Industrial Research and Standards Act , 1961

PART I. Preliminary.

1 Short title and commencement.

1.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Industrial Research and Standards Act, 1961.

(2) This Act shall come into operation on such day as the Minister shall by order appoint.

2 Definitions.

2.—In this Act—

“the Act of 1946” means the Industrial Research and Standards Act, 1946;

“the Act of 1954” means the Industrial Research and Standards (Amendment) Act, 1954;

“the Institute” means the Institute for Industrial Research and Standards established by subsections (1) and (2) of section 4 of the Act of 1946 and continued in being by this Act;

“mark” includes a device, brand, heading, label, ticket, name, signature, word, letter, numeral or any combination thereof;

“the Minister” means the Minister for Industry and Commerce;

“register”, save where the context otherwise requires, means a register kept by the Institute in pursuance of section 28 of this Act;

“specification” includes description of any commodity, process or practice by reference to any one or more of the following, namely, nature, quality, strength, purity, composition, quantity, dimensions, weight, grade, durability, origin, age and any other characteristic;

“standard specification” means a specification declared or deemed to have been declared under section 20 of this Act to be a standard specification;

“standard mark” means a mark prescribed or deemed to have been prescribed by an order under section 24 of this Act for use in connection with a commodity, process or practice to indicate that it conforms to a particular standard specification.

3 Repeals.

3.—The Industrial Research and Standards Acts, 1946 and 1954 are hereby repealed.

4 Expenses.

4.—The expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

PART II. Continuance of the Institute and Functions thereof.

5 Continuance of the Institute for Industrial Research and Standards.

5.—The Institute for Industrial Research and Standards (in this Act referred to as the Institute) established by subsections (1) and (2) of section 4 of the Act of 1946 shall continue in being, notwithstanding the repeals effected by section 3 of this Act, as a body corporate with perpetual succession and a seal, and power to sue and to be sued in its corporate name and to hold land.

6 Functions of the Institute.

6.—(1) The Institute shall fulfil the functions assigned to it by this Act.

(2) The functions of the Institute are—

(a) to undertake, encourage and foster scientific research and investigation with the object of—

(i) promoting the utilisation of the natural resources of the State,

(ii) improving the technical processes and methods used in the industries of the State,

(iii) discovering technical processes and methods which may promote or facilitate the expansion of existing or the development of new industries, and the utilisation of the waste products of industry,

(b) to formulate for the Minister in accordance with his directions specifications for such commodities, processes and practices as the Minister may from time to time request,

(c) with the consent of the Minister, to declare any specification so formulated to be a standard specification for the commodity, process or practice to which it relates,

(d) to make recommendations to the Minister as to the provision and use of standard marks for commodities, processes and practices which conform to standard specifications,

(e) to disseminate technical literature and information to industry,

(f) where the public interest so requires, to undertake or assist in the development and the exploitation of inventions,

(g) to test and analyse commodities, intended for sale or for use by the public, for the purpose of—

(i) advancing or facilitating scientific research and investigation,

(ii) ensuring conformity with standard specifications,

(iii) encouraging the standardisation of commodities, processes and practices,

or, generally, with the object of ascertaining, for the public benefit, the characteristics of such commodities,

(h) to publish the result of any test or analysis carried out by the Institute or by any person on its behalf.

(3) The Institute may arrange with any person for the carrying out by that person on behalf of the Institute of any research, investigation, test or analysis referred to in subsection (2) of this section.

(4) The functions of the Institute shall not include any function assigned to An Foras Talúntais by the Agriculture (An Foras Talúntais) Act, 1958.

PART III. Establishment and Functions of the Board of the Institute.

7 Board of the Institute.

7.—There shall be a Board to be known as the Board of the Institute for Industrial Research and Standards (in this Act referred to as the Board) to carry out the general government of the Institute and the administration of its affairs.

8 Membership of the Board.

8.—(1) The Board shall be composed of not more than nine members of whom one shall be the chairman and the others shall be ordinary members.

(2) All the members of the Board shall be appointed by the Minister, and the Minister shall nominate a member of the Board to be the chairman thereof.

(3) Every person appointed to membership of the Board shall be chosen by the Minister for such appointment by reason of his attainments in scientific research applied to industry or because he is representative of industry or of persons employed in industry or is capable of giving substantial practical assistance in the work of the Institute.

(4) The members of the first Board shall be appointed as soon as conveniently may be after the commencement of this Act.

(5) The members of the second Board shall be appointed in the fifth year next after the appointment of the members of the first Board and the members of every subsequent Board shall be appointed quinquennially.

(6) All the members of the Board shall go out of office on the next quinquennial appointment of members but shall be eligible for re-appointment.

