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The British Security Industry Association (BSIA) has published its Annual Review for 2014-15, revealing that the trade body continues to expand its influence in the development of British and European standards.
In the past 12 months, the BSIA has contributed to the development and review of 26 standards, affecting a range of industry sectors including lone worker, CCTV and intruder alarms. In the UK, the Association continues to represent its members on more than 30 British Standards Institute (BSI) committees, either as a member or as chair, and is a key sector influence in intruder, access control, CCTV, lone worker, guarding, consultancy, vacant property protection, risk, resilience and management committees.
Outside of the UK, the BSIA’s influence continues to grow, with the Association represented on more than 15 standards committees in Europe. Participation in the main decision-making committee at the International Standards Body (IEC TC 79) benefits all electronic sections of BSIA membership, whereas the Association remains an active member of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) and a vocal Board member of the Confederation of European Security Services (CoESS), where the BSIA also chairs the Critical National Infrastructure working group.
Participation within the European standards body, CENELEC, has also benefited all electronic sections of membership, as the BSIA actively participates in WG1 and WG10, as well as the main decision-making committee CLC TC79. The Association’s involvement in Euralarm has also expanded, with the BSIA securing the Vice Chair position for the Security Systems section as well as a place on Euralarm’s Board, positioning the BSIA as a leading voice within the European electronic security sector and most notably, the standards arena.
David Wilkinson, Director of Technical Services at the BSIA, comments: “The development and revision of standards at British, European and International levels is an issue which continues to affect BSIA members from all sections of membership, and ensuring that members are fully represented throughout the various stages of standards development is one of the core functions of the Association.
“While the Association actively encourages its members to become involved in standards development by nominating working group experts, the Association itself takes pride in its ability to lead by example when it comes to committee involvement, chairing a number of standards committees and working groups.”
UK standards influenced by the BSIA in the past year include: a revision and update of the alarm cable standard, BS4737 Part 3.30, BS8418 – the standard for detector-activated, remotely-monitored CCTV, a review of BS7958 relating to CCTV management and operation and BS7984 parts 1 & 2, relating to keyholder and response services and Response to Lone worker services. Further afield, the Association has lobbied the European Commission on matters such as third party certification and the impact of 4G technology on security manufacturers.
Download the BSIA’s Annual Review to find out more about the Association’s role in representing the UK’s private security industry. Alternatively, BSIA members wishing to become involved in standards development activity can find out more by contacting a member of the Association’s Technical Department on 0845 389 3889.