May 15, 2014 is the cut-off date for all High Security Seals to be compliant with the new requirements of ISO17712:2013 – the international standard for mechanical seals.
For seals to be compliant they must be categorized and marked “H” as High Security Seals when undergoing mechanical testing by an independent ISO17025 accredited laboratory (Clause 5) and the manufacturer must be certified to both ISO9001 and ISO17712: Annex A. That is “business as usual”.
The new requirement for High Security Seals is that they must also be compliant with Clause 6: Evidence of Tampering. Clause 6 requires the manufacturer to have a documented and audited process and test specification in place in its quality manual for all High Security Seals in its product range. Clause 6 is a valuable addition to the seal standard emphasizing the importance of continuous improvement of tamper resistance and tamper indicating features on security seals.
All users of ISO17712 High Security Seals / C-TPAT compliant seals, should ask their seal supplier for the necessary documentation proving the seals will still be compliant after the May 15 dead-line. Given the industry’s common leadtimes of 6 – 16 weeks the dead-line is fast approaching.
More information about the new requirements for High Security Seals like bolt seals and cable seals is available at www.megafortrisusa.com
