Global container standardisation slashed shipping costs by 75%. Consistent standards: the backbone of monumental change.
Consistency often remains the unsung hero in the world of breakthroughs. We celebrate towering technological achievements—the moon landing, electricity, or the radio—yet overlook a monumental global shift: the humble shipping container.
Before these containers, chaos reigned in logistics. Goods were transported in various configurations, causing nightmares in regional handling and inviting rampant property theft. Enter the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), established in 1946 to instill global consistency. By the '60s, ISO/TC 104 standardised 20-foot shipping containers, creating a paradigm shift.
With standardised dimensions, ridges, and hooks, cargo ships, trains, and trucks seamlessly accommodated 20-foot containers, igniting an international transformation. Post-global container standardisation, shipping costs nosedived by 75%, propelling goods faster and farther, reshaping global trade in unprecedented ways.
ISO's influence extends beyond containers to rail gauges, environmental management, social responsibility, and notably, information security through ISO 27001.
Long before ISO 27001's arrival, agreed-upon standards—be it ISO, time zones, or the metric system—charted a path toward extraordinary accomplishments. These standards served as the foundation for measuring time, distance, and the world around us, integral to progress.
Lucas Szymanowski, Director of Information Security and GRC at Wrike, highlights, "Standards bring people into alignment, and people that are aligned have been able to do the impossible."
ISO, founded in 1946, has crafted tens of thousands of standards, addressing diverse manufacturing and technology-related aspects. Its impact resonates in GDPR, HACCP, and the game-changing ISO/TC 104.
ISO standards simplify an otherwise complex world, exemplified by ISO/TC 104's groundbreaking freight container standardisation. containerisation, global trade languished due to logistical nightmares. The absence of transportation standardisation led to wasted time and labour.
With ISO/TC 104 in the '60s, cargo ships exclusively handled 20-foot containers, culminating in a staggering 75% reduction in global shipping costs. While often taken for granted, international freight consistency ranks among history's most influential inventions.
In the digital realm, ISO's inclusion of information security standards since 2005, notably ISO 27001, has fortified the digital economy's fabric.
ISO 27001, an Information Security Management System (ISMS) certification, ensures robust information security practices. It transcends mere digital protection, encompassing structural and organisational guidelines to minimise security breaches due to personnel errors.
Szymanowski emphasises, "ISO 27001 defines, on an international level, the baseline for how we protect customer data, manage information security processes, and guarantee protection and security."
Amidst large-scale security breaches in 2018 compromising over 1 billion individuals' data, ISO 27001 certification signifies an organisation's compliance with best practices and resilience against threats.
For instance, the University of Tampa, ISO 27001 certified in 2015, witnessed tangible benefits: reduced phishing incidents, enhanced data protection, and a culture fostering security awareness.
ISO 27001's key elements span information security policies, operational guidelines, physical and human resource security, and compliance checks. Certification involves evaluation against these benchmarks.
While ISO sets standards, certification requires audits by independent bodies. Once an organisation has formulated and implemented ISO 27001 policies, selecting the right certification body solidifies its commitment to information security.
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