of nanomanufac-turing research and nanoelectronics, and $6 million foradvances in measurement science, standards, andservices in support of competence and quantum informa-tion services. A significant increase of $18 million wasappropriated to NIST for measurements and standardsfor public safety and security, including $2 million insupport of advanced fire fighting technologies; $2million in support of biometric identification standardsrelated to the USA PATRIOT Act; $10 million in supportof cybersecurity activities; and $4 million for the Officeof Law Enforcement Standards to fund the highestpriority homeland security research projects. Congressalso provided an additional $500 thousand in support ofNIST’s activities related to the Help America Vote Act.No additional funding was provided for NIST’s budgetinitiatives related to biosystems and health.

The Committee is encouraged by the President’s FY2006 budget request that includes significant increases instrategic initiatives for NIST, including $19.6 million foradvances in manufacturing; $3 million for measurementsand standards for homeland security; and $17.2 millionfor new measurement horizons for the U.S. economy and

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science. A breakdown of the major programs withinthese initiatives is shown in Table 2.

Competence Funding — The NIST-wide competencefund is continuing to support high priority, fundamentalresearch within NIST. In FY 2005, $1.9 million wasused to provide “seed” funding for a new set of five-yearcompetence projects. In addition, the $2.8 million1

available from the FY 2005 funded competence initiativewas used to support short-term awards for competenceprojects in measurement services and for a one-time“exploration” competition. These one-time “explo-ration” projects are intended to lead to new measurement

science and new technology in such areas as metrologyfor the development of organic radio frequency identifi-

cation (RFID), nanoscale detectors for quantify-ing electromagnetic fields, and thermodynamictemperature ratio measurements in support ofnext generation temperature scales.

For FY 2006, six new five-year competenceprojects totaling $5.1 million per year have beenselected that will focus on strengthening NIST’score strength in measurement science as shown inFigure 2. For future years, NIST plans to requestdevelopment of proposals based on a gap analysisof the Institute’s core competencies.

Strategic Working Groups — Beginning in 2003,NIST established three SWGs as an importantmechanism in helping NIST-wide planning activi-ties in strategic areas: Homeland Security,Biosystems and Health, and Nanotechnology.These SWGs are now fully operational and are

beginning to make progress. Comprised of multi-disci-plinary technical staff from NIST, the SWGs have beenassessing external trends in strategic areas, coordinatingactivities with other agencies and organizations, andproviding valuable input to the Director and the SMB.These SWGs have been developing sequentially withdifferent priorities related to their program areas. EachSWG has completed inventories of current NIST’sresearch projects in their respective areas to allowinformed strategic planning. The VCAT is pleased to

learn that NIST is addressing some of the SWGsoperational issues that were shared at the SMBfall strategy retreat held in early FY 2005.Recently, the NIST Director requested the SWGsto explore and recommend options for investmentstrategies in their respective areas. A fourth SWGfor Information and Knowledge Management isstill in the planning stages and a fifth SWG forManufacturing may be established. Setting priori-ties across Strategic Focus Areas is currentlycarried out within the OU with cross-OU collabo-ration enhanced by the SWGs. In the future, thepriority-setting process will change as the OUs

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strategically focus on NIST’s critical areas and makedecisions based on funding, facilities, and competencies.

• Homeland Security - Established as the first SWG in2003, the Homeland Security SWG has significantlyhelped to coordinate NIST activities with national pri-orities, resulting in NIST’s rapid response to homelandsecurity needs in a wide range of areas as describedbelow. Based on an extensive inventory of NIST’scurrent and proposed homeland security projects andcompetencies, an understanding of the customers’technology needs, and recognition of NIST businesspractices, the Homeland Security SWG developed astrategic vision and mission for NIST’s involvement inHomeland Security as shown in Figure 3. Theiranalysis of customer needs included interactions with

key stakeholders and a massive literature search onhomeland security documents, such as those publishedby the Administration, the Department of HomelandSecurity (DHS), and the Department of Justice. Forexample, the National Strategy for Homeland Securitypublished by the Office of Homeland Security in 2002identified several science and technology initiatives.This document is still guiding our nation’s activitiesand NIST’s expertise is needed in many of these areas.

Every NIST laboratory is now involved in homelandsecurity activities with a total STRS investment of $68million in FY 2005. As recommended by the VCAT, theHomeland Security SWG developed seven performancemetrics to assess NIST’s success in meeting the nation’spriorities in homeland security as shown in Figure 4.

NIST electrical engineers Chris Holloway and GalenKoepke place transmitters in a protected air vent at theold Washington Convention Center prior to the implosionof the building on December 18, 2004. This experimentis aimed at improving emergency radio communicationsfor first responders.

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The SWG then applied these metrics to NIST’sactivities demonstrating the Institute’s outstand-ing progress and significant contributions tohomeland security. NIST’s accomplishmentsinclude the development of measurements andstandards in such areas as biological agents;radiation dosimetry; nuclear, radiological, andexplosive materials; emergency responseequipment; biometrics; cryptology; criticalinfrastructure protection; and personal protec-tion equipment. Furthermore, NIST plays amajor role in responding to three homelandsecurity presidential directives for standards forthe nation’s critical infrastructure, screeningprocedures, and personal identity of federalemployees and contractors. In fact, OSTP citedNIST’s major homeland security accomplishments inits April 2005 publication, Science and Technology: AFoundation for Homeland Security, as shown inFigure 5. In addition, NIST is a key component of theDHS standards portfolio. NIST staff members alsoserve in leadership positions in standards organiza-tions with an interest in homeland security. Forexample, Mary Saunders is co-chair of the AmericanStandards Institute (ANSI’s) Homeland SecurityStandards Panel and Kathleen Higgins is chair of theASTM Committee E-54 on Homeland SecurityApplications. The VCAT is impressed with NIST’sextensive involvement in national homeland securityplanning and policy activities, including membershipon several NSTC subcommittees.

For the future, NIST will continue to review roadmapsand other external documents to identify the Institute’sunique competencies that are still needed to impactthe nation’s homeland security needs. The Committeeapplauds the Homeland Security SWG for its effortsin providing productive working relationships withstakeholders, a NIST-wide perspective in homelandsecurity, guidance and advice, and a NIST “face” inhomeland security.

• Biosystems and Health - Formed in early 2004, theBiosystems and Health SWG has been focusing onassessing external trends and strategic opportunitiesfor NIST with input from across NIST and fromstakeholders in industry and other governmentagencies. One of the goals was to identify andanalyze projects of mutual interest across the NISTOUs. The Biosystems and Health SWG used several

NIST researcher Tammy Oreskovic deposits smooth muscle cells ontoa polymer scaffold. Oreskovic and colleagues study what conditionsproduce the best cell growth and use a bioreactor (foreground) totest whether the resulting engineered tissues can withstand mechani-cal stresses similar to those produced by a beating heart.

