2009-05-05

BUREAU OF STANDARDS BEING RE-TOOLED

Government has undertaken a comprehensive re-tooling exercise at Bureau of Standards Jamaica, (BSJ) involving equipment expenditure of over $69-million, aimed at making the Bureau a world-class organization.

This was announced this afternoon by Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, the Hon. Karl Samuda, during his contribution to the 2009/10 Budget Debate in Gordon House. He told the House that the Bureau now had the capacity to conduct measurements of force and pressure that are traceable and capable of withstanding the scrutiny of Jamaica’s international trading partners.

“We are equipping the Bureau to play a critical role in metrology (measurement) to support industry,” the Minister told the House. He explained that measurement standards must be traceable to authentic sources, in order to guarantee the safety of buildings and engineering systems.  The Minister added that in handling and calibrating large weights, the Bureau was now utilizing a Frame Gantry which is a specialized lifting device designed and manufactured in Jamaica. 

Turning to food safety issues, the Commerce Minister announced that the Bureau would be playing a central role in getting companies certified under the ISO and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCPP) programmes, so that Jamaica can increase its export of processed foods. He noted that Jamaica had only eleven HACCP/ISO certified companies, and underlined the importance of as many companies as possible being certified, noting that “this is critical if our products are to compete internationally.”