Abstract
An important element of the Institute’s service to the measurement and control community is the contribution we make to publications. This article is written for Measurement and Control which is received by all members and includes practical technical articles from industry and academia, product and business news and information on technical advances, as well as news from across the Institute. The Transactions of the Institute, our peer reviewed learned journal, covers leading edge research and development in instrumentation and control as well as educational developments and industrial applications. It continues to go from strength to strength as evidenced by the impact factor rising from 0.736 to 0.962 in the latest round of assessments from Thomson Reuters.
I have previously written about our membership expansion workshop and the link to our strategy, and it is right that we continually review our portfolio to ensure our provision is maximally aligned to the needs of the membership and is informed by the development of our disciplines. Our Yearbook has been a fundamental element of our provision for some time, providing an annual compendium of the UK measurement and control sector. The current version will be the final version to appear as a hard copy publication. In future, this publication and the wealth of information it includes will be freely available on the web. I am sure you will agree that this is a more dynamic and appropriate environment which will facilitate timely update of information.
In June this year, our publications portfolio was expanded to include the Journal of Connectivity–Exploring the Internet of Things. Both the journal and the topic represent an exciting opportunity for the Institute. At the heart of the Internet of Things is the concept that both living and inanimate objects are provided with unique identifiers and the ability to transfer data over a network without requiring either human–computer or human–human interaction. The Internet of Things is incredibly relevant to our core expertise in that the information available must be underpinned by measurement, and the use of this information to enhance outcomes is by definition a use of appropriately designed control. There is already great debate in the press around associated security and privacy issues. In terms of economic potential, a recent report from the McKinsey & Company’s Global Institute estimates the possible value of the Internet of Things to range from US$3.9 to US$11.1 trillion by 2025. If this hot topic is to reach its full potential across all environments in a manner that is acceptable to society, significant ongoing contributions from engineering and including measurement and control are required. It is great to see our Institute at the forefront of this technology revolution.