Mike Lord, a member of the SA Events Council, Managing Director of Alliance Safety Management and Interim Chair for the Event Safety Council (a Special Interest Group under the South Africa Communications Industries Association, SACIA), has been appointed Chair of the TC264 committee at the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS).

The TC264 is a technical committee established specifically to develop and revise standards relating to the events industry. Its primary purpose is to develop the SANS 10366 as the benchmark for standards set by industry experts in applying safety first principles in the events environment.

TC264 connects with similar Standards Generating Bodies worldwide to access and share information with colleagues which aligns the work done by the TC264 with both the evolving needs of the local market and international trends that may affect the outcome.

Lord’s appointment in 2021 to Chair of the technical committee extends a long-running tradition of TC264 leadership by SACIA and the TPSA. The standard was initially developed in response to the growing need for safety regulations for the events industry after South African events market started to boom post-1994. The newly established Technical Production Services Association (TPSA) adopted the British Standard for event safety, the late John Shaughnessy, then TPSA chair, painstakingly adapted the document for the South African context and  ‘The Event Safety Guide’ was published in July 2000. It was positively received by the industry and adopted by many training institutions as a teaching tool for their technical students.

The TPSA subsequently opened discussions with the South African Bureau of Standards to convert the Guide into a nationally recognised Standard and a TPSA Technical Committee began the work under the guidance of an SABS standards writer. “A vast range of sources gave input over time from the SAPS, National Intelligence, the Ministry of Health, players in the events and theatre industries, various metro police departments, fire departments and emergency medical services to pyro-technicians, events security companies and event’s organisers,” explains Snow, ex-Chairman of the TPSA. “The SABS launched the first edition of the SANS10366 standard in 2006, with subsequent editions published in 2009, 2012 and 2015.”

When the TPSA reconstituted as a Special Interest group under SACIA in 2015, Snow stepped down from the TC264 and  SACIA’s executive director Kevan Jones maintained a leadership role within the committee. Between 2015 and 2021, internal changes at the SABS meant that, although the standard was reviewed and updated, no new editions were published.

Mike Lord had been involved as a TC264 member in the original committee and returns to it after an 8-year absence. “The Event Safety Council is a vital cog in this process – we represent issues related to health and safety in the events industry, and this is a coordinated association that addresses issues of health and safety. It is essential that we, as subject experts, drive implementation and compliance. We aim to achieve recognition and global implementation of the standards we set, to keep people safe at the events we host”, he says. “Driving this process and having a say in what is critical to implement to achieve this is extremely important. As representatives of our industry and with the advent of the SA Event Council coalition, the various associations making up live, business and sporting events can align thinking nationally both across the private sector and through the authorities responsible for compliance.”

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ISSUED ON BEHALF OF SACIA

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

Robyn D’Alessandro

Cell: +27 (0) 67 684 3376

Email: robyn@sacia.org

Website: www.sacia.org.za