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analysis tools to help guide theirdecisions including the criteria fromMichael E. Porter’s 1980 publication,Competitive Strategy: Techniques forAnalyzing Industries and Competitors.Based on their assessments, the SWGis developing strategy papers thatoutline the need for NIST’s growth innanobiosensing, bioimaging, andsystems biology. For example, in thearea of biosensing, the National CancerInstitute and the Food and DrugAdministration are seeking NIST’sexpertise for developing imagingstandards for lung cancer tumors. Thisis one of several NIST’s interactionswith the Department of Health andHuman Services (HHS). As recom-mended by stakeholders, a USMSworkshop will be held on bioimagingto further explore the measurement andstandards needs and the importance ofNIST in this area. Members of thisSWG also have been assigned as rep-resentatives to other USMS workshopsefforts to keep track of other USMSactivities in biosystems and health.The VCAT is pleased to learn that theBiosystems and Health SWG is planning to developmilestones and metrics of success for bioimaging andnanobiosensing by mid-December 2005.

• Nanotechnology - The Nanotechnology SWG wasformed in August 2004 to help align NIST programswith the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI),increase awareness of NIST’s nanometrology activi-ties, and develop a users’ access program to leverageNIST’s nanofabrication facility in the AML. Since itsinception, the Nanotechnology SWG has been activelyinvolved with the NNI through the National Scienceand Technology Council (NSTC) Subcommittee onNanoscale Science, Engineering and Technology,including contributions to a series of reports thatoutline strategic objectives for the NNI. Other

examples of NIST’s interactions with the NNI includehosting the NNI Interagency Grand ChallengeWorkshop on Instrumentation and Metrology withover 200 metrologists from across the nation and par-ticipating in the NNI Research Directions IIWorkshop. The Nanotechnology SWG is currentlyconducting an assessment of NIST nanotechnologyprojects to identify the gaps and investment optionswhere NIST needs to improve its skills and resourcesin nanotechnology research to achieve the highestimpact. The Nanotechnology SWG also has begun asearch for a world-class expert in nanofabrication towork at NIST and help increase the Institute’s contri-butions in this area. In addition, an assessment anddevelopment of a business plan for a NationalNanomanufacturing and Nanometrology Facility(N3F) at NIST is underway.

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Physicist Thomas LeBrun uses a special joystick to manipulate nanowires with “opticaltweezers.” A highly focused laser beam attracts microscopic objects and can be used topick up and precisely position nanocomponents for building semiconductor circuits orbiosensors smaller than a red blood cell. Tools for manipulating nanocomponents willhelp accelerate research on the performance of new nanotechnologies.

• Information and Knowledge Management - AnInformation and Knowledge Management SWG hasbeen in the planning stages for over a year. TheCommittee is very disappointed with the lack ofprogress, and highly encourages NIST to establish thisSWG to help the Institute develop a NIST-widestrategy and tactics for implementing the Informationand Knowledge Management Strategic Focus Areawhere there is a huge opportunity for NIST’s researchto make a significant impact across many industrysectors.

• Manufacturing - NIST is considering establishing anSWG for manufacturing to help coordinate theInstitute’s efforts in this area that take place in almostevery OU and program at NIST. This action is inresponse to the Administration’s increased emphasison manufacturing, especially in the area of interoper-ability where, according to three prospective economicstudies, NIST has an important role and can make asignificant impact. In addition, Dale Hall, the Directorof NIST’s Manufacturing Engineering Laboratory,serves as the acting chair of the NSTC’s InteragencyWorking Group on Manufacturing R&D, which wasestablished in 2004 to provide policy guidance on thefederal manufacturing effort and to promote communi-cation and collaboration among its fourteen memberagencies.

Operating Units Operational Plans — The third annualDirector’s review of the annual operational plans foreach of the OUs was held in October 2004 to ensure pro-grammatic coordination and NIST-wide implementationof NIST’s long-range goals in FY 2005. Based on thisreview, NIST identified needs and opportunities to helpthe Institute better align its program portfolio withexternal drivers, as described under the “Opportunitiesfor Change” section of this report (page 4). The VCATis looking forward to receiving a summary of the FY2006 review.

Strategic Partnerships — NIST is continuing toestablish new strategic partnerships with industry, uni-versities, and other government agencies as a way toleverage the Institute’s programmatic impacts on the

nation’s priorities and to take advantage of expertiseoutside of NIST. For example, in December 2004, NISTformed a significant new partnership withDaimlerChrysler, Ford Motor Company, and GeneralMotors whereby scientists and engineers from each ofthese organizations will engage in pre-competitiveresearch activities to improve the manufacturing compet-itiveness of the U.S. automotive industry. During FY2005, NIST also signed Memoranda of Understanding(MOUs) with HHS to collaborate on programs that facil-itate the development and delivery of innovative medicaltechnologies and with Utah State University to enhancecollaborations in the development and calibration ofoptical sensors for defense, homeland security, weatherprediction, and climate research. NIST also is exploringstrategic partnerships in specific program areas withseveral other organizations.

As NIST becomes more visible and the number ofpotential partnerships increases, the need for a well-defined plan for strategic partnerships that best meet thenation’s needs is critical. The VCAT has encouragedNIST to finalize its partnership strategies, including a setof selection criteria based on the nation’s priorities andNIST’s existing and emerging core competencies. TheNIST Director has expressed his commitment to developguidelines for establishing new strategic partnerships.One important criterion will be identifying a clear com-mitment of resources from all parties prior to enteringinto an MOU.

U.S. Measurement System

Following several years of discussions with the SMBand the VCAT regarding the importance of defining aprocess for developing a 21st century view of thenation’s measurement system and reaffirming a dynamicleadership role for NIST, the Institute publicly launchedan ambitious USMS Initiative in April 2005 to addressthis challenge. NIST is leading a USMS road mappingeffort to assess and identify crucial current and futuremeasurement-related needs of the entire U.S. economy,including both the private and public sectors. By roadmapping America’s priority measurement needs and

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reporting regularly to USMS customers andstakeholders on the state of the USMS, NISTplans to create, over time, a strong private-publicpartnership that will strengthen the U.S. infra-structure for innovation.

The new NIST Director refined the USMS effortto reflect available resources within the existingorganization structure and to leverage theextensive knowledge and expertise of the NISTstaff. While maintaining the original timetableas shown in Table 3, the revised plan calls forNIST to conduct an in-depth assessment for aninitial set of 3-5 sectors led by various teamswith participation throughout the Institute. TheVCAT agrees that this new approach can provideNIST with valuable “lessons learned” before pro-ceeding to the next set of sectors. According to therevised plan, the initial sectors could be related to semi-conductors, nanotechnology, biosciences, homelandsecurity, the environment, or automotive. The Committeeis recommending that the USMS effort focus onemerging competitive areas rather than well-establishedareas that are no longer in need of NIST support. NISTis in the process of developing an extensive USMSmeasurement needs database that already includes morethan 300 existing roadmaps and workshop reports. Inaddition, NIST is conducting focused technical USMSworkshops and these results also will be included in thedatabase.

