The Standards Committee was originally formed in 2003 to promote technical standards within the security industry, and subsequently chartered the Open, System Integration, and Performance Standards (OSIPS) project. Since the launch of OSIPS, the committee has become an ANSI accredited Standards Development Organization (SDO), providing open membership and international visibility to the group’s activities.

In Van Till’s discussions to be considered for the Chair position, he noted that “OSIPS was originally created in an era when there were no other standards activities going on in our industry. Since then, we’ve seen a welcome endorsement of standards in the formation of several other organisations, including both ONVIF and PSIA.” Embracing the current reality, Van Till believes that “by making several fundamental changes to the way that we pursue the standards process, OSIPS can become more relevant to the needs of the industry and our members, advancing SIA’s leadership role in shaping technical standards.”

As he assumes leadership of the highly visible, influential committee, Van Till outlined three proposals for the committee to consider as they embark on their work. The firtst is to prioritise standards activities by business need, the second to harmonise SIA standards with other organisations, and the last to demonstrate interoperable systems within the first year.

Van Till summarised his approach by saying, “I think the committee would serve members best by capitalising on the successes of the past while evolving along with the changing IT environment in which physical security is now being practiced. For example, the OSIPS standards have already become normative for the federal government’s FICAM initiative, which is a huge accomplishment, and one that’s a big boost for industry standards overall. That said, OSIPS does not cover every possible area of standardisation, and the last thing we want to do is fragment the emerging standards market and force manufacturers and buyers into a false dichotomy. That’s why harmonising is so important.”