National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, and theAmerican National Standards Institute (ANSI) are organizing an international workshop on challenges to the increased use of nanotechnology standards, to be held in Washington DC on December 13 and 14, 2011.
Workshop Goal:
To develop a better understanding of issues and factors that are impacting the broad use and uptake of nanotechnology standards, and how development and deployment of nanotechnology can be catalyzed through more widespread acceptance and use of nanotechnology standards
Objectives:
• Enable a robust internationally focused dialogue between developers and users of nanotechnology standards from both the public and private sectors
• Develop a clearer understanding of nanotechnology standards needs and priorities, and limitations facing standards developers
• Identify reasons inhibiting broad use of nanotechnology standards that are either currently available or are being developed
• Identify possible solutions to address impediments to broader use of nanotechnology standards
Desired Outcomes:
Recommendations and actions items relating to:
• Barriers to widespread adoption and use of nanotechnology standards
• Mechanisms for improved communication and coordination between and among nanotechnology standards users from government, industry and the organizations that develop nanotechnology standards
Participants:
In order to ensure a robust dialogue, this workshop is international in scope and will include participation from nanotechnology standards users—including manufacturers, government regulators, consumer and public interest groups, academia, and government policy developers—as well as organizations that are involved in nanotechnology standards development, national measurement laboratories, and other groups with an interest in nanotechnology development and use.
Background and Context:
Standards play a critical role as a foundational tool for enabling the development and deployment of technologies. In the case of nanotechnology, documentary standards are a particularly important tool that can help address important questions about the safety of the materials and systems comprising this technology.
Nanotechnology standardization efforts have been underway for over five years in various venues around the world. These have resulted in some important standards in areas such as terminology, measurement, and characterization of nanomaterials and systems, environmental health and safety aspects of nanomaterials, and performance characteristics. Despite the existence of these standards, there appear to be barriers to their widespread use, potentially limiting the rapid development and deployment of nanotechnology.
Broader use and adoption of such standards can help address concerns about regulatory divergence, enable global commerce, and catalyze further innovations in nanotechnology. This workshop is focused on identifying issues that may be impacting the broader adoption and use of nanotechnology standards, and how such barriers can be effectively addressed.
