Our economic security depends on companies and individuals having access to a safe, secure and efficient global supply chain. The likelihood of disruption increases, as does the risk to economic security, when the global supply chain grows in complexity.
Cargo security professionals face the challenge of keeping their countries safe and keeping up with the demands of today’s commercial expectations. These professionals are constantly challenged to improve safety and efficiency, while reducing costs. Minimising the impact on the flow of commerce continues to be a daunting goal in today’s security environment.
Over the past 15 years, government and private industry have made substantial investments in cargo security infrastructure. However, most of this infrastructure remains largely unconnected. The result is a number of missed opportunities that put economic security at risk. This lack of connectivity stems from the way this infrastructure was initially purchased: each new technology and system was thought of as independent and procured to solve a specific problem. This pattern of procurement resulted in a patchwork of detection technologies and software systems from many different manufacturers, and each technology was delivered with its own software and operational concerns. Operators had to be trained on how to use the different equipment and their different interfaces, which led to a breakdown in most effectively leveraging the very systems designed to keep us…
