Tapa SA gets off the ground

JOY ORLEK
THE FOUNDATIONS have been laid for the establishment of a South African chapter of the Transported Asset Protection Association (Tapa). An 8-person committee was appointed last Friday at a meeting in Isando convened by George Wiessing of Hewlett Packard in the Netherlands, Tapa treasurer for Europe, Middle East and Africa. The group, comprising members of the forwarding, express freight, security and manufacturing industries, will meet shortly to elect a chairman, assign responsibilities, agree on a constitution and set strategic goals.
This is the culmination of 18 months of hard work, initiated in June 2005 when a high-level international Tapa delegation met with department of transport officials in South Africa to propose the formation of a local chapter in response to the unacceptably high levels of crime at OR Tambo International Airport.
Established in 1999, Tapa is an association of security professionals and related business partners from technology companies who have come together to address the emerging security threats facing high value cargo. The driving force worldwide is the manufacturing and distribution industry who are the big losers in incidents of hijacking and theft, and the same needs to apply in South Africa.
The aim of the Association is to provide a forum for responsible managers and to share professional information for mutual benefit.
TNT Express regional security manager John Nelson, who chaired the meeting, stressed that while ORTIA was a prime focus, the association would target intermodal transport security. In the case of truck hijackings it intends to identify hotspots and bring these to the attention of the police.
Another general meeting will be held in two months time to report back on progress.
In the meantime, anyone interested in joining the association should contact marius@schjia.com