The government has appointed Paun Ilchev as head of the Bulgarian Institute of Metrology (BIM), the cabinet press office said.

Ilchev was the institute's deputy head and had been running it on a temporary basis. Ivo Ivanov has been named as his deputy.

The cabinet said Ilchev has wide experience in the field and knows BIM's work and management well. It believes that as permanent head he will ensure continuity and consistency in the institute's leadership and in the state's measurement policy.

BIM is an independent state body under the Ministry of Economy and carries out the state's policy on measurement. It does metrology research and offers specialised services, and it helps state bodies with issues linked to measurement and measuring instruments.

BIM creates, maintains and improves Bulgaria's national measurement standards. It also organises the building of the national system of certified reference materials, and it uses calibration to guarantee that measurements in Bulgaria can be traced.

Accurate, reliable measurements in the public, scientific and economic sectors depend on the institute's work, as does international recognition of results obtained in Bulgaria.