Globalization, and related trade liberalization, is being
viewed by developing countries as an opportunity to expand the
industrial base and venture into an exports-led growth.
However, “Globalization” has been challenged in recent years
relating to its trade implications for developing countries.
One of the major problems is the inability of
developing countries to conform to developed country market
requirements. These requirements take the form of myriad
technical regulations imposed through mandatory domestic
regulations and to some extent international standards.
Metrology, the science of measurement, and the
underlying factor for quality in the industrialized world, plays
a vital role in modern society and in a globalized world. Still,
the link between metrology and human existence is not always
easily understood.
Essentially humankind has been using metrology for
millennia. The Egyptian architects, for instance, used the length
of the ruling pharaoh’s forearm from elbow to tip of the
extended middle finger as well as the breadth of his palm, to
calibrate the standard unit of length for use in building the
pyramids. The original measurement was transferred to and
carved in a block of black granite. The workers at the site were
given identical replicas of the original granite unit to work with
(Metrology — in short, EUROMET and Phare 2000).
Today, metrology is more ingrained in our society and
is used in all facets of life. Planks of wood and coffee are
bought by size and weight; water, electricity and heat are
metered. Gasoline and soft drinks are bought by volume.
Sometimes we even measure distance in time, i.e. “from A to B
it should take about 20 minutes”, although that is not advisable.
Regardless, for a metrology system