9 Terms and remuneration of members of the Board.

9.—(1) Every member of the Board shall hold office on such terms as the Minister may determine.

(2) There shall be paid to every member of the Board, out of moneys at the disposal of the Institute, such remuneration and expenses as the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, may determine.

10 Resignation of member of the Board.

10.—(1) A member of the Board may resign his membership by a letter addressed to the Minister tendering his resignation.

(2) The resignation of a member shall have effect as on and from the date of the receipt by the Minister of the letter of resignation.

11 Removal of a member of the Board.

11.—(1) The Minister may by a notification in writing addressed to any member of the Board remove such member from his office for reasons stated in the notification which the Minister considers sufficient.

(2) The removal of any member of the Board from his office under this section shall take effect as on and from the date on which such member receives the notification of his removal by the Minister or any later date specified by the Minister in such notification.

12 Casual vacancies.

12.—Casual vacancies in the membership of the Board may be filled by appointment by the Minister.

13 Membership of either House of the Oireachtas by members, officers or servants of the Board.

13.—(1) Where a member of the Board becomes a member of either House of the Oireachtas, he shall, upon his becoming entitled under the Standing Orders of that House to sit therein, cease to be a member of the Board.

(2) Any person who is for the time being entitled under the Standing Orders of either of the Houses of the Oireachtas to sit therein shall, while so entitled, be disqualified from becoming a member of the Board.

(3) Where a person who is either an officer or a servant in the employment of the Board becomes a member of either House of the Oireachtas—

(a) he shall, during the period (in this section referred to as the secondment period) commencing upon his becoming entitled under the Standing Orders of that House to sit therein and ending either when he ceases to be a member of that House or if it should sooner happen, upon his resignation or retirement from such employment or upon the termination of such employment by the Board, stand seconded from such employment,

(b) he shall not be paid by, or entitled to receive from, the Board any salary or wages, as the case may be, in respect of the secondment period,

(c) if there is in force a scheme made in pursuance of section 35 of this Act and the scheme establishes a fund to which the Board and the person pay contributions—

(i) the secondment period shall, for the purposes of the scheme, be deemed to be service of that person which is reckonable for superannuation benefits under the scheme if, but only if—

(I) he was in the permanent employment of the Board and was a contributor under the scheme immediately before the commencement of the secondment period,

(II) he elects, by notice in writing given to the Board within three months after the commencement of the secondment period, to pay contributions under the scheme in respect of the secondment period in accordance with the provisions of this section, and

(III) he pays, at such times and in such manner as may be specified in accordance with the scheme, contributions under the scheme in respect of the secondment period equal in amount to the aggregate of the contributions which he would have paid and the contributions which the Board would have paid in respect of the secondment period if he had remained without secondment under this subsection in the service of the Board during the secondment period and had been in receipt of remuneration from the Board during that period,

(ii) the Board shall not pay any contributions under the scheme in respect of the secondment period, but that part of the contributions payable by him as aforesaid which is equal to the amount of the contributions which the Board would have paid under the scheme in respect of the secondment period if he had remained without secondment under this subsection in the service of the Board during the secondment period and had been in receipt of remuneration from the Board during that period shall, for the purposes of the scheme, be deemed to have been paid by the Board,

(iii) if the secondment period is terminated by his death or by his retirement from such employment, he shall, for the purposes of the scheme, be deemed to have died in or to have been retired from the service of the Board, as the case may be, and to have been in receipt of remuneration from the Board immediately before such death or retirement, as the case may be,

(iv) if he does not pay or if, having paid contributions under the scheme in accordance with the provisions of this subsection, he ceases to pay contributions as aforesaid, he shall, for the purposes of the scheme, be deemed to have resigned from such employment—

(I) in case he ceases to pay contributions as aforesaid, on the date of the last payment, and

(II) in any other case, immediately before the commencement of the secondment period.

(4) If a person who is or was an officer or servant of the Board becomes entitled to a pension under the Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices Acts, 1938 to 1952—

(a) he shall not be entitled to reckon the whole or any part of his period of pensionable service, within the meaning of those Acts, for any superannuation benefits payable under a scheme made in pursuance of section 35 of this Act,

(b) if he has paid any contributions in accordance with the provisions of subsection (3) of this section in respect of that period, so much thereof as is equal to the amount of the contributions which he would have paid in respect of that period under the scheme if he had remained without secondment under subsection (3) of this section in the service of the Board during that period and had been in receipt of remuneration from the Board during that period, shall be returned to him if and when a payment of benefit or a return of other contributions is made to him under the scheme.

