Memorandum of Understanding Revision 2022

Memorandum of Understanding of the Asia-Pacific Legal Metrology Forum revision 2022

Effective Date of Agreement: 20 June 2022

Preamble
Definitions
Resolution
Objectives of APLMF
Modus Operandi
Rights of Members
Responsibilities of Members
The Memorandum of Understanding
Participation

1. Preamble

The Asia–Pacific Legal Metrology Forum (APLMF) is a grouping of legal metrology authorities in the Asia–Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies and other economies on the Pacific Rim, whose objective is the development of legal metrology and the promotion of free and open trade in the region through the harmonisation and removal of technical or administrative barriers to trade in the field of legal metrology.

This Memorandum of Understanding represents a commitment by Members of APLMF to work towards achieving the aims of APLMF as outlined in this document using the mechanisms specified herein.

2. Definitions

a) Membership

Membership is open to legal metrology authorities established by APEC member economies within the Asia–Pacific Region, Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) and Pacific Economic Cooperation Council (PECC) member economies.

b) Full Member

A Full Member is a legal metrology authority responsible for supervision of legal metrology and/or metrology in an economy and who has signed the Memorandum of Understanding. A ‘Full Member Economy’ shall meet the member criteria as set out in 2a) above.
When more than one authority in a Full Member Economy have responsibility for metrology, each of them may be eligible to apply to be a Full Member. In this case, that Full Member Economy shall only have one vote.

c) Signatory

A signatory is a responsible official who signed the Memorandum of Understanding on behalf of the Full Member.

d) Corresponding Member

A Corresponding Member is a legal metrology authority responsible for an economy that has not signed the Memorandum of Understanding. This Member’s economy is called a ‘Corresponding Member Economy’. A Corresponding Member Economy meets the membership criteria of 2a) and has the intention of becoming a Full Member Economy in the future. Corresponding Members are not eligible to vote on APLMF business.

e) Observer

An observer is a participant to the Forum who does not meet the APLMF membership criteria of 2a) but has an interest in the work of the Forum. Observers are not eligible to vote on APLMF business.

f) Delegate

Each Member (Full or Corresponding) shall appoint a Delegate from the responsible authority(ies). Only the Delegate of a Full Member is responsible for voting on behalf of the economy. The appointed Delegate is usually a senior official nominated by the responsible legal metrology authority(ies).

g) Asia–Pacific Region

The Asia–Pacific Region encompasses those economies on the Pacific Rim.

h) President

Elected leader of APLMF who represents this Forum.

i) Region/Regional

The Asia–Pacific Region specifically.

j) Regional Metrology Organization (RMO).

Regional organizations responsible for scientific metrology and/or legal metrology. Among RMOs, Regional Legal Metrology Organization (RLMO) means an organization dedicated to legal metrology.

k) Legal Metrology Authority (LMA)

The authority at the highest level responsible for supervision of legal metrology and/or metrology in the economy. The primary function of a Legal Metrology Authority is to ensure that measurements used for trade and legal control are fit for their required purpose. LMAs manage technical specifications and control measuring instruments used for these purposes. They are also responsible for ensuring that appropriate legislation is in place for legal metrology. Accordingly, in close cooperation with the National Metrology Institute (NMI), the LMA contributes to the development and modernization of the policy and legislation for metrology.

3. Resolution

3.1 The Signatories to the Memorandum of Understanding declare their common intention to take part in the Asia–Pacific Legal Metrology
Forum (APLMF), an Asia–Pacific collaboration framework in legal metrology, and to participate in its activities in pursuit of its objectives to
the extent that is possible..

3.2 The activities of the APLMF will be decided and coordinated by the Forum consisting of APLMF Delegates. The Forum ensures that specific
tasks are pursued in accordance with the objectives of APLMF.

4. Objectives of APLMF

4.1 The member economies intend to collaborate in APLMF to promote the coordination and integrity of legal metrology activities and
services in order to achieve greater harmony of measurement and testing within the Asia–Pacific Region and build mutual confidence in
measurement between member economies. APLMF’s specific objectives are:

4.1.1 To identify and promote the removal of technical or administrative barriers to trade in the field of legal metrology.

4.1.2 To develop and maintain mutual confidence in metrological control among legal metrology authorities in the Asia–Pacific region.

4.1.3 To provide a forum for exchange of information among legal metrology authorities.

4.1.4 To promote mutual recognition arrangements in measurement-based transactions (i.e. packaged products), type evaluation and
  verification/testing of instruments/systems for conformance among member economies, other economies, RMOs and RLMOs.

4.1.5 To cooperate with the International Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML) through promoting the use and acceptance of OIML
  publications including International Recommendations and the OIML Certification System (OIML-CS).

