World Metrology Day 2022 – Metrology in the digital era

World Metrology Day, May 20th 2022, commemorates when in 1875 the Treaty of the Meter was signed by representatives of 17 nations who agreed on one, uniform measurement system – a global system for common measurements, based on constants of nature. 

Over the years this system has been adjusted and adapted to changes in technology. Throughout the first three industrial revolutions, metrologists have been able to be more and more precise with their measurements which helps technology continue to advance. The digital era, or the fourth industrial revolution, is no different. Metrology plays a huge role in IoT (Internet of Things) technology and digitisation.

The theme for this year’s World Metrology Day is Metrology in the Digital Era.

Over the last couple of years, top metrologists from all around the world have been collaborating on building this system that allows for a seamless transition from a digital calibration; certificates from the calibration laboratory to the customer.

The digital arena is moving more towards digital certificates. Typically certificates are very long, up to 20 pages of data, and people have had to make an EXCEL spreadsheet in order to look at what the instrument’s doing overtime. This is just too cumbersome, so today, when a Fluke certificate is produced, there are actually just three things that happen:

1. We print a paper certificate, just like before. So, people get a piece of paper.
2. We also make a searchable pdf.
3. And the third thing is that we create an XML file of all the data, that can easily be imported into Excel or other tools for people to analyse their devices.

A digital repository of all of this information advances, not only the calibrations ability calibration laboratory’s ability to have access to information but then enables every downstream process to be able to get digitised as well.

Think, for a moment, what the future of metrology looks like… because the future of metrology does not look like it does today, and it doesn’t look like the past.  Metrology is really all around us and involves everything we do daily.  It might be invisible, or we may be unaware that it is around us, but in reality, measurement and measurement sciences are a part of every act of commerce, our safety, everything around technological advancement, as well as progress.

HAPPY METROLOGY DAY!!