EDITOR’S DESK PUBLISHER MICHAEL L. SCHWARTZ EDITOR SITA P. SCHWARTZ CAL LAB
PO Box 111113 Aurora, CO 80042 TEL 303-317-6670 • FAX 303-317-5295 office@callabmag.com www.callabmag.com EDITORIAL ADVISORS CHRISTOPHER L. GRACHANEN NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS MIKE SURACI SURACI CONSULTING SERVICES LEAD ASSESSOR, ANAB MARTIN DE GROOT MARTINDEGROOT CONSULTANCY JESSE MORSE MORSE METROLOGY JERRY ELDRED TESCOM Subscription fees for 1 year (4 issues) $50 for USA, $55 Mexico/Canada, $65 all other countries. Visit www.callabmag.com to subscribe. Printed in the USA. © Copyright 2021 CAL LAB. ISSN No. 1095-4791
Education I enrolled at a local community college just out of high school. Tuition was just $50/term my first year, but jumped to $300/term the next year. By the time I graduated with an undergraduate degree, one term cost me $2000 at a public university. For the past 30 years, formal education in the US has become increasingly unaffordable. And while our industry needs people, they don’t need to have expensive degrees. They just need to have opportunities put in front of them—it might be just what they need, at just the right time in their lives. Community colleges, vocational schools, and apprenticeships can provide the mentorship and training a young person needs to start on a path to a fulfilling career. Unfortunately, the fragmented state of metrology education and training doesn’t help attract new people to our industry. The formal metrology programs out there often rely on local industry to help bolster their programs and attract new students. In some cases, a metrology program exists to reinforce related curriculum such as machine tooling or coordinate measuring machine (CMM) operation. Though far and few between, these opportunities do exist. But our industry needs more engagement with education. For this issue, Michael Taylor contributed an article about Monroe County Community College’s metrology program, its challenges, and activities. Besides working with local industry, MCCC hosts a summer metrology camp. It was interrupted by COVID-19, but I’m encouraged that such programs will continue to introduce measurement science to young people, so when they think about STEM careers, they naturally make the connection with metrology. There are also a lot of quality training programs specifically for those wanting continuing education in their field—whether it’s dimensional, electrical, uncertainties, etc. Our calendar is full of seminars and webinars in each issue and online. Speaking of continuing education, this issue’s Metrology 101 is the second in a four-part series on temperature calibration by Ryan Egbert and Joseph Rindone of Sine Calibration School. And included in this issue, Walter Nowocin of IndySoft continues his documentation of “Implementing a Calibration Management Software System in a Regulated Environment.” If you missed the last issue, Walter meticulously documented “Selecting a Calibration Management Software System in a Regulated Environment.” This and other previous articles/issues are freely available online by visiting https://www.callabmag.com. Happy Measuring, Sita Schwartz
Apr • May • Jun 2021
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Cal Lab: The International Journal of Metrology