The USMS effort is now a component of NIST’sstrategic planning efforts for identifying national needsand the NIST role. The Committee commends NIST forembarking on this critical effort and strongly urges theInstitute to better define the scope of the first roadmapping activity, identify NIST’s role in the USMS, andlink this analysis to the Institute’s vision and the nextversion of the Strategic Plan to leverage its unique capa-bilities in the highest priority areas most effectively. TheVCAT is pleased to learn that in the long-term NISTplans to develop budget initiatives based on the analysisof NIST’s role in support of the USMS.

Extramural Programs

Advanced Technology Program — The goal of the ATPis to accelerate the development of innovative technolo-gies for broad national benefit by co-funding R&D part-nerships with the private sector. ATP investments alignwell with NIST’s strategic focus areas in projectsconducted externally as well as in the NIST laboratories.For example, ATP recently completed an evaluation of768 projects awarded since 1990 and identified 109projects that have a direct impact on homeland securityin nine categories of national importance2. Theseprojects total $518.5 million in ATP cost-shared awards.Although there have been significant economic benefitsto the nation associated with the ATP, the program isfaced with the challenge of operating under financialinstability as the Administration and Congress continueto debate ATP’s future.

Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership — TheHollings MEP is a nationwide network of local centersoffering technical and business assistance to smallermanufacturers. Despite the dramatic FY 2004 budgetreduction of 63 percent for the MEP, the national systemwas maintained while operating with only $40 million inFY 2004. This budget reduction was a huge challengefor the management as they explored different operating

2 The Nation’s Homeland Security and the NIST Advanced Technology Program, March 2005

plans. The Economic Development Administrationprovided $7 million directly to the Centers. MEP alsobegan working more closely with other agencies,including the Department of Labor and the Departmentof Defense, to help them reach small firms. As a result ofthis reduction, about 320 field and headquarterspersonnel lost their jobs causing morale problems andabout 50 of the more than 400 field locations wereforced to close. Other negative impacts included somefragmentation of the system as some Centers soughtother sources of support that took them away from theMEP mission, financial instabilities, and loss of trust inthe federal partner. The positive impact of the budgetreduction was that the value of the MEP “brand” wassignificantly increased at the federal level and fullfunding was restored in FY 2005. In addition, MEP’sleadership was able to examine the strengths and weak-nesses of the system and explore opportunities to workwith other federal agencies.

The MEP impacts are impressive. In a new survey ofthe MEP clients covering projects completed in FY 2003,4,865 clients around the country reported that as a resultof the MEP services, they realized almost $686 millionin cost savings; invested $912 million in modernization,including plant and equipment, information systems, andworkforce training; increased or retained $4.1 billion insales; and created and retained 50,315 jobs. As anotherexample, the MEP is supporting improvements in manu-facturing supply chains as illustrated by the successfulWisconsin MEP Original Equipment ManufacturerSupplier Development Consortium in which 236Wisconsin suppliers participate. This consortium heldover 60 supplier conferences in 2005. In addition, theMEP centers are involved with the Hurricane Katrinarecovery efforts. For example, the MEP centers in thegulf coast region have been surveying small manufactur-ers in their area to determine the extent of their needsand identify ways in which the MEP network canprovide assistance.

The VCAT commends MEP’s leadership and success inexploring new opportunities to make MEP an even moreeffective program that will help the nation’s small and

medium-sized manufacturers become more competitiveand recognizes the importance of a stabilized budget tomore efficiently reach this goal. MEP should continue itsextensive outreach efforts to ensure that the program’sstakeholders are aware of the program’s valuable contri-butions to the competitiveness of our nation’s smallermanufacturers.

Baldrige National Quality Program — The VCATcontinues to recognize the Baldrige program as one ofthe government’s most highly leveraged and effectiveprograms that help organizations achieve performanceexcellence. The program reached a major milestone in2005 with the receipt of the 1,000th application for theprestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.Vice President Cheney presented the 2004 BaldrigeAward to four recipients in a ceremony held in July2005. These recipients represented four of the fiveBaldrige Award categories: manufacturing, smallbusiness, education, and health care. About 1,200 indi-viduals attended the Quest for Excellence® ConferenceXVII where the 2004 Baldrige Award recipients sharedtheir exceptional performance practices, their journey toperformance excellence, and their lessons learned. Therewere 64 applications submitted for the 2005 BaldrigeAward, of which 50 percent represent the health careindustry.

Performance Evaluation The VCAT encourages NIST to continue to improve itsperformance evaluation system as a way to be moreresponsive to a diverse stakeholder community and tothe internal needs of the organization.

Performance Metrics — The VCAT commends NISTleadership for restructuring the FY 2005 BalancedScorecard that includes a new section for evaluatingprograms and new types of customer satisfactionmethods, as recommended by the Committee. TheBalanced Scorecard, introduced in 2004, is used internal-ly to define and evaluate NIST-wide performance goalsand metrics throughout the Institute. These goalsrepresent the top priorities of NIST’s senior managers infour key areas: programs, people, resources, and

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customers. Each priority area includes a set of corre-sponding goals, evaluation metrics, and accountabilitymechanisms. All of the elements of the BalancedScorecard were incorporated in the senior managementperformance plans. Many of the program goals arealigned with other OMB and Department of Commerce(DoC) metrics. For example, the NIST/DoC FY 2005Plan for Success includes a set of evaluation metrics infive high priority areas. The VCAT appreciated theopportunity to review the “stoplight” mid-year progressreport on the Balanced Scorecard and looks forward toreceiving regular updates as well as expressing a willing-ness to provide more guidance on its status and imple-mentation.

While NIST has a performance measurement and evalua-tion system that responds to such government-wide ini-tiatives as the Government Performance and Results Actof 1993, the President’s Management Agenda, and theProgram Assessment Rating Tool, the Institute needs todevelop a system to help evaluate progress in imple-menting the NIST Strategic Plan. To meet thischallenge, NIST should continue to focus on the devel-opment and reporting of specific short-term and long-term metrics and other quantitative data, consistent withthe Baldrige framework, which address each of theStrategic Focus Areas and SWGs. The VCAT is pleasedto learn that NIST has just completed a first step in theBaldrige process, as described in the “OrganizationalExcellence, Baldrige at NIST” section of this report(page 15).

Economic Studies — NIST initiated two new economicstudies in FY 2005. A retrospective study will cover theeconomic assessment of the role and impact of measure-ment in the entire U.S. semiconductor industry to helpexamine NIST’s value. The other study will be aprospective economic assessment of the costs to the U.S.biotechnology industry from inadequate technologicalinfrastructure and should help to validate NIST’s role inthis emerging area. The Committee commends NIST forinitiating these important studies and urges the Instituteto continue to carry out more prospective and retrospec-tive economic studies to help validate NIST’s role inemerging technologies and to guide strategic planning.

