Council plans to alleviate Y2K fears

By Staff -- Logistics Management, 7/1/1999

Jonathan Collom says the Year 2000 may cause its share of computer glitches, but he does not foresee a widespread problem.

What makes that statement important is Collom's position as president of the Hazardous Materials Advisory Council, an association composed of carriers, shippers, manufacturers, and emergency response and waste management firms, all of which are involved in the transportation of hazardous materials. All of those groups have taken steps to ensure those materials will be safe and sound when the clock strikes midnight on Dec. 31.

"A lot of our members have tested their systems to ensure they are Y2K compliant," says Collom. "In addition, they have developed capabilities so that if their systems were to go down, they would have fixes in place."

The Washington, D.C.-based organization recently published a 24-page booklet to "alleviate the fears the hazmat transportation industry and the general public may have in regard to the preparedness of other industry sectors," says Collom. The publication, Y2K: Who's Ready?, examines how the Y2K problem developed. It reports on how the government is addressing Y2K-related issues, as well as Y2K readiness in the chemicals, communications, electric power, oil and gas, aviation, maritime, rail, and highway transport industries.

Kimberly Seitz, HMAC director of communications and public relations, who prepared the booklet, says she is confident that government and industry will take the challenges in stride. There may be localized problems such as traffic light outages, she notes, but "all parties are pretty well set with compliance and contingency planning."

Seitz says she was impressed with the amount of "inter-industry" discussion that occurred as the result of Y2K fears. "It was good to see the competition set aside so the issues could be addressed and resolved."

In terms of contingency planning, Y2K holds one advantage over other potential emergencies: Government and industry know exactly when it will occur. "I interviewed one of our members who is very confident about handling a Y2K situation," says Seitz. "She says that whatever happens here will happen to the rest of the world first. So if something happens in Japan, she will have some time to react."