Aerospace associations announce Safety Management System (SMS) Industry Standard

Ottawa (Ontario), October 3, 2018 – The world’s leading aerospace designers, manufacturers and maintenance providers today announced publication of a new international industry standard to improve safety performance and enhance safety culture: “Implementing a Safety Management System for Design, Manufacturing and Maintenance Providers.”

The AeroSpace and Defense Association of Europe (ASD), Aerospace Industries Association of America (AIA), Aerospace Industries Association of Brazil (AIAB), the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada (AIAC) and the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) spent two years developing the standard, which will enable the global aviation industry to implement a Safety Management System (SMS) consistent with the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) Annex 19 “Safety Management” standards and recommended practices.

SMS is a decision-making system based on proactively identifying, assessing and controlling hazards and safety risks before they result in accidents and incidents, and analyzing performance data for continuous improvement. The associations that developed the standard have also established a steering committee to oversee and support the standard, including working with the broader stakeholder community to ensure that future revisions are effective.

“The development of an internationally-recognized SMS Standard that is consistent with Annex 19 was a collaborative effort by the leading industry trade associations and member companies. In advance of a comprehensive regulatory regime for SMS in Canada, the SMS Standard provides a framework for Canadian companies to implement SMS on a voluntary basis within their design, manufacturing and maintenance organizations.” said Mark Beauregard, Vice President-Regulatory Affairs at the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada.

The standard is available free-of-charge on the websites of the five sponsoring aerospace manufacturing associations. View it on AIAC’s website here.

About AIAC:

AIAC is the national association representing Canada’s aerospace manufacturing and services sector.  As the world’s fifth-largest aerospace industry, Canada’s aerospace sector contributes nearly $25B to the economy in GDP, exports 75% of its output, and dedicates over 20% of its activity to research and development (R&D). Aerospace is responsible for the employment of 190,000 Canadians.

For information:

Kristen VanderHoek
Senior Director, Communications and Marketing
Aerospace Industries Association of Canada
613 232-4297 x225
kvanderhoek@aiac.ca