Board on Assessment of NIST Programs — TheNational Research Council Board on Assessment ofNIST Programs serves as another evaluation tool forNIST by providing qualitative peer review of NIST labo-ratory programs. It was customary for the Board toreport its findings and recommendations to the VCATeach year. However, the Board began a new biennialreview process in FY 2004 and their latest report was notavailable to share with the VCAT in FY 2005. TheCommittee is looking forward to a briefing on theBoard’s technical report as soon as possible.

ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCENIST’s capability to provide the nation with the technicalinfrastructure needed for economic growth and homelandsecurity is supported by world-class talent, highly spe-cialized facilities and equipment, and the continuedpursuit of organizational excellence, as illustrated bynumerous technical achievements. The VCAT commendsNIST for continuing to address facility improvementneeds, increase safety awareness, explore Baldrigeprocesses for NIST, and respond to staff concerns as away to further increase NIST’s effectiveness.

Facilities

NIST must have modern and highly specialized facilitiesfor its scientists and technical staff to remain at theforefront of measurement science, standards, and tech-nology to meet the needs of the 21st century and toadvance the U.S. technological competitiveness. Tomeet these needs, NIST developed a long-rangeFacilities Improvement Plan in February 1998 that wasupdated in June 2004 and February 2005 (addendum).NIST is making progress against this plan and isaddressing the major construction, renovation and main-tenance needs associated with the aging and deterioratedbuildings in Gaithersburg and Boulder. No additionalsupport was provided for safety, capacity, maintenanceand major repairs (SCMMR) in FY 2005, but the VCATis hopeful that increased support for the maintenance ofthe older buildings as well as preventive maintenance forthe sophisticated AML will be available as requested inthe FY 2006 President’s budget request. Major construc-tion of Boulder’s Central Utility Plan (CUP) received

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additional funding in FY 2005 which will completephase 1 of this project, and the FY 2006 President’sbudget request includes funding to complete the CUPthat will supply heating, chilled water, and compressedair to all of the lab buildings on the Boulder site. Also,Boulder’s Primary Electrical Service project is nowcomplete and has helped to significantly reduce powerproblems. On the Gaithersburg campus, a majorasbestos removal project has been underway in one ofthe older General Purpose Laboratories. Once thisproject is completed, the staff from the NIST Northcampus, located across the street from the main campus,will move to this building.

The unique AML was awarded the distinction of “highhonors” in R&D Magazine’s 2005 Lab of the YearCompetition. Regarded as the most technologicallyadvanced research facility of its kind in the world, theAML was judged by representatives from the architec-tural, scientific and laboratory equipment communities,as well as the magazine’s editors. The VCAT had theopportunity to tour several state-of-the-art research facil-

ities in the AML that demonstrated vastimprovements in measurement capabilitiesmade possible by its unique features. Thesetours and unique facilities are described inAppendix B, Examples of Technical Excellence.The AML is already contributing to theemerging nanotechnology industry. NISTshould continue to seek strategic partnershipsthat can help leverage this unique nationalfacility.

The NIST Center for Neutron Research(NCNR), the nation’s premier neutron facility,received an increase of $6 million in FY 2005for capability improvements as well asincreased operating costs. These improvementswill help to significantly expand the NCNR’scollaboration with industrial, government, andacademic researchers in materials science,biotechnology, chemistry, engineering, andphysics.

NIST should continue to evaluate its facility improve-ments based on the Institute’s current and future researchand staffing needs. The VCAT encourages NIST todevelop new business cases to help justify and prioritizethe needed renovations and repairs in program areas thattie to its Strategic Plan. This analysis should cover all ofNIST’s facilities, including the Advanced ChemicalSciences Laboratory and the newly constructed AML.

Technical Excellence

NIST continues to be a high-performing organizationwith outstanding achievements in ground-breaking scien-tific research, key contributions to major building andfire safety investigations, and rapid responsiveness tocongressionally-mandated programs and presidentialdirectives in FY 2005. For example, NIST is home tothree Nobel Laureates, including John Hall, a scientistemeritus in NIST and the University of Colorado, whoshares the 2005 Nobel Prize in Physics for “contributionsto the development of laser-based precision spec-troscopy.” Other achievements include the developmentof a leading new experimental method for defining the

In a clean room located in the AML, NIST researchers develop metrology toolsfor nanoparticle manipulation and for studying atomic and molecular frictionalforces. The research results will help improve the durability of micro- and nano-devices (such as tiny motors, positioning devices or encoders) as well as theassembly of nanoparticles to form new materials.

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kilogram, the improvement of the NIST Atomic FountainClock, and the design of chip-scale refrigerators. NIST’ssignificant research contributions in the building and firesafety investigation of the World Trade Center (WTC)disaster clearly demonstrate that NIST is a world leaderin structural and fire analysis. A summary of NIST’sbuilding and fire safety investigations of the WTCdisaster as well as the deadly Rhode Island nightclub fire

of 2003 is provided in Appendix A. As an example ofNIST’s responsiveness to congressionally-mandatedprograms, the Institute reached a major milestone in May2005 by submitting the first draft of the voluntary votingsystem guidelines to the Election Assistance Commissionwithin nine months as required by HAVA.

As these and many other examples indicate, NIST hasrenowned scientists and engineers as well as some of theworld’s most specialized measurement facilities. Withthese assets, NIST is well-positioned to remain at theforefront of advancing measurement science, standards,and technology to enhance economic security andimprove the quality of life for all Americans (seeAppendix B for additional illustrative examples ofNIST’s technical excellence.)

Baldrige at NIST

The VCAT is extremely pleased to learn that NIST isbeginning to embrace the Baldrige process more system-atically. To help the organization become more familiarwith quality and performance excellence issues, NISTestablished a Baldrige at NIST study group comprised ofthe next generation of NIST leaders. With guidance fromHarry Hertz, the Director of the National BaldrigeQuality Program, this group developed a draftOrganizational Profile, a first step in the Baldrigeprocess. In addition, Technology Services, one ofNIST’s major OUs, has begun implementing theBaldrige process to improve their wide-range of services.The Committee is eagerly looking forward to NIST’sprogress in implementing Baldrige which should help theInstitute achieve an even higher level of organizationalexcellence.

People

NIST senior management recognizes the importance ofresponding to the concerns raised in the 2004 EmployeeSurvey. Focus groups comprised of NIST staff reviewedthe survey results and helped prioritize specific areas forthe NIST management response. Based on thisfeedback, NIST developed and began to implement anaction plan to improve operations and management.

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NIST researchers (left to right) Steven Jefferts, Elizabeth Donley,and Tom Heavner with NIST F1, the world’s best clock (as ofSept. 2005). The clock uses a fountain-like movement of cesiumatoms to determine the length of the second so accurately that--ifit were to run continuously--it would neither lose nor gain onesecond in 60 million years.

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The VCAT encourages NIST to continue to provideemployees with immediate feedback and updates on theaction plan. In addition, NIST should develop specificperformance metrics to measure the success of theseimportant efforts, as outlined in the Baldrige process.