4.1.6 To collaborate with other Regional Metrology Organizations that are active in providing monitoring compliance of measurement-
  based transactions (i.e. packaged products), type evaluation and verification/testing of instruments/systems for regional
  conformance.

4.1.7 To facilitate the provision of cooperation, training and assistance in the development of the legal metrology infrastructure of member
  economies.

4.2 In pursuit of these objectives APLMF will seek to:

4.2.1 Encourage and facilitate collaboration among interested member economies on specific projects.

4.2.2 Establish working groups in specific fields of legal metrology.

4.2.3 Provide expertise in the field of measurement standards and testing for type evaluation/verification for conformance among
  member economies through seminars, conferences, workshops, training programs, consultancies and guide documents.

4.2.4 Establish and maintain effective links with other Regional Metrology Organizations.

4.2.5 Collaborate with other Regional Metrology Organizations that are active in providing measurement standards, pattern approval and
  verification/testing for regional conformance.

4.2.6 Develop and maintain multilateral Mutual Recognition Arrangements (MRAs) and/or enhance the cooperation on market surveillance
  activities, including Conformity to Type (CTT) programs, among Members.

4.2.7 Undertake other activities as decided by the Forum from time to time.

5. Operational Procedures

5.1 The working language of APLMF is English.

5.2 The Forum shall meet to review and discuss its aims and specific tasks

5.3 The Forum shall decide and document its rules of procedure

5.4 The Forum shall elect the President from among its Full Members for a period of two years with the possibility of two further terms. The
President of the APLMF shall be responsible for establishing and managing the Secretariat.

5.5 The Forum may decide to establish membership fees and approve fees for participation in Forum meetings, workshops and seminars.
The Forum will also seek assistance from funding agencies for specific projects.

5.6 Executive Committee
The Executive Committee shall be responsible for implementing the objectives of the Forum.

      5.6.1 The composition of the Executive Committee:
a) the President;
b) the immediate past President;
c) the Secretariat representative;
d) the Training Coordinator; and
e) three delegates from other Full Member Economies.

      5.6.2 The three delegates and the Training Coordinator shall be elected by the Forum. When an election is required it shall be on the basis
  of a simple majority of votes cast.

      5.6.3 The Executive Committee may elect from member economies a Vice-President to cover the President’s duties for a short/defined
  period in the event of the President being unable to complete these duties.

      5.6.4 Appointed delegates to the Executive Committee may, upon advice to the President nominate deputies for specific meetings.

      5.6.5 Meetings of the Executive Committee are open only to its members except by invitation of the President.

      5.6.6 In the event of an appointed delegate being unable to continue on the Executive Committee for their term, the economy represented
  by the delegate shall designate a replacement to complete the term.

      5.6.7 Term of office of the Executive Committee
The Members of the Executive Committee shall normally be elected for a term of two years and may be re-elected for a second term
  of two years. The term of office for each member economy shall be set to ensure overlap and continuity of experience within its
  membership.

      5.6.8 Responsibilities of the Executive Committee
  a)  implement and manage the decisions of the Forum between the meetings of the Forum and provide financial oversight;
b)  facilitate cooperation of the Forum with other regional and international organizations for the development and promotion of
  legal metrology;
c)  endorse the appointment of chairs and members of the working groups and ad-hoc committees as required to work on behalf of
the Forum;
d)  ensure proper coordination among Working Groups of the Forum;
e)  draft proposals for consideration by the Forum;
f)  receive and discuss Working Group reports and prepare proposals for the Forum meeting based on these reports and;
g)  meet several times a year in-person or using other communication tools.

6. Rights of Member Economies

In order to achieve the objectives of the Forum, Full Member Economies shall have the following rights:

6.1 Member participation in the Forum shall be voluntary and no decisions of the Forum shall be binding on the individual member
economies.

6.2 All member economies shall have the right to propose specific projects. Such projects may be undertaken by interested members on
terms to be decided among participants.

6.3 Notwithstanding 6.2, member economies shall have the right to conduct specific projects independent of the Forum.

6.4 All member economies may seek the assistance of either the Secretariat or other member economies directly. They may enter into
consultancies, secondments, or other mechanisms, on specific measurement problems, on terms to be decided between or among the
parties concerned.

6.5 Corresponding Members may attend and participate in Forum and Working Group meetings but shall not have the right to vote.

6.6 Observers may attend and participate in Forum and Working Group meetings, other than Member Only Session.

6.7 Membership criteria may be changed by decision of the Forum.

7. Responsibilities of Member Economies

Member economies should actively pursue the objectives and tasks of the Forum. In particular they will have the following responsibilities:

7.1 When an area of metrological activity is under consideration by the Forum, member economies shall make available to the Forum,
information on current and planned work in that area.

