LRQA show the strength of ISO 28000 to Homelands Security Panel
25/11/2010
An LRQA presentation to the USA’s Homeland Security Standards Panel on the flexibility and strengths of the ISO28000 supply chain management system received a hugely enthusiastic reception - from business and government alike.
An LRQA presentation to the USA’s Homeland Security Standards Panel on the flexibility and strengths of the ISO 28000 supply chain management system received a hugely enthusiastic reception - from business and government alike.
The presentation, given by LRQA’s Peter Boyce on November 10th, 2010, at the Ninth Plenary Session of the American National Standards Institute-Homeland Security Standards Panel ((ANSI-HSSP), was made to more than 130 leading global security experts. Boyce, who is LRQA’s Hong Kong-based Senior Business Manager for Security Management Systems, used the presentation to explain how - in a time when the world needs secure supply chains more than ever - ISO 28000’s risk-based approach works perfectly alongside the World Customs Organisation’s “SAFE” framework. Boyce’s presentation outlined how these two systems, used in conjunction, can establish a firm foundation for supply chain security that is suitable for any sized industry operating in any jurisdiction.
“The reaction was excellent”, said Boyce. “The audience was made up of leading security people from the public sector, the private sector and from standards organisations. After I spoke, people from all these sectors were asking for more information.”
“As a result of my presentation and the many subsequent discussions I have had since, the Department of Homeland Security will now be giving due consideration to ISO 28,000 as an option for validating its Tier 1 Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TRAT) initiative. I have been invited back to the States for further discussions with them. Also, three members from the EU committee that is investigating pan-European security standardization said that after seeing my presentation, they believe 28,000 is the suitable choice for Europe.”
“The interest is clearly there but there is still plenty of work to be done,” continued Boyce. “It was very interesting how many said they had heard about 28,000 but how few actually had a detailed idea of what it was. Clearly, the risk-based processes and security management system objectives that are central to 28,000 need more explanation.”
Karen Hughes, Director of Homeland Security Standards, American National Standards Institute, valued LRQA’s contribution to the panel. “The success of ANSI-HSSP and its mission relies upon the participation and broad expertise of its members. LRQA’s deep professional experience and involvement in the panel’s work will directly contribute to ANSI-HSSP’s achievements. Effective public-private sector cooperation is so critical to help find standards and conformity assessment solutions to support the international security community and citizens worldwide.”
Boyce, who was supported at the event by Robert DuPuy LRQA Sales Manager LRQA, USA, also met with Republican Congressman Dan Lungren's senior advisor Coley O’Brien – who also gave clear support to the adoption of ISO 28000, stating that its risk-focused approach to homeland security was the clear security management choice for the Republican Party.
During the event Boyce and DuPuy took time to meet with representatives of ASIS International, who signed a ground-breaking memorandum of understanding (MOU) with LRQA in October.
The MOU, aimed at increasing the number of experts who are qualified to certify businesses to the ISO28000 standard, brings together LRQA - a leading independent provider of management-systems certification - with the membership of ASIS, the world's biggest security association. It is expected to create one of the world’s largest pools of security experts and Boyce and DuPuy met with the ASIS officials to discuss operational details as the MOU starts to come into force.
The Ninth Plenary Session of the ANSI-Homeland Security Standards Panel was held in Arlington, Virginia, USA, between November the 9th and 10th.
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What is ISO 28000?
ISO 28000 is an international standard for a security management system. It offers organisations a framework that identifies aspects critical to the security assurance of their business operations. These aspects include, but are not limited to, purchasing, financing, manufacturing, information management, packing, storing and the transferring of goods within and between any environment(s).
Most organisations rely in some way on their security strength to ensure business continuity and they are vulnerable if operations are at risk. To help prevent this and manage security risks in this current volatile world, ISO has published ISO 28000; with valuable and extensive inputs from the Lloyd's Register Group.
Who can use ISO 28000?
ISO 28000 is a security management system specification for the risk-based security management of any business operations, suitable for public and private organisations of any size. This specification was published by The International Standards Organisation (ISO) in September 2007.