Safety

NIST is continuing to embark on new safety practicesand awareness activities to help improve its safetyrecord. As reported in the 2004 Employee Survey, theNIST staff considered safety an important issue andprovided high scores to NIST as a safe workplace.NIST’s increased safety-related activities should help tocontinue this trend. For example, NIST finalized thePersonal Protective Equipment policy, created a newoffice safety manual, developed a new safety trainingmodule for new employees, provided blood-bornepathogen awareness training to the staff in the PlantDivision, offered new safety training classes undercontract with HHS, and improved building evacuationpractices. As a further demonstration of NIST’s commit-ment to improving safety, the leadership encouraged allemployees to participate in a NIST Safety Day held inBoulder and Gaithersburg with many activities involvingsafety awareness in and out of the workplace.

NIST has an impressive safety record in comparison tothe Department of Energy (DOE) laboratories and othergovernment agencies. In FY 2004, NIST’s total caserate and lost workday incident frequency rate (LWIFR)compared favorably to its peers at the DOE laboratories,as shown in Table 4. Although NIST’s total number ofrecordable safety incidents in FY 2005 is expected toincrease slightly over FY 2004, this number should belower than FY 2000 through FY 2003. NIST’s total lostworkdays also is expected to increase over FY 2004 as aresult of three cases with an unusual high number of lostwork days totaling 220. These three cases involved apolice officer, a carpenter’s helper, and a computerscientist. The VCAT encourages NIST to continue dis-cussions with other research laboratories to identifyadditional safety practices that could help NIST furtherimprove its safety record.

OUTREACHNIST is continuing to expand its external outreach activ-ities more strategically to key stakeholders to increasetheir awareness, appreciation, and support of theInstitute. For FY 2005, NIST developed a comprehen-sive outreach plan that included a specific set of priorityactivities aimed at Congress, industry associations,partners, the Administration, the media, and the public.In addition, NIST identified a set of priorities for the useof new and more effective communication tools. To helpevaluate its progress in carrying out the new outreachplan, NIST should refine its initial set of performancemeasures used in FY 2004.

Over the past year, NIST outreach activities haveincreased significantly. For example, the NIST Directorand the Acting Director have held numerous meetingswith members of Congress and their staff, hosted severalCongressional visits to the Gaithersburg and Boulderlaboratories, and provided briefings and testimony onNIST’s key investigative reports, such as the collapse ofthe WTC and progress on HAVA-related activities. As amore strategic approach for outreach to industry, NISTrecently established a “key customer” outreach programthat targeted specific companies and contacts in fourteenindustry segments for NIST senior managers to developa one-on-one relationship. As part of this program, the

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senior leadership has had key engagements with high-level executives in such companies as Boeing, FordMotor Company, Fluke, and Agilent to understand theircurrent and future needs and to educate them aboutNIST and its impact on their organization. In addition,the NIST Director has been conducting outreach withmajor manufacturers, customers of NIST services, andother federal agencies responsible for addressingnational priorities to identify possible areas for collabo-rations and partnerships. The VCAT is pleased thatNIST is becoming more strategic and more proactive inits outreach efforts with senior executives in industry.

While increasing its face-to-face interactions with keycustomers and stakeholders, the Institute needs to place agreater emphasis on developing new communicationtools that clearly demonstrate the value of NIST. TheVCAT commends NIST for its commitment to refine theNIST message for use in its outreach activities and looksforward to seeing this message in a new set of outreachmaterial that provides examples of program impacts byindustry segments. Program impacts also shouldhighlight how the capabilities of the world-class AMLhave helped to increase NIST’s contributions to thenation’s standards and measurement infrastructure as away to attract more interest in this national resource. TheCommittee also was impressed with the initial revisionof the NIST Overview presentation for outreach activi-ties and provided several suggestions for furtherimprovement, including the development of customizedversions for specific audiences.

As emphasized in the presentations by Michael Hollandfrom OSTP and Kei Koizumi from the AmericanAssociation for the Advancement of Science (AAAS),federal agencies need to communicate clearly the valueof their programs and their priority setting process topolicy officials as a way to gain more support from theAdministration and Congress. The VCAT is hopeful thatNIST will continue to focus on the development ofimproved communication tools as a high priority toincrease the Institute’s visibility even further.

BUDGETNIST Laboratories

Increased funding for the NIST laboratories in FY 2005and the President’s FY 2006 budget request is awelcome return to a positive change in NIST resourcesthat will help support strategic initiatives and strengthenNIST core competencies needed to increase our nation’sinnovation and competitiveness. However, the amountof funding available for core metrology programs in theNIST laboratories has been eroding over the past severalyears as the Institute has had to compensate for hugenew responsibilities in response to a series of unfundedcongressionally-mandated programs, such as projectsrelated to the National Earthquake Hazards ReductionProgram and the National Construction Safety Team Act,presidential directives, inadequate adjustments-to-base,and unfunded salary increases. Based on the extremelytight budget projections for non-security discretionaryspending in the next few years, NIST must invest itsresources in areas of high national needs where theInstitute can have a significant impact on the growthopportunities for U.S. industry. This will likely involvethe redeployment of existing resources to new andhigher-value added contribution areas.

The VCAT appreciated the opportunity to learn moreabout the Administration’s priority-setting process forthe federal R&D portfolio as well as R&D fundingtrends in the federal government as described by repre-sentatives from OSTP and AAAS. Both of thesespeakers provided an excellent context for understandingthe complexities of the budget process and the chal-lenges associated with reducing the budget deficit whileaddressing the President’s priorities.

Facilities

NIST’s facilities continue to require additional fundingto help shape NIST’s capabilities and productivity wellinto the 21st century. Additional investments are neededto overcome remaining problems associated with deteri-orated and obsolete laboratory facilities in Gaithersburg

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and Boulder and to support necessary preventive mainte-nance for the AML, as described under the “Summary ofOperations, Organizational Excellence, Facilities”section of this report (page 13).

ATP and Hollings MEP

The funding uncertainty for the ATP and the HollingsMEP continued in FY 2005 and FY 2006 and must be

resolved. The VCAT is concerned that the continuingdebate between the Administration and Congress overfunding these programs versus the laboratories is havinga negative impact on NIST’s long-term strategicplanning process.

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NIST physicist Richard Steiner adjusts the electronic kilogram, anexperimental apparatus for defining mass in terms of the basic prop-erties of nature. The advance may move the scientific communitycloser to redefining the kilogram, the only one of the seven basicunits of the international measurement system still defined by aphysical artifact.

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World Trade Center Investigation

In June 2005, Shyam Sunder, the WTC lead investigator,provided a fascinating and detailed presentation ofNIST’s response to the WTC disaster, including back-ground information and a summary of the draft reportand recommendations released for public comment onJune 23, 2005. His overview included results fromelaborate computer modeling, photographs, and videos insupport of the analysis of the WTC collapse sequence.An unprecedented amount of data collection wasrequired for reconstructing the exact sequence of eventsbeginning with the impact of the aircraft, to the firedynamics, to progression of local failures that initiatedthe building collapse. NIST intends to continue to workclosely with the building and fire safety communities toensure that the recommendations are given proper con-sideration. The Committee commends NIST for itsextensive and excellent efforts in the building and firesafety investigation of the WTC disaster. In particular,NIST’s ability to overcome the many challenges of the

investigation, including leading and managing a team ofover 225 individuals from NIST and other organizationsand coordinating efforts with the 9/11 Commission andlocal authorities is admirable.

