The State Comptroller: The Ministry of Economy and Industry degenerated the National Physics Laboratory on its own accord

The National Laboratory of Physics (NLP) is supposed to provide calibration services to industrial plants and laboratories and maintain the country's benchmarks in seven fields. In the last 25 years, the MLP turnover has decreased to negligible volumes * In 2012, the Ministry of Economy joined the plan to build new buildings intended, among other things, for the MLP. The cost of the special adjustments to the building for the MLP was about 13 million NIS. At the time of approving the program for the building, the ministry had not yet decided on the continuation of the MLP's activities

Background

The National Laboratory of Physics (NLP) is supposed to provide calibration services to industrial plants and laboratories and maintain the country's benchmarks in seven fields. In the last 25 years, the MLP turnover has decreased to negligible volumes. This is according to the State Comptroller's report published last night (22/10).

The laboratory operates in the field of metrology - the science of measurement. Measurements are essential in almost all aspects of human activity, including production control, measuring the quality of the environment, health and safety tests, assessing the suitability of products with reference to information published to the public for consumer protection and ensuring commercial fairness. Accurate measurement is built on a hierarchy of measurements between the final product and a more accurate calibration system.

In 1985, the Minister of Industry and Trade at the time issued an internal directive, according to which the National Laboratory of Physics (hereinafter - the MLP), which is a unit of the Ministry of Economy and Industry (hereinafter - the Ministry or the Ministry of Economy^[2]), to provide calibration services to industrial plants and laboratories and to maintain the country's benchmarks in seven fields. In the 25 years that have passed since the previous audit by the State Comptroller's Office in 1993, the MLP turnover has decreased to negligible volumes. The MLP is located on the Givat Ram campus of the Hebrew University located in Jerusalem and at the time of the end of the audit employed three professional employees, an administrative employee and a part-time acting administrative manager. The MLP is subordinate to the Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Economy.

audit operations

In the last decade, the State Comptroller's Office examined four small entities related to the Ministry of Economy and the units of the Ministry that were established more than a year ago. These audits examined whether the Ministry of Economy took the necessary actions to help these bodies meet their goals. The current audit of the MLP continues this process, and was carried out in April-July 2017 at the Ministry of Economy. Completion tests were done in August-November 2017.

The main shortcomings

A steep decline in the activity of the MLP

Since 2009, the Ministry of Economy has not recruited new professional employees to replace employees who retired from the MLP. From 2009 to 2017, the number of personnel in the laboratory decreased from 17 employees to only four employees, and all but one of the laboratory's departments were closed or stopped providing service. In doing so, the MLA ceased to fulfill most of the duties set for it in the decision of the Minister of Economy at the time, and this without a decision being made to do so; The certification it received from the international body that accredits national laboratories was canceled, and the recognition of the national body that accredits laboratories in the calibration certificates that the MLP issues for the local industry was stopped.

Construction of a new building for closed departments

In 2012, the Ministry of Economy joined the plan to build new buildings intended for the laboratories of the Geological Survey of Israel and the Ministry of Economy (the unit for weights and measures and the MLP). The building, which should be completed in the third quarter of 2018, was built near the Givat Ram campus of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem at a cost of approximately NIS 373 million. The Ministry of Economy received 12% of the building's area and participated in the amount of approximately NIS 13 million in financing the expenses necessary to adapt the building to the needs of the physics laboratory. When the program for the building was approved in 2013, the MLP was allocated 14 rooms in the new building, even though the ministry has not yet decided on the continuation of the MLP's activities and its organizational structure. Half of the rooms allocated for the use of the MLP were intended for departments that at that time had already been closed. Therefore, part of the Ministry of Economy's investment in the building, which was built in accordance with the requirements of the MLA, may go down the drain if the MLA stops operating at the new site.

Non-utilization of purchased equipment

Since the Ministry of Economy did not recruit employees for the MLP departments whose employees retired, the departments were closed, and equipment worth about 40% of the total equipment (about NIS 3.2 million) has not been used for several years. When measuring equipment is not used, is not regularly maintained and is not properly calibrated, doubt arises as to whether it is usable. If the Ministry of Economy decides to restart the laboratories, it will have to recalibrate the equipment at a high cost and this will take a long time.

Use of outdated equipment

In November 2017, the MLP had two old atomic clocks (8.5 years old), which had exceeded the average lifespan of this type of clock, and two modern atomic clocks. The Ministry of Economy has not yet decided whether to purchase new watches instead of the old ones. Most of the countries participating in the international time measurement program established by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM) use at least four standard clocks. It therefore follows that the MLP operates at a lower level of technology than is accepted in laboratories around the world regarding time and frequency measurement.

Non-participation in international advisory committees

Over the years, the MLP stopped participating in comparison tests with the exception of time and frequency measurement, therefore there is no information about the MLP in an international comparison key, except in one area (time and frequency). Israel participates in only one international advisory committee out of the ten committees on metrology that are open to it by virtue of its membership in the International Bureau of Weights and Measures.

