Walter Copan has been nominated by President Donald Trump to be the new under secretary of commerce for standards and technology and director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

Copan has experience in the public and private sector. He is president and CEO of Colorado-based IP Engineering Group Corporation, and he sits on the board of Rocky Mountain Innovation Partners.

Copan's time in government includes three years as Brookhaven National Laboratory’s technology commercialization and partnerships manager and two years at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory as principal licensing executive, technology transfer. Prior to that, Copan spent 28 years at Lubrizol Corporation, where he led research and development and product management.