The final WTC towers report was released on October26, 2005. The report called on the organizations thatdevelop building and fire safety codes, standards, andpractices- and the state and local agencies that adoptthem- to give immediate and serious consideration toimplementing the recommendations from NIST’s investi-gation of the fires and collapses of the WTC. Based onthe findings of the most detailed examination of abuilding failure ever conducted, the report features 30recommendations designed to improve the safety of tallbuildings, their occupants and first responders. The NISTrecommendations are contained within 43 separatereports totaling some 10,000 pages that cover: specificimprovements to building standards, codes and practices;changes to, or the establishment of, evacuation and

emergency response procedures; andresearch and other appropriate actionsneeded to help prevent future buildingfailures. A web-based system with infor-mation on the status of the WTC recom-mendations will be established for thepublic to track their implementation.NIST’s investigation of the WTC towersfires and collapses was conducted underthe National Construction Safety Team Act.Additional information about this investi-gation is available at http://wtc.nist.gov.

Investigation of The StationNightclub Fire

On June 29, 2005, NIST released a reportthat called for some significant changesto further strengthen the model buildingand fire safety codes based on thefindings from its investigation of TheStation nightclub fire in West Warwick,Rhode Island, that killed 100 people onFebruary 20, 2003. The report contains

Appendix A: Examples of Technical Excellence:Major Building and Fire Safety Investigations

In 2005, NIST completed a three-year building and fire safety investigation of theprobable causes for the post-impact collapse of World Trade Center Towers 1 and 2following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. As part of the investigation, NIST structuralexperts examined about 250 pieces of steel recovered from the site. NIST researchersStephen Banovic (left) and Frank Davis take inventory.

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ten recommendations for increased occupant safety innightclubs based on the investigation and commentsreceived from the draft report. These recommendationsreinforce the current model codes and propose additionalchanges that will make them even more effective. NISTwill work with major organizations representing state

and local officials to encourage them to seriouslyconsider these recommendations. A special web site willbe established for NIST to track progress in adopting itsrecommendations. NIST conducted its investigation ofThe Station nightclub fire under the NationalConstruction Safety Team Act.

At a robotic sample preparation station, NIST staff members John Butler and Susan Ballou discuss aNIST project for improving forensic analysis of human DNA. Butler developed a concept for reducingthe size of DNA fragments needed for a definitive identification, which has proven useful inanalyzing damaged or degraded DNA. Methods based on the concept were used to help identifyvictims of the World Trade Center collapse on Sept. 11.

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Technical excellence is evident in many of NIST’sprograms as reflected by the increasing number of presti-gious awards bestowed upon the technical staff for out-standing accomplishments; NIST’s responsiveness tocongressionally-mandated programs and presidentialdirectives in high visibility areas; NIST’s technicalaccomplishments that are featured in the scientificmedia; and the high quality research presented to theVCAT members during selected laboratory tours.

Examples of prestigious external awards that recognizeNIST accomplishments include Scientific American’s“Research Leader of the Year” to Deborah Jin for thecreation of a new state of matter; the Presidential RankAward for Distinguished Senior Professional to DavidWineland; and the Arthur S. Flemming Awards to fourNIST researchers. In addition, William Phillips wasappointed to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences.Scientific journals and other news media also have high-lighted NIST technical achievements.

At each meeting, the VCAT members tour selected NISTlaboratories to gain an appreciation of the high qualitytechnical work and staff expertise. These tours alsoprovide the Committee with an excellent opportunity toexamine how the technical programs support the NISTStrategic Plan. Due to a schedule change, theCommittee did not visit the Boulder campus in FY 2005,but will resume these annual visits in December 2005.Provided below is a brief summary of the FY 2005 toursthat illustrate the technical excellence of NIST’sprograms, their impact to the nation, and their relation-ship to the NIST Strategic Plan. In addition, theCommittee was extremely impressed with each of theresearchers’ depth of knowledge and enthusiasm as theydescribed their exciting projects.

Homeland SecurityWeapons and Protective Systems for Law Enforcement –The Office of Law Enforcement Standards (OLES)serves the interests of the criminal justice and publicsafety communities (state and local law enforcement,corrections, fire service, other first responders, andcourts) by developing performance standards forequipment; methods for examining evidentiary materials;users guides; and Standard Reference Materials, as wellas performing other scientific and engineering research.

Appendix B. Examples of Technical Excellence:Lab Reviews Conducted by the VCAT in FY 2005

With funding from the National Institute of Justice, NIST's Office ofLaw Enforcement Standards develops test methods and standards toensure the performance of equipment used by police, correctionsofficers, and first responders. Nathaniel Waters, a NIST engineeringtechnician, examines a bullet-resistant vest being tested. NIST recentlyupgraded its ballistics facility used for such research.

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OLES has six program areas: weapons and protectivesystems; detection, inspection, and enforcement tech-nologies; chemical systems and materials; forensicsciences; public safety communication standards; andcritical incident technologies. The VCAT witnessed avery interesting body armor ballistic test.

The Weapons and Protective Systems area provides on-going technical support and research for the NationalInstitute of Justice (NIJ) standards for ballistic-resistantbody armor (bullet-resistant vests), which OLES firstdeveloped for NIJ in 1972. The body armor program ispart of NIJ’s successful Law Enforcement andCorrections Standards and Testing Program, throughwhich companies may have their products voluntarilycertified as compliant with the standard. Ballistic-resistant body armor has been credited with saving morethan 2,500 lives, and the program’s evaluations of newmaterials and ballistic threats and its revisions of thestandard help ensure the continued effectiveness of thistechnology. This project area also develops and supportsother equipment performance standards vital to thesafety of law enforcement and corrections personnel,including stab-resistant body armor; ballistic helmets;riot helmets and face shields; bomb suits; metallichandcuffs; and firearms.

NanotechnologyMechanics, Adhesion and Friction at Nanoscale –Tomorrow’s micro- and nano-scale devices and materialswill be the engine for our nation’s economic growth, per-meating every industrial sector. As the sizes of thesedevices shrink, surface forces become dominant,governing how tiny device components interact witheach other, as well as how nanoparticles can beassembled to form new materials. Understanding andcontrol of these forces are critical to successful develop-ment of competitive industries in the United States.NIST pioneers precise measurements of mechanicalproperties, friction, and surface forces using uniqueinstrumentation.