In 2009, the BIPM (International Bureau of Weights and Measures) ceased its recognition of calibration certificates issued by MLP due to many deficiencies found in its functioning, and in 2010 the Laboratory Accreditation Authority canceled its recognition of calibration certificates issued by MLP. As a condition to receive the PA's certification, laboratories are required to calibrate their instruments using devices with a higher level of accuracy, such as those in the MALP's possession. A break in the provision of the MLP service in Israel presented the following difficulties to about 130 MLP customers: expenses for transporting devices abroad to perform calibration tests; Paying a higher price than the MLP rate for the service; Extending the time required to receive the service from abroad compared to receiving it in Israel; the need to keep replacement equipment that will be used when sending the equipment for calibration abroad; Difficulties for the defense industry in calibrating sensitive devices. Sometimes factories were forced, for information security reasons, to purchase expensive equipment for self-calibration purposes.

Non-participation in comparison tests

In order to test the level of accuracy of instruments in national laboratories around the world, the BIPM sends objects to the laboratories, from time to time, for testing, for example mass or weight tests (hereinafter - comparative tests). The BIPM brings the results of the test, including the result calculated by itself, to the attention of the laboratories and publishes the values ​​as a basis for comparison for the laboratories. The comparative tests allow laboratories to test the level of accuracy of their devices.

The MRA agreement from 2003 allows Israel to participate in comparative tests for the departments that the MLA operates. In order to maintain its certification and to add credibility to the calibration results that the MLP performs, participation in comparative tests is required. The BIPM conducts comparative tests in each field only once every few years.

It was found that over the years the MLP stopped participating in comparison tests, except in the field of time and frequency, a field in which it is still engaged. Therefore there is no information about the MLP in an international comparison key. Furthermore, following the reduction of the professional workforce and the closure of the MLP departments, its representatives are members of only one of the ten international advisory committees for setting metrological standards of the BIPM, thus Israel misses an opportunity to influence the setting of these standards.

Failure to recruit and train professional personnel

Although most of the professional workers in the MLP retired in the last decade, the Ministry of Economy did not act to recruit experienced workers in their place or to budget and run a training program for new workers.

The State Comptroller's Office comments that it is to be regretted that for a decade the management of the Ministry of Economy did not discuss the recruitment of new employees for the MLP and did not act to carry out the necessary actions to restore the BIPM's recognition of the MLP. As a result, departments were closed and the activity of the laboratory decreased significantly. Only in 2015, after most of the laboratory's departments were closed and most of the employees retired, did the ministry order a report from an external body on the activities of the MLP.

Non-convening of the Advisory Council

The advisory council to the Ministry of Economy, which was supposed to operate next to the MLP, met a few times after its establishment, and it has not been active for more than 30 years.

The lack of a vision for the future of the MLP

The Ministry of Economy did not recruit new employees for the MLP and thus brought most of its activities to a halt without a governmental decision being made to close the MLP. On the other hand, the MLP Ministry injected funds to build a new building and only after that did staff work to make a decision on the future of the laboratory. These methods of action resulted in the waste of public money.

The main recommendations

The Ministry of Economy must determine a vision for the field of metrology in Israel and decide whether it intends to continue operating a national physics laboratory worthy of its name or to close the MLP and transfer its operation to another operator.

If the Ministry of Economy decides to rehabilitate the MLP, it must assign it the number of jobs required to carry out activities appropriate to its functions, recruit new personnel with a long-term service horizon, prepare a training plan for the employees, and also prepare a recovery plan that includes the expansion of the MLP's areas of activity in order to Make sure it will work as required by a national laboratory.

"The conduct of the Ministry of Economy, which led to the cessation of most of the MLP's activity, without finding an alternative, must be viewed with severity. In the last decade, the Ministry of Economy did not do enough to promote the MLP, and its activity was gradually stopped. At the end of the audit, the MLP is not functioning in accordance with the tasks defined for it and the international agreements in its fields of activity. Its activity does not comply with the standards required of the industry in Israel, and in any case it does not meet international standards. Non-compliance with the standards harms the research and development of the local industry, and may also harm Israeli exports and Israel's international activities.

The lack of sufficient consideration, vision and leadership on the part of the Ministry of Economy regarding the future of the MLP brought it to a situation where its units were closed, its international accreditation was removed, most of its clients abandoned it, and despite the financial resources invested in it, its contribution to the economy is minimal. From the previous audit reports published by the State Comptroller's Office in the field of metrology and from the current audit, the impression emerges that the Ministry of Economy does not attach due importance to the issue of metrology, and therefore does not work in an orderly and structured manner to determine goals, objectives and work plans for entities dealing in this field. The gap between Israel's advanced technological position in the world and the dire state of its national physics laboratory is particularly jarring. The need of Israeli companies for laboratory services abroad is a proof of poverty for the Israeli industry.

The Ministry of Economy did not manage structured processes to determine the continuation of the MLP. On the one hand, he purchased state-of-the-art equipment and financed the construction of an innovative laboratory, and on the other hand, he did not invest in recruiting and nurturing professional personnel, resulting in a waste of public funds. In order to help the Israeli economy open up and continue to provide service and products with a high level of accuracy, it is very important to provide central metrological services to the public. The State Comptroller's Office advises the Minister of the Economy and the Director General of his office, who by virtue of their position are responsible for the MLP, that they must decide whether to operate the laboratory as a laboratory National level worthy of its name and allowing it to fulfill the state duties assigned to it by virtue of the Minister's directive from 1985 and by virtue of the international agreement signed with BIPM in 2003 - or else to close the MLP and find a suitable alternative way to provide the services required for the Israeli economy." The report concludes.