Norway covers an area of 386,958 sq km and has a population of 4.3 million. The country is divided into 19 counties.
Organisational Structure and Background
The Norwegian Metrology Service (JV) is a central government institution under the Department of Industry andTrade. The JV was established in 1875 to implement the metric system in Norway The very much older Weights and Measures Service was incorporated into JV with the objective of achieving rapid metrication through the mandatory verification of instruments in use for trade. The basic functions of JV were the traceability of mass and length to international standards and establishing and executing legal metrology controls on equipment in trade use. Verification and inspection since JV's establishment has variously been performed by the Police, by part-time inspectors, and from the end of the 1940's by permanent officers responsible for different districts in Norway. For legal metrology purposes the country is divided into 5 verification districts with one office in each district.
In 1987 JV was divided into three different departments:
- Legal metrology
- National Standards Laboratory
- Accreditation activities
The now established Norwegian Accreditation (NA) is however since 2004 a separate independent service under the same ministry.
The National Standards Laboratory maintains the national measurements standards and is responsible for the dissemination of traceable measurements to authorities and industry.
Legal Metrology is responsible for all legal metrology activities including the inspection/verification of measuring instruments in use for trade and is also responsible for the development of regulations, of which some has to be decided by the ministry.
A new law on measurements is effective from January 2008, having basically focus on the measurements, not only on the measuring instruments. It is foreseen, that the need for regulations and the content where needed, shall be based on the need for the society by using socio-economic analyzes combined with risk assessment. JV will be responsible for such analyzes and proposals for regulations, as a preparation for the ministry.
The new law gives a lot of freedom for JV to “design” inspection and verification activity to achieve the goal on reliable measurements in the most cost-effective way.
Equipment Subject to National Controls
- Simple length measures in trade use
- Non-liquid volume measures (volume of packages for transport controls)
- Liquid volume measures
- Dipsticks
- Liquid volume metering instruments
- Petroleum
- Liquefied petroleum gas
- Bulk milk
- Lubricating oil
- Heating oil
- Non-automatic weighing instruments
- Self-indicating
- Non self-indicating
- Automatic weighing instruments
- Discontinuous totalising
- Continuous totalising (beltweighers)
- Gravimetric filling
- Rail weighbridges
- Weigh/price labeller and weigh labeller
- Catch weighers
- Road traffic instruments
- Dynamic axle weighing instruments
- Non-automatic weigh bridges
Inspection and Verification
At present, there is a mandatory reverification system operated by JV through its district offices. Inspection intervals are set by regulation:
NAWIs 3 years AWIs 1 years Petrol pumps 1 year Fees are charged for periodical reverification. At present, there is a requirement from the ministry that all activities on legal metrology by JV shall be covered by fees from the users.
Sanctions
Where on inspection an instrument is found not to fulfil the requirements, different courses of action are possible:
- If the error is not to serious (does not exceed mpe x 3) the inspector will require the owner to have the instrument repaired within one to three months followed by a reverification.
- If the error is serious the instrument is sealed to prevent use and the user is required to have it repaired within a certain time limit or to take it out of use.
- Economic sanctions may be applied
Directive 90/384/EEC (NAWI)
The Directive is implemented as regulation no 1735, 2007.12.21.
Gravity zones have been identified ranging from g = 9.818m/s2 for Kristiansand to g = 9.826 for Tromsø. Class I and II instruments being required to be verified on the site of use.
Existing national class requirements relate to:
Precious stones, making up Medicines in pharmacies Class II Trade purposes of general type Class III Less valuable materials Class IV
Directive 2004/22/EC (MID)
The directive is implemented in Norway by different regulations, making it mandatory to fulfil the requirements of MID for:
- Water Meters*
- Heat Meters*
- Electricity Meters
- Measuring Systems for liquids other than Water
- Automatic Weighing Instruments
- Material Measures (except Capacity serving measures)
- Dimensional measuring Instruments (except Area measuring instruments)
- Exhaust gas analysers
(* at present no inspection/verification under use)
Special requirements for use of specific accuracy classes for different applications do exist.
Notified Bodies
JV is the authority on Legal Metrology in Norway. As a separate activity, JV is also a Notified Body (no 0431) under NAWI and most of the instruments/modules under MID. There is no other NB on these directives in Norway.
Updated February 2010
