CEO Update: Sydney International Boat Show events; and Standards

The Sydney International Boat Show is drawing closer and we have a full program of BIA events planned. On the Thursday of the Show we are hosting a range of events including a Marine Careers Open Day with more than 600 young people, to a Diversity Forum and a National maritime regulators’ Vessels Standards Forum. On the Friday we have the Official Opening in the morning, then events including day two of the Australia New Zealand Safe Boating Education Group and a Sustainability – Propelling our Future – Forum featuring Joe Lynch, CEO of the International Council of Marine Industry Associations and GM Maritime Safety Queensland Kell Dillon and other guests speakers on Friday.

The BIA Events Program highlights for the Show can be found here.

As reviewed in recent editions of eNews, BIA’s focus on supporting industry across our key priorities – to grow participation in recreational boating; advocacy to government; delivering membership services and programs; and our skills, training and jobs campaigns and programs – sees the wider BIA team working with a range of stakeholders on a multitude of issues, projects and programs.

One of the more varied programs is that of standards.  Standards set out specifications, procedures and guidelines that aim to ensure products, services, and systems are safe, consistent, and reliable.  While standards are generally voluntary, State and Commonwealth governments often refer to or mandate a standard in support of compliance with legislation.

Key benefits of standards include:

  • Boost confidence: Thanks to standards, businesses and consumers can feel confident the products and services they develop and/or use are safe, reliable and fit-for-purpose.
  • Enhance innovation: Standards are a launch pad for exciting new ideas. They can be created, evolved or discarded according to our changing world. New standards are developed to reflect the latest technologies, innovations and community needs.
  • Give products a competitive edge: In the eyes of consumers, products that comply with Australian Standards offer added value and consumer confidence. International Standards give Australian exporters an instant competitive advantage when moving into overseas markets.
    Reduce barriers to international trade: Regardless of where a product is made, standards mean it can be sold and used around the globe. Opening new doors to international trade, standards help Australian businesses compete globally and to a wider market.
  • Reduce red tape: Standards assist with harmonisation across Australia’s laws and regulations. They offer an alternative to regulation, reducing business costs and decreasing red tape, but still providing security for businesses and consumers.
  • Help businesses thrive: Standards are central to Australian business. They make business transactions simpler and more efficient, assisting with risk mitigation and compliance. Put simply, standards help our businesses thrive.

BIA’s work in helping create, shape, guide and implement standards covers most of the segments of the industry, whether these be for a boat, a component or equipment, technical clothing, engine servicing, marina facilities, hire boat operations, coatings and finish quality, boat sale or just about anything that can be measured, assessed or critiqued.

This includes representing the membership at formal standards bodies, such as AMSA, Standards Australia (SA), International Standards Organisation (ISO), and the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), the latter via our membership of ICOMIA.  In all these settings, BIA takes a role of active involvement, with the team using their own expertise and experience, plus, as required, drawing on advice from members specialised in a particular field.

In local standards, with Standards Australia, BIA participates in more than 10 technical committees, including Small Craft, Marinas, Lifejackets and other Safety Equipment, Marine Electrical, LPG gas, Radiocommunications Equipment and Greywater treatment.  BIA provides the chair for three of these most important committees, CS114 Small Craft, CE030 Marinas and CS060 Lifejackets & Safety Deck Harnesses and Emergency Visual Distress Signals, with members joining the staff team to support these roles and wider committee participation.

Key topics currently being addressed at Standards Australia and ISO for vessel design cover stability and buoyancy, electric propulsion, lithium battery systems, energy consumption assessment, plus maritime infrastructure, safety deck harnesses, Electronic Visual Distress Signals (EVDS), LPG connectors and GMDSS beacons.

BIA members support this vital work via their membership of the Association, providing feedback on draft standards, commentary on the need for improvements to standards and taking time to be involved in creating standards for the betterment of the industry as a whole and the safety of the boating public.

See you on the water.

Andrew Scott, CEO