7.2 The objectives of the Forum require participation by member economies to the extent commensurate with resources and expertise at
their disposal. In particular, member economies are encouraged to consult with the representatives of manufacturers and others that are
affected by legal metrology controls in their economy. The representatives may provide comments or participate in the meetings and
activities of the Forum where appropriate.

7.3 Member economies shall make every effort to ensure that necessary resources are made available under their economies to attend
meetings and to participate in Forum activities.

7.4 Member economies shall act through the President in all matters relating to Forum collaboration.

7.5 Member economies should regularly update their Directory to ensure that it reflects their current situation. The Secretariat shall
undertake a full review of all Directories at least every 5 years.

8. Implementation

8.1 This Memorandum of Understanding was effective upon signature by the metrology authorities in ten member economies in 1999. It will
remain open for further participation within the defined membership criteria.

8.2 This Memorandum of Understanding may be amended by the following procedures:
a) any five member economies may propose an amendment;
b) for approval, an amendment shall receive positive support from at least two thirds of the member economies with no dissenting votes.

8.3 Participation in this Memorandum of Understanding shall be voluntary and will not have any binding effect in public international law or
the national/regional laws of participating member economies.

8.4 If a member economy, for any reason whatever, intends to terminate its participation, the Signatory or Delegate shall notify the President
of the Forum of its intention as soon as possible, preferably not later than three months beforehand.

8.5 This Memorandum of Understanding shall be in effect until its termination is proposed to the Forum with an agreement of at least two
thirds of the Full Member economies.

APPENDIX 1
RULES OF PROCEDURE

1. SCOPE
These Rules of Procedure shall apply to APLMF membership, membership fees, meetings organised within the domain of APLMF, the organisation of collaborative projects, establishment of working groups and high-level responsibilities of the Secretariat.

2. MEMBERSHIP

2.1 Each Member shall appoint one person as the APLMF Primary (main) Contact and inform the Secretariat of the appointment. The Secretariat sends all official communications through the Primary Contact. For annual meetings, communications regarding a particular meeting are sent to all registered delegates in addition to the Primary Contact.

2.2 Each Member shall inform the Secretariat of the name, address and contact details of their appointed Delegate/Primary Contact. The Delegate should have the authority to commit their resources to participate in Forum activities.

2.3 The Member shall advise the Secretariat of any changes in these appointments and of any observers nominated by the Member.

2.4 Each Delegate may be supported at APLMF meetings by additional participants but only the appointed Delegate may vote for a Full Member Economy. Each Full Member Economy shall be only entitled to one vote.

3. MEMBERSHIP FEES

3.1 Membership fees are charged to Full Member Economies annually and are published on the website under Membership Criteria. Fees are agreed by the Full Members and the rates are set four years in advance.

3.2 Charges for attendance at annual Forum meetings apply only to Corresponding Members and Observers e.g., participants from other organizations. Details are provided each year on the Registration form to attend the meeting.

4. PRESIDENT
4.1 The President shall be elected from among its Delegates and/or officials assigned by Delegates at an APLMF meeting.

4.2 The President's term of office (5.4 of MoU) shall end at the first meeting following the completion of this term.

4.3 In the event of the President's term of office coming to an end prematurely, a new President shall be nominated by the President's member economy subject to the endorsement by the Executive Committee.

4.4 The President shall ensure the effective operation of the APLMF Secretariat.

4.5 The President shall seek appropriate funding to assist Members to attend meetings, conferences and workshops when necessary.

4.6 The President shall maintain links between APLMF and other international/regional organizations involved in scientific metrology, legal metrology, conformity assessment, standardisation and accreditation.

4.7 The President shall represent APLMF as appropriate at Asia–Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), International Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML) including RLMO Round Table and other international/regional organizations. The President shall keep Members informed of relevant activities and recommendations of these organizations.

4.8 The President shall facilitate the publication of the APLMF Newsletter and other publications.

4.9 The President may invite additional Observers to specific meetings. The Observers shall not be able to vote.

5. COLLABORATION

5.1 APLMF Members may submit to the President for circulation to Delegates, proposals for projects, seminars, training and workshops for which they wish to seek collaboration within the APLMF.

5.2 Other organization(s) collaborating with APLMF shall appoint a Project Coordinator as the contact point for each Collaborative Project. The Project Coordinator shall be responsible for keeping the President informed of progress in that project by submitting a Management Plan. The President shall arrange for its distribution to all APLMF Delegates.

