About the National Institute of Standards and Technology

Founded in 1901 and now part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, the National Institute of Standards and Technology is one of the nation's oldest physical science laboratories. Congress established the agency to remove a major handicap to U.S. industrial competitiveness at the time—a second-rate measurement infrastructure that lagged behind the capabilities of England, Germany, and other economic rivals. NIST's mission is to promote U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology in ways that enhance economic security and improve our quality of life.  Today, NIST measurements support the smallest of technologies—nanoscale devices so tiny that tens of thousands can fit on the end of a single human hair—to the largest and most complex of human-made creations, from earthquake-resistant skyscrapers to wide-body jetliners to global communication networks.

From the smart electric power grid and electronic health records to atomic clocks, advanced nanomaterials, and computer chips, innumerable products and services rely in some way on technology, measurement, and standards provided by the National Institute of Standards and Technology. NIST carries out its mission through the following programs:

• the NIST Laboratories, conducting world-class research;
• the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership, a nationwide network of local centers offering technical and business assistance to smaller manufacturers; and
• the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program, which promotes performance excellence among U.S. manufacturers, service companies, educational institutions, health care providers, and nonprofit organizations.

NIST's FY 2014 budget includes $850 million in direct and transfer appropriations, an estimated $50 million in service fees and $120 million from other agencies. NIST has campuses in Gaithersburg, Md., and Boulder, Colo. In addition, NIST collaborates with several federal and state institutions to run the Hollings Marine Laboratory in Charleston, S.C., and jointly operates two fundamental physics institutes, JILA with the University of Colorado Boulder and the Joint Quantum Institute with the University of Maryland, College Park. In addition, the Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research, headquartered in Rockville, Md., is a joint research center established by NIST, the University of Maryland College Park, and the University of Maryland Baltimore to foster multidisciplinary biotechnology and biomedical research. Also, in 2012, NIST, in partnership with the State of Maryland and Montgomery County, Md., established the National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence, a public-private collaboration for accelerating the widespread adoption of integrated cybersecurity tools and technologies.

Additional information about NIST can be found at: http://www.nist.gov/public_affairs/factsheet/overview-brochure.cfm