As the NFPA Conference and Expo draws to a close this week in Las Vegas, it was gratifying to see the number of individuals who participated in the sessions that were part of the Emergency Preparedness and Business Continuity educational track.
NFPA 1600, Standard for Disaster/Emergency Management and Business Continuity,was the centerpiece for many of the presentations. As the title indicates, the standard lays out a common set of criteria for all-hazards disaster/emergency management and business continuity programs. Specifically, NFPA 1600 provides the criteria to develop, implement, assess and maintain the EMBC program for prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, continuity, and recovery and applies to public, not-for-profit, governmental organizations, and private entities on a local, regional, international and global basis.
The rise in prominence of NFPA 1600 began following its mention in the 9/11 Commission Report, and subsequent reference in Public Law 108-458 (Intelligence and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004), and Title IX of Public Law 110-53 (Implementation Recommendations of of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007).
What began as a recommended practice in 1995 has now become one of the premier documents on emergency management and business continuity, and is used world-wide. Along the way, NFPA 1600 was adopted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for incident management, was made available for free download on the NFPA web site, was designated as "Qualified Anti-Terrorism Technology" under the SAFETY Act of 2002 and became an "approved product for homeland security."
More recently, NFPA 1600 was made available through an IPhone application, NFPA and DRII partnered to conduct preparedness program auditor certification training, and DHS announced its intent to adopt NFPA 1600 for the Voluntary Private Sector Preparedness (PS Prep) Accreditation and Certification program.
Although the 2010 edition of the standard was just released last December, the Technical Committee on Emergency Management and Business Continuity is already hard at work preparing for the 2013 edition. In a conference call with the TC on May 24, Chair Don Schmidt outlined his ideas for the next edition, and sought committee member input on the direction they believe the standard should be going.
The technical committee will begin the revision cycle in earnest next year, which will include a series of meetings to discuss public proposals and comments. The committee welcomes your input, so you are invited to submit proposals with your ideas as to how NFPA 1600 can continue to improve and maintain its status as a leading worldwide resource for emergency management and business continuity information.
Dave Trebisacci
