In an effort to help secure global supply chains, ISO has two reference documents in the ISO 28000 family of standards for supply chain security.

These documents help implement the recently published ISO/PAS 28000:2005, currently a publicly available specification for security management systems for the supply chain. They are part of a suite of standards being developed by ISO’s technical committee ISO/TC 8, ships and marine technology, in partnership with other ISO technical committees, several international organizations and regional bodies.

“Disruptions to international trade can have drastic consequences for everybody. International problems truly need international solutions to mitigate potential threats,” said Charles Piersall, chair of ISO/TC 8. “Unilateral government actions won’t work and are not enforceable globally. ISO is providing a focal point that provides industry with a clear, uniform global approach for implementation of supply chain security requirements.

“The new documents are designed to enable better monitoring of supply flows, to combat smuggling and to respond to the threat of piracy and terrorist attacks, as well as to create a safe and secure international supply chain regime.”

The first of the two new documents, ISO/PAS 28001:2006, “Security management systems for the supply chain — Best practices for implementing supply chain security — Assessments and plans,” is a publicly available specification that enables organizations to establish and document reasonable levels of security within international supply chains and their components. It provides an option for independent auditing — including by private sector bodies — of the security established by the operator. This allows customs agencies to check and verify completed work rather than being directly involved in the assessment, thus leveraging their work force and saving resources.

The second document, ISO/PAS 28004:2006, “Security management systems for the supply chain — Guidelines for the implementation of ISO/PAS 28000,” will help users understand and implement ISO/PAS 28000:2005. It includes the requirements of ISO/PAS 28000, clause-by clause, followed by relevant guidance.

Do you have experience and expertise with the topics mentioned in this content? You should consider contributing to our WTWH Media editorial team and getting the recognition you and your company deserve. Click here to start this process.