As part of the Commerce Department's Technology Administration, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) develops and promotes measurements, standards, and technology to enhance productivity, facilitate trade and improve the quality of life. NIST carries out its mission through a portfolio of four major programs:
Laboratories that provide technical leadership for vital components of the nation's technology infrastructure needed by U.S. industry to continually improve its products and services;
a highly visible quality outreach program associated with the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award that recognizes continuous improvements in quality management by U.S. manufacturers, service companies, educational organizations, and health care providers.
a grassroots Manufacturing Extension Partnership with a nationwide network of local centers offering technical and business assistance to smaller manufacturers; and
the Advanced Technology Program, which accelerates the development of innovative technologies for broad national benefit through R&D partnerships with the private sector.
In fiscal year 2002, NIST is operating on a budget of about $812 million with nearly 3,200 staff members at its sites in Gaithersburg, Md., and Boulder, Colo.
NIST/Information Technology Laboratory
(ITL)
ITL is one of the measurement and standards laboratories of NIST. ITL establishes partnerships with industry, academia, and government to pursue research areas of mutual interest. Through its research and development program, ITL continues to make an impact on the world around it.
In the last few years, NIST/ITL has extended the biometric effort to address commercial applications of biometrics and the commercial marketplace. This effort (co-sponsored by NIST and NSA) facilitates systems that promote interoperability and biometric data interchange with the required level of performance. Current efforts include accelerating the development of biometric standards, researching authentication architectures interoperability based on BioAPI and CBEFF (see page 20), integrating biometrics with other authentication technologies, and developing the required interoperability and data interchange tests.
News and general information about NIST programs and services are available on the World Wide Web at
http://www.nist.gov, or by calling General Inquiries at (301)
975-NIST (975-6478) or
e-mail: inquiries@nist.gov.