Located in a clean room in the AML, with tight tempera-ture and vibration control, the laboratory allows

researchers to view surfaces, probe material mechanicalproperties, and measure the interaction forces accurately.Collaborating with U.S. instrument-makers, NISTresearchers have developed an integrated system ofmicro- and nano-scale instruments that include a custom-built three-dimensional sensor for friction measurement,ultra-high-vacuum scanning probe microscopes, and newadhesion and surface force measurement capabilities, aswell as applying and disseminating NIST forcemetrology to ensure the accuracy of the test results.

ManufacturingNIST Dimensional Metrology: Ultra-High AccuracyCoordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) – Arguably themost accurate instrument of its type in the world, thisNIST-enhanced ultra-high-accuracy Moore 48 CMMhoused in the AML is key to NIST calibrations andresearch that help U.S. manufacturers of all sizes to meetever more demanding dimensional requirements and toreliably machine and assemble parts with increasinglycomplex features. Ensuring proper performance ofCMMs is fundamental to manufacturing performance atnearly every level of supply chains. NIST dimensionalcalibrations and a series of innovative measurement refer-ences provide the nation’s manufacturers with compellingevidence (technically termed “traceability”) that theirparts and final products are of uniformly high quality, sat-isfying customer specifications and, as warranted, regula-tory requirements. With this customized CMM, NISTprovides its customers, many of whom are smaller manu-facturers and private-sector calibration servicecompanies, with access to state-of-the-art capabilities thatare beyond their budgets, yet critical to their qualityassurance systems, and thus those of their customers. Inaddition, NIST researchers actively participate and oftenlead efforts to develop international standards regardingthe use and performance of CMMs, the primary inspec-tion tool in many manufacturing sectors.

Competence: NanotechnologyMicroforce Realization and Measurements – Thisproject is another outstanding example of how NISTcompetence funds have been successfully used in an

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intra-laboratory collaboration to carry outcore measurement research that is at theheart of the NIST mission. Competencefunding was first provided to this project inFY 2000 to develop competence in special-ized instrument design appropriate for therealization, measurement, and repeatable dis-semination of microforces that begins toaddress the emergent force metrology needsof a growing class of nanotechnologies. Thiscompetence, enabled by a new laboratory inthe AML, has formed the basis of a metro-logical infrastructure for instruments, such asatomic force microscopes, nanoindenters,and micro-electromechanical systems(MEMS) that operate in force regionsbetween nanonewtons and millinewtons.

Competence: Measurement ScienceNIST Combinatorial Methods Center(NCMC) – The NCMC, established in 2001with competence funding, specializes indeveloping combinatorial and high-through-put metrologies for polymer materialsscience. Originally applied to drugdiscovery, combinatorial and high-through-put methods are now exploited for catalysis,coatings, and materials science. With anopen source, non-proprietary, model, the NCMC estab-lished a new type of consortium that now includes 21industrial, academic, and government members. Currentresearch activities include microfluidic technologies forthe analysis of complex multiphase formulations,gradient library methods for nanomaterials andnanometrology development, and rapid quantitativeanalysis of adhesion and mechanical properties ofcoatings and films.

Measurement Science and StandardsLarge Fire Metrology Laboratory – NIST maintains aworld-class large fire laboratory to improve firemetrology capabilities for the country, conduct modelvalidation/verification tests in intermediate and large

scale settings, and set standards for fire testing. Thislaboratory is equipped with three separate calorimetersrated at 1 megawatt, 3 megatwatts and 10 megawattsheat release rates, respectively. The VCAT witnessed aspectacular test of a residential bed mattress under the 3megawatts calorimeter. NIST worked to understand howbed fires proceed from the ignition of bedclothes to thefull involvement of the bed and its foundation anddeveloped a novel infrared technique for measuring theintensity of heat transfer from the bedclothes.Recognizing that routine testing of mattresses could notdepend on a standard set of bedclothes, NIST used thedata to develop a unique double burner that accuratelysimulates the threat from such a fire to both the top andsides of the mattress and its foundation. In addition todeveloping the test methodology, NIST also determined

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NIST physicist Ray Simmonds holds a protective box containing “artificial atoms”that might be used in quantum computers. Next to him is a cryogenic refrigeratorthat cools the box to temperatures near absolute zero.

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the relationship between the size of the fire and the heatrelease rate that would lead to flashover, i.e., where thefull room bursts into flame and starts the fire spreadingrapidly to the rest of the building. This led directly to theacceptable levels of heat release rate for the mattresses.

Bed fires in homes cost the nation nearly 500 lives, over2000 serious injuries, and $250 million in property lossevery year. Safety standards now adopted by theCalifornia Bureau of Home Furnishings are based on thetesting methods and hazard analysis developed in thislaboratory. NIST is now working with the ConsumerProduct Safety Commission who is considering adoptinga modified version of these standards, which is estimatedto cut national losses from bed fires in half.

Cryptographic Algorithm Validation Program (CAVP) –The CAVP demonstrations provided an overview ofNIST’s highly successful algorithm testing program andlive testing of cryptographic algorithm implementationsthrough the Cryptographic Algorithm Validation System(CAVS). The validation test tools exercise an algorithmimplementation to provide assurance that the algorithmhas been used correctly based on the specifications givenin the associated cryptographic standard. Statistics showthat 25 percent of the algorithm implementationssubmitted for testing and perceived to be ready to go tomarket were found to be incorrect. The CAVS allowsthese errors to be quickly isolated and corrected beforethe products are used by industry and federal agencies.Testing is required to validate a cryptographic-basedproduct against NIST’s Federal Information Processing

Standard (FIPS) 140-2: Security Requirements forCryptographic Modules. In addition to use in the federalsector, validation through NIST’s Cryptographic ModuleValidation Program (CMVP) is recognized worldwide byISO standardization and international industry accept-ance. Both Canada and the United Kingdom specifyFIPS 140-2 validation for use within their federalstructure and the CMVP serves as a model for programsin other countries. NIST validated algorithms andmodules can be found in use on every continent to helpprotect information, secure electronic transactions, andeven protect communications with the InternationalSpace Station.

Measurement ScienceImmersive Visualization Interacting with Data in ThreeDimensions – Computational and laboratory experimentsare generating increasing amounts of scientific data.Often, the complexity of the data makes it difficult todevise a priori methods for its analysis, or the data isfrom new landscapes, such as the nano-world, where sci-entists have limited experience. NIST is developingimmersive visualization capabilities that allow scientiststo interact with data objects in a three-dimensionallandscape rather than simply viewing pictures of them.The VCAT witnessed three demonstrations with applica-tions for cement and concrete flow, tissue engineering,and the behavior of smart gels used in the drug and foodindustry. By permitting such visual exploration, scien-tists can more easily perceive complex relationships intheir data, quickly ascertaining whether the results matchexpectations.

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At the September 2005 VCAT meeting, the NIST Director provided a status report on how the Institute is addressingeach of the twelve recommendations from the FY 2004 VCAT Annual Report (see Table 5). Beginning in FY 2004,NIST committed to provide detailed progress reports to the Committee on these and other VCAT recommendations.This reporting system is intended to close the loop between the VCAT’s observations, recommendations, and NIST’sresponse. By engaging in extended discussions with the NIST leadership on a variety of topics presented over thecourse of the meetings, the VCAT is better able to advise the Institute on its policies, organization, budget, andprograms to help NIST best support the nation’s scientific and technical needs.

