GNBS wins OIML CEEMS Award for contributions to metrology

The Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) has been awarded for its outstanding contribution to, and excellent achievements for, International Legal Metrology in Developing Countries.
In January 2023, the GNBS received the 2022 OIML CEEMS Award which was conferred on it in October 2022. This is at a time when the bureau is making significant advances in the area of Legal Metrology, while Countries and Economies with Emerging Metrology Systems (CEEMS) suffer from a lack of resources for the operation of a sound Legal Metrology System.
Tourism Minister Oneidge Walrond shared that it is important for Guyana to have international recognition, which will aid in the country’s growth and competitiveness.
“These kinds of awards, these kinds of recognition, and meeting this international rigger is very important for Guyana’s competitiveness and for Guyana’s growth and development. I am extremely proud that the GNBS continues to push and be a game changer in the developing world, amongst their peers to stand head and shoulders to get this award,” she shared.
The Minister added that the GNBS monitors what products come into the country, so as to benefit buyers and consumers in terms of financial and economic gain.
“The standard has to be set, and that is what, at the GNBS essentially…we do, and that there’s a way that…we monitor what we receive, so that we can know what consumers have to pay, we would know, buyers and sellers, what the transaction would entail in terms of financial and economic gain,” Walrond shared.
Meanwhile, Head of the Legal Metrology Department of the GNBS, Shailendra Rai, unveiled some of the plans that the bureau has been undertaking, and some of its plans for the future. He noted that, over the years, the bureau has made significant strides in doing verifications for a number of entities, such as airlines, the Transport and Harbours Department, supermarkets, and many more.
“We would have also increased our scope in terms of the verification of different measuring instruments. Over the years, we would have included other things, like petrol pumps…bulk meters… storage tanks…tanker wagons… and we included things like moisture meters, speed guns, breathalyzers…and more importantly, for the emerging oil and gas sector is the custody transfer meters, and these are the meters that are used on board the FPSO to determine the quantity of crude,” Rai noted.
Added to that, he noted that the bureau has a lot of work to be done this year for entities such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the Guyana Police Force.
“In terms of moving forward for 2023, we’re currently looking at the net contents of prepackaged goods. This is very significant, because the prepackaging of goods is done in the absence of the consumer, and it is very important that we check the net quantity to ensure that customers receive the correct quantity of products purchased. In addition to that, we’re scheduled to look at sound level meters…tint meters and, finally, the LPG meters,” he announced.