The American Society for Industrial Security's Museum, Library and Cultural
Property Committee will meet at 1:45 pm Sunday February 24, 1997 in Ballroom
#1 of the Raleigh Hilton Hotel, Raleigh, NC in conjunction with the National
Conference on Cultural Property Protection.  The primary agenda items are a
discussion of the proposed Library Security Guidelines and an in depth review
of major proposed changes in the "Suggested Guidelines in Museum Security" to
reflect the major changes made by Underwriters' Laboratories regarding "line
security." Line security refers to the ability of someone to disconnect or
defeat your alarm signal as it travels to the off-site central monitoring
location. UL recently revealed that many museum alarm lines can be defeated
due to high tech equipment being readily available at Radio Shack and other
locations.
Steve Keller and Tom Previs have drafted major changes to the Guidelines to
reflect the UL changes. They are estimated to effect 50% to 75% of all
museums.

The Museum Association Security Committee will soon launch a home page and
quarterly newsletter for members. the MASC is the security committee of AAM.
A test version of the home page is deployed and is being used to transmit the
proposed changes to the Guidelines to MASC members. If you want to see the
proposed changes to the Guidelines, go to:
http://www.virtual-pub.com/masc/masc.htm

Note that this is a temporary address and the page that is deployed is under
construction.

Steve Keller noted that the issue of the Guidelines is very complex and
involves very complex technical issues. Some of the provisions in the changes
may appear controversial so those wanting more information should attend the
meeting or a follow up session on "Standards" at the Smithsonian Conference.
If you are not going to be in Raleigh and want more information on the
reasons for the changes, contact Steve Keller at (904) 789-6740.

Other agenda items at the ASIS meeting are "new members", "1997 ASIS goals",
and "ASIS seminar topics".  Non-members are invited as observers at the
meeting and are encouraged.

The MASC will meet immediately following the ASIS meeting.

If you download the text of the proposed Guidelines changes be aware that
they must first be accepted by the committee, then by ASIS counsel, then by
the ASIS Executive Committee. Do not distribute them or consider them to be
"carved ins tone" until notified that they have passed.

Posted by Steve Keller
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