Appendix C. NIST Response to FY 2004 VCATAnnual Report Recommendations

Table 5. NIST Response to FY 2004 VCAT Annual ReportRecommendations

VCAT Recommendations NIST Status

Immediately increase NIST budget to fund strategicinitiatives and to compensate for unfundedCongressional mandates, inadequate adjustments tobase, and unfunded salary increases.

Continue to invest in core competencies required toprovide measurement and standards capabilities forthe future.

Obtain budget increases to equip the AML, improvethe NCNR, and modernize Boulder labs.

Stabilize funding for MEP and ATP.

The President’s budget request for FY 2006 supportsthis objective while balancing other national prioritiesincluding cutting the budget deficit. Final budget for FY2006 awaiting Congressional appropriations.

Strategic planning is a key focus area for the newDirector. A list of top level NIST core competencies andnewly funded competence projects was provided in theSeptember NIST Update presentation. Clearer alignmentbetween critical areas and investment decisions will bemade.

Plans are being developed for the N3F and AML tomaximize usage and impact on the nation. This mayinclude increasing their priorities within existing budgets.

The FY 2005 budget included $6.9M CRF to fund thecurrent phase of the Boulder Central Utility Plant (CUP)upgrade.

The FY 2006 Presidential budget request includes:• $9.4M CRF to complete CUP upgrade• $6.5M CRF for Boulder Building 1 design• $4M CRF for Boulder Building 4 design &

renovation• $8.1M increase to SCMMR base

This is an ongoing issue and is subject to FY 2006Congressional appropriations.

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Develop a longer-term comprehensive plan formarketing capabilities to key customers andstakeholders.

VCAT will continue to advise NIST’s stakeholders on thestrategic direction and value of NIST.

Develop specific short-term and long-term metrics andother quantitative data consistent with the BaldrigeFramework. Reflect this in the 2005 BalancedScorecard.

Expand efforts in the Strategic Focus Areas. In particu-lar, closely examine NIST’s role in biosciences and thepharmaceutical industries.

NIST is working on refining a common “NIST message”to use in outreach activities.

NIST SMB has established a “key customer” outreachprogram.

The Director has been reaching out to major manufactur-ers, customers of NIST services, and agencies responsi-ble for addressing national priorities. Examples includeBoeing, Ford, and USCAR.

OU Directors have been charged with doing the same,by sector.

Thank you for your commitment and success in advisingNIST’s stakeholders. Your work to advise NIST’s stake-holders including DOC, OMB, OSTP, and Congress isvery much appreciated.

The “Building the Next Generation Leaders” leaderprogram established a Baldrige at NIST study group thatis working with Harry Hertz. They have developed a draftOrganizational Profile, the first step in the Baldrigeprocess.

Technology Services has also begun implementing theBaldrige process to improve their services.

David Spong gave a talk to NIST staff about Baldrige.

The FY05 Balanced Scorecard (provided to the VCAT inJune) was improved with the addition of a new sectionon programs based on your recommendations andaligned with OMB and Commerce metrics.

The NIST Performance Measurement and EvaluationSystem overview was distributed at this meeting.

The Nano and Bio SWG has been tasked with develop-ing a list of high priority options to consider for budgetinitiatives.

Outreach

Strategic Direction and Performance

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Continue to explore opportunities for extensive collabo-rations and partnerships to take advantage of expertiseoutside of NIST. Update the strategic plan to includestrategies for identifying where partnerships should beappropriate, targeting specific partnerships, andachieving these partnerships.

Integrate the analysis of NIST’s role in the NationalMeasurement System into the next version of theStrategic Plan.

Continue to upgrade aging buildings and facilities.

NIST’s Safety Council should benchmark safetypractices with other organizations and seek additionaladvice from VCAT members with expertise in this field.

NIST has carefully cataloged its research activitiesrelated to Biosystems and Health.

NIST has developed a fact sheet to inform the pharma-ceutical industry about NIST’s research and services.

NIST is developing an internal document to enunciateour strategy and to guide our strategic planning on part-nerships.

We are evaluating strategies for using MOUs as part ofthis effort.

An example of the kind of successful partnership rela-tionship NIST plans to develop is USCAR.

USMS is one component of our strategic planning effortsfor identifying national needs and NIST’s role. Theplanned series of targeted workshops will provide criticaloutside input to our strategic planning process.

The highest priority items for facilities are renovations inBoulder.

Longer term priorities are renovations in Gaithersburg.

Details from the FY 2006 budget request are presentedin an earlier slide.

This comparison data was presented in the NIST updatepresentation.

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AAAS American Association for the Advancement of ScienceAML Advanced Measurement LaboratoryANSI American National Standards InstituteASTM ASTM International, originally known as the American Society for Testing and MaterialsATP Advanced Technology Program CAVS Cryptographic Algorithm Validation SystemCMVP Cryptographic Module Validation ProgramCMM Coordinate Measuring MachineCRF Construction of Research FacilitiesDHS Department of Homeland SecurityDoC Department of CommerceDOE Department of EnergyFIPS Federal Information Processing StandardsFY Fiscal YearHAVA Help America Vote Act HHS Department of Health and Human ServicesHS Homeland SecurityI/KM Information and Knowledge ManagementISO International Organization for StandardizationJILA A joint research institute of NIST and the University of Colorado at BoulderLWIFR Lost Workday Incident Frequency RateMEP Manufacturing Extension PartnershipMOU Memorandum of UnderstandingN3F National Nanomanufacturing and Nanometrology FacilityNCMC NIST Combinatorial Methods CenterNCNR NIST Center for Neutron ResearchNIJ National Institute of JusticeNIST National Institute of Standards and TechnologyNSTC National Science and Technology CouncilNNI National Nanotechnology InitiativeOA Other AgencyOLES Office of Law Enforcement StandardsOMB Office of Management and BudgetOSTP Office of Science Policy and TechnologyOU Operating UnitRFID Radio Frequency IdentificationSCMMR Safety, Capacity, Maintenance and Major RepairsSMB Senior Management BoardSTRS Scientific Technical Research and ServicesSWG Strategic Working GroupUS-VISIT United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology ProgramUSMS U.S. Measurement SystemVCAT Visiting Committee on Advanced TechnologyWTC World Trade Center

Appendix D. Abbreviations

Cover Photo Credits (clockwise from top)

1. © Robert Rathe2. Beamie Young/NIST3. Courtesy HDR Architecture, Inc./Steve Hall © Hedrich Blessing4. Gail Porter/NIST5. © Robert Rathe6. © Geoffrey Wheeler7. © Robert Rathe8. Courtesy HDR Architecture, Inc./Steve Hall © Hedrich Blessing9. Gail Porter/NIST