Five Themes Shaping the Fire, Electrical and Security Industries

As your industry continues to evolve alongside rapidly developing technology, you are challenged to keep pace with these changes. Similarly, just as industries look for ways to harness new innovations without compromising safety, sustainability or ethics, you are exploring ways to use this technology to reshape your work.

At the 2024 Convening of the Councils, we looked at the rapid evolution of technologies in the fire, security and electrical industries and discussed the unprecedented opportunities and significant challenges this transition creates. While many unknowns remain as technologies change, we remain committed to helping code authorities navigate with greater confidence.

Key themes shaping fire, electrical and security

By combining expertise in emerging technologies, regulatory challenges and market trends, we identified five themes to watch based on general session findings, notes and secondary research:

Harnessing emerging technologies to drive safety and efficiency

The adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), digital twins and Internet of Things (IoT) systems is transforming industries, offering enhanced safety, operational efficiencies and predictive capabilities.

The interplay of regulation, standardization and innovation

Agile, harmonized regulatory frameworks are essential to mitigate risks while enabling innovation. The growing complexity of technology demands global collaboration and adaptive governance.

Building resilience through sustainable practices

Industries must address the environmental impacts of energy-intensive technologies by prioritizing sustainable approaches like modular nuclear reactors and energy-efficient systems.

Democratizing access to training and standards

Accessibility and affordability of training, coupled with reliable information delivery, remain critical for broader adoption of safety protocols and best practices.

Addressing ethical and societal challenges of technology adoption

As technologies like AI and IoT scale, organizations must embed ethical considerations into their frameworks to manage data privacy, misinformation and equitable access.