(5) A reference in subsection (3) or subsection (4) of this section to the receipt by any person of remuneration from the Board shall be taken as a reference to the receipt by that person of remuneration from the Board at the rate at which he was being remunerated by the Board on the last day of his whole-time employment with the Board before his secondment under subsection (3) of this section.

(6) A person who is for the time being entitled under the Standing Orders of either House of the Oireachtas to sit therein shall, while so entitled, be disqualified from becoming an officer or servant of the Board.

14 Disclosure of interest.

14.—A member of the Board shall disclose to the Board any financial or other interest which he may have in any concern with which the Board proposes to make any contract.

15 Meetings of the Board.

15.—The Board shall hold such and so many meetings as it considers necessary for the fulfilment of the functions assigned to it by this Act.

16 Procedure.

16.—(1) At a meeting of the Board the chairman of the Board when present shall be the chairman of the meeting.

(2) When the chairman of the Board is absent from a meeting thereof, or, if the office of chairman of the Board is vacant, the members of the Board who are present shall choose one of their number to be the chairman of the meeting.

(3) Every question at a meeting of the Board shall be determined by a majority of the votes of the members present and voting on the question, and, in the case of an equal division of votes, the chairman of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote.

(4) The Board may act notwithstanding vacancies in its membership.

(5) The Board may from time to time fix the quorum for its meetings but, if at any time no quorum is so fixed, the quorum for meetings of the Board shall be three.

(6) Subject to the foregoing, the Board may, by Standing Orders or otherwise, regulate its own procedure and business and the procedure and business of any committee appointed by the Board.

17 Committees of the Board.

17.—(1) The Board may from time to time appoint such committees as it sees fit to assist and advise the Board in relation to any of its functions.

(2) A committee appointed under this section may include persons who are not members of the Board.

(3) The Board may appoint any member of a committee appointed under this section to be the chairman thereof.

(4) The members of any such committee shall be paid, out of moneys at the disposal of the Institute—

(a) such remuneration in respect of their services as the Board, with the consent of the Minister, may determine, and

(b) such sums in respect of travelling and subsistence allowances as the Board may determine.

(5) The Board may at any time terminate the membership of all or any of the members of any such committee.

PART IV. Scientific Research.

18 Conduct of research.

18.—The Institute shall carry out such researches, including researches on a laboratory or on a pilot plant scale, and such investigations, tests and analyses as the Minister may, after consultation with the Board, request, and may, in addition, carry out such researches as aforesaid and such investigations, tests and analyses as the Board may from time to time think proper.

19 Discoveries and inventions.

19.—(1) Every discovery or invention resulting from researches or investigations undertaken by or on behalf of the Institute, except those discoveries and inventions referred to in subsection (2) of this section, shall be the property of the Minister.

(2) A discovery or invention resulting from researches or investigations undertaken by or on behalf of the Institute for any person (other than a Minister of State) shall, unless otherwise agreed between the Institute and that person, become the exclusive property of that person.

(3) Any discovery or invention or any part of any discovery or invention which does not become the property of the person for whom any such research or investigation as aforesaid is undertaken shall become the property of the Minister.

(4) Before publishing any discovery or invention the Minister shall consult with the Board as to the advisability of such publication.

(5) The Board may, with the consent of the Minister, pay, out of moneys at the disposal of the Institute, to members of the staff of the Institute who have made important discoveries or inventions or have materially assisted in making such discoveries or inventions such bonuses or royalties as the Board may think proper.

PART V. Standard Specifications and Standard Marks.

20 Standard specifications.

20.—(1) The Institute shall formulate for the Minister specifications for such commodities, processes and practices as the Minister may from time to time request.

(2) In formulating specifications under subsection (1) of this section the Institute shall comply with the directions of the Minister.

(3) The Institute, on formulating a specification, may, with the consent of the Minister, declare it to be a standard specification for the commodity, process or practice to which it relates.

(4) Where, under any other enactment, any Minister of State is authorised to prescribe a specification or standard of quality for any commodity, process or practice, or to issue licences for the sale or advertisement of any commodity, the Minister shall not consent to the declaration of a standard specification in respect thereof except with the consent of that Minister of State.

(5) The Insitute may, with the consent of the Minister, revoke or amend a standard specification.

(6) The specifications declared by orders made under section 20 of the Act of 1946 or under section 2 of the Act of 1954 which were in force immediately before the commencement of this Act shall be deemed to have been declared under this section.

21 Publication of notice of standard specification.

21.—The Institute shall as soon as may be after the declaration of a standard specification cause notice thereof to be published in Iris Oifigiúil and in such other manner as the Minister may direct and shall publish and place on sale copies of the standard specification.

22 Evidence of standard specification.

22.—(1) Prima facie evidence of a standard specification may be given by the production of a copy thereof purporting to be published by the authority of the Institute.