Humans have long needed safe places to store their most precious goods, and with natural disasters and increasingly cunning burglars, hiding them under the mattress is no longer a reliable strategy.
Luckily, there are banks with safes and vaults, and, like many other aspects of the security industry, the technology is moving fast. Yet not all security products are alike and substandard equipment or facilities could put the safety of our most valued possessions at risk. Recognizing the need to ensure adequate minimal levels of quality and to support the industry’s growth, a new ISO technical committee has just been formed.
ISO/TC 332, Security equipment for financial institutions and commercial organizations, was created to develop standards that address the safety aspect of products intended to be used in banks, financial institutions and commercial organizations. With the secretariat held by BIS, ISO’s member for India, the committee consists of physical security experts from the financial sector across the world.
Rajneesh Khosla, Manager of the committee, said the global physical security equipment market is large and widespread, and includes the protection of not only valuables such as money and gold, but arms and ammunition, documents, media files and more.
“Whether it be big banks and governments, or families and individuals, it is important that anyone who wants to store valuable possessions can rely on products that provide adequate levels of security and are tested, validated and certified by a reputed organization,” he said.
“In the absence of International Standards, the chances of substandard goods being produced are high.”
Future standards from the committee will include specifications and test methods for a range of products including safes, cash boxes, safe deposit locker cabinets, vault strong rooms, fire-resistant computer media protection cabinets and more.
Field experts or other parties interested in getting involved in the committee should contact their national ISO member.