5.3 Other organizations and/or non-member economies may participate in APLMF training programs as agreed by the Executive Committee on a case-by-case basis.

5.4 None of the foregoing Rules of Procedure shall restrict member economies from entering into other agreements on individual projects as they see fit.

6. WORKING GROUPS

6.1 The APLMF may set up Working Groups to undertake specific tasks, which are limited in time and have clearly defined terms of reference.

6.2 Members of Working Groups may be either Delegates or persons nominated by Delegates.

7. APLMF SECRETARIAT

7.1 The Secretariat for the APLMF shall be provided by the Member Economy of the President. If this cannot be achieved, the President may request help from some other source.

7.2 The Secretariat shall assist the President in the administration of the APLMF.

7.3 The Secretariat shall ensure that written details of collaborations are circulated to all Delegates.

7.4 The Secretariat shall be responsible for producing a regular APLMF Newsletter.

7.5 The Secretariat shall maintain a complete set of APLMF publications and details of the APLMF Membership.

7.6 The Secretariat shall maintain the ‘Secretariat Manual’ which details the processes and procedures for financial, administration and training activities.

7.7 A retiring Secretariat shall use best efforts to ensure the efficient transfer of all Forum’s records and other materials to the succeeding Secretariat.

8. MEETING REQUIREMENTS

8.1 The APLMF meets as often as required but at least once per year.

8.2 The President in consultation with the Members shall decide the place and date of the meeting. The President shall convene the meeting with an advance notice sent at least six months before the meeting. These meetings may be held physically in person or online by electronic means.

8.3 The host economy for a physical Forum meeting shall nominate the Co-Chair for the Forum meeting.

8.4 Delegates shall be asked to inform the President of items they wish to have included on the agenda at least two months in advance of the meeting, unless the meeting is convened under Article 8.5.

8.5 An irregular meeting may also be called at the initiative of the President or at least four Full Member Economies specifying the items to be discussed, with a minimum of six weeks’ notice.

8.6 Delegates shall be sent a draft agenda at least four weeks in advance of all meetings.

8.7 The draft agenda of all meetings shall be approved by the Executive Committee and reviewed by Members prior to the meeting.

9. MEETING PROCEDURES

9.1 In order to make a decision at an APLMF meeting, half the Members shall constitute a quorum.

9.2 The Forum shall attempt to reach decisions by unanimous consensus whenever possible.

9.3 When a vote is necessary, all decisions shall be based upon at least a simple majority of votes cast. If there is a tie, the President shall cast the deciding vote.

9.4 If Members are unable to attend a meeting, they may empower another Full Member as a proxy to vote on their behalf, provided the President is notified in writing in advance.

9.5 Any draft documents that need approval at an APLMF meeting, including a draft report of the APLMF meeting, shall follow the procedure of 10 below.

10. CONSULTATION AND VOTING PROECEDURES
The Procedures for the development and approval of draft documents were proposed at the 23rd APLMF Meeting in Japan (2016) and confirmed at the 24th APLMF meeting in Cambodia (2017).

10.1 Draft documents are generally circulated to Members for consultation and feedback for a three-month period. If no material changes are made to the document during the consultation process, it is deemed to be finalised. If material changes are made, an updated draft is recirculated for a further three months for consultation. This procedure is repeated until the final document is agreed on in the voting session.

10.2 Voting session – The final document is then either:

Sent to Members to vote online to adopt (one month period is generally provided for this voting process); or
The document is circulated one month prior to an APLMF Forum and proposed for voting at the ‘member only session’.

The final document is approved based on a simple majority of votes cast by the Full Member Economies.

11. BUSINESS CORRESPONDENCE

11.1 The APLMF may undertake decisions or other businesses between Forum meetings by correspondence involving all Full Members.

12. ONLINE DIRECTORY

APLMF first published the Directory of Legal Metrology in the Asia-Pacific in 1995. With information provided by legal metrology authorities in the Asia-Pacific region, the Directory contains information on the legislative, institutional and operational aspects of legal metrology in each economy. It thus facilitates understanding of each of the national legal metrology system, building confidence and developing mutual recognition among those authorities in the region. More recently, Directories of the member economies are provided on the APLMF website.

12.1 Full and Corresponding Members shall regularly update their Directory to ensure that it reflects their current situation. The Secretariat shall undertake a full review of the currency of Directories at least every five years.

13. AMENDMENT OF RULES OF PROCEDURE
13.1 A new procedure for amending the present Rules of Procedure shall only be approved by a simple majority of votes cast by the Full Member Economies.

13.2 The Executive Committee and Secretariat shall provide a draft with the amendments and circulate it for consultation to all Full Members for a period as per the procedure outlined in 10.1 and 10.2 above.