D. I. Mendeleev Institute for Metrology (Saint Petersburg)

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D. I. Mendeleev Institute for Metrology (Russian: Всероссийский научно-исследовательский институт имени Д. И. Менделеева; VNIIM), previously known as the Main Chamber of Weights and Measures of the Russian Empire, or the Depot of Exemplary Measures and Weights, is one of the leading national metrology institutes of Russia now.
In 1892, Dmitri Mendeleev was appointed third scientific custodian of the Depot, a post which he occupied until his death in 1907. On his initiative, in 1893 the organization was transformed into The Chief Bureau of Weights and Measures (the Main Chamber of Weights and Measures). The main goals of the new institution were to unify the many different weights and measures used in the diverse Russian Empire, achieve their regulation in trade and industry, and orchestrate the eventual conversion to the metric system. The introduction of the metric system into Russia for optional use in 1899 and then completely in 1918, is intimately bound with the work of D. I. Mendeleev as director of the Bureau. The Bureau began publishing a scholarly journal, Vremennik Glavnoi Palaty mer i vesov in 1894. Years later, the Research Institute of Metrology and Standardization was established on its basis. In memory of Mendeleev's contribution to the development of metrology, a monument to Mendeleev and his periodic table of elements were placed on the territory of the institute. The Institute is one of the largest world centers of fundamental and applied metrology, the main center of state primary standards of Russia. There are 54 (out of 165) state primary standards (GGE), corresponding to the eight measurement areas of the International Bureau for Weights and Measures (BIPM). Of the seven core units of the International System of Units SI, four are represented at the institute: meter, kilogram, ampere, and kelvin. VNIIM represents the Russian Federation in international metrology organizations and advisory committees of the International Bureau of Weights and Measures. The scientists of the institute head four of the twelve technical committees of the COOMET regional metrology organization. The Institute is a center for training and retraining of metrologists. There is a council for the defense of dissertations for the degrees of candidate of science and doctor of science, postgraduate study is offered.