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5.2 Standard Reference Materials
Carroll Croarkin Statistical Engineering Division, CAML The Statistical Engineering Division supports the Office of Standard Reference Materials (SRMs) and the other NIST laboratories by collaborating directly with chemists and other scientists engaged in the certification of SRMs. All division staff are engaged in this activity. Standard reference materials are artifacts that are manufactured according to strict specifications and certified by NIST for one or more quantities of interest. SRMs represent one of the primary vehicles for disseminating measurement technology to industry The process of producing a new SRM typically takes about five years and goes through several phases: 1) development and validation of a measurement method; 2) design of a prototype; 3) stability testing; 4) study of measurement error; 5) certification; and 6) uncertainty analysis. Statisticians advise on the design and analysis of experiments at all phases; develop methods for estimation for data taken by different analytical methods; reconcile interlaboratory differences; and combine all information to produce a certified value and statement of uncertainty. Division staff collaborate on thirty or more SRMs per year covering a variety of applications including: chemical (e.g., sulfur concentration in coke); health (e.g., glucose in human serum); dimension Information on statistical issues related to specific SRMs can be found in the body of this document.
Date created: 7/20/2001 |