November 2025: New Standards for Environmental Protection and Safety Announced

As November 2025 brings a wave of innovation to environment, health protection, and safety, a suite of five pivotal international standards has just been published. Ranging from advanced application guidelines for video surveillance systems to the latest requirements for battery-based energy storage system protection, generic IT cabling frameworks, and cutting-edge geotechnical monitoring methods, these standards signal new directions for improvement across diverse industries. Professionals involved in environmental management, occupational safety, building design, and energy systems will find critical new guidance for ensuring compliance and achieving operational excellence.

Overview / Introduction

Environmental protection and safety underpin the ability of industries to operate responsibly, meet regulatory criteria, and safeguard assets, people, and the environment. International standards play a crucial role in providing consensus-driven frameworks that guide best practices, risk mitigation, and innovation. This article—Part 1 of a monthly series—highlights five newly released standards from leading international organizations, offering valuable insights for engineers, compliance officers, quality managers, procurement specialists, and researchers.

You'll discover:

• What each new standard covers and why it matters
• Key requirements and technical provisions
• Compliance and industry implications
• Best practices for technical implementation
• Practical steps for leveraging these standards to drive value and safety

Detailed Standards Coverage

EN IEC 62676-4:2025 - Guidelines for Video Surveillance System Applications

Video surveillance systems for use in security applications – Part 4: Application guidelines

This comprehensive standard sets out detailed application guidelines for video surveillance systems (VSS). Covering the full lifecycle from planning through maintenance, it enables organizations to design, install, test, and maintain surveillance systems for both private and public security use. Core aspects include security concept development, risk assessment, specification of operational requirements, optimal site planning, equipment selection, system design, and interoperability.

Key requirements:

• Define security grades based on risk analysis and specific site needs
• Conduct operational requirements assessments (e.g., image performance, activity capture, storage, operator workload)
• Select and configure camera and lens based on pixel density, field of view, environmental and site conditions
• Ensure robust tamper-detection, equipment integration, backup power, and compliance with data security and privacy
• Document all phases—including design, installation, commissioning, testing, and handover—supported by rigorous inspection and maintenance protocols

Who must comply?

• Security system integrators, facility owners, building managers, infrastructure operators, and safety officers seeking to install or modernize video surveillance in compliance with best practices and regulatory guidance.

Practical impact: With clear guidance on lifecycle management and technical performance, this standard reduces liability, prevents system downtime, and ensures reliable evidence capture in critical security scenarios.

Key highlights:

• Comprehensive coverage: planning, risk analysis, site survey, operational requirements, and testing
• Technical details: camera selection, system integration, storage and encryption, display configuration
• Emphasis on compliance, training, and documentation

Access the full standard:View EN IEC 62676-4:2025 on iTeh Standards

EN IEC 62933-4-3:2025 - Environmental Protection for Battery Energy Storage Systems

Electrical energy storage (EES) systems – Part 4-3: Protection requirements of battery-based energy storage systems (BESS) according to environmental conditions

Standards for battery energy storage systems are fast-evolving, with increasing emphasis on resilience against environmental impacts. This new specification focuses on mitigating risks to BESS arising from factors like lightning, seismic activity, flooding, temperature changes, flora, fauna, and human interaction.

Key requirements:

• Mandate comprehensive site-specific analysis of environmental risk factors before installation
• Provide a chain-of-events risk evaluation for exposures such as water ingress, air quality, lightning strikes, earthquakes, and biological influences
• Specify preventative and mitigating measures for the entire BESS, including power/communication connections and Points of Connection (POCs)
• Require robust documentation and reporting of environmental factors and risk controls
• Exclude subsystem-specific design; focus remains on holistic, system-level requirements

Industries/organizations affected:

• Utility providers, renewable energy operators, facility energy managers, and EPC contractors integrating or operating battery-based energy storage.

Practical implications: Proactive environmental risk management enhances system uptime, prolongs asset life, and ensures regulatory compliance, especially as incidents of extreme weather and grid disturbances rise worldwide.

Key highlights:

• Covers water, air, flora, fauna, lightning, seismic, and other natural/human-induced risks
• Clear methodology for risk assessment and documentation prior to BESS commissioning
• Preventive action framework supporting compliance, safety, and resilience

Access the full standard:View EN IEC 62933-4-3:2025 on iTeh Standards

ISO/IEC 11801-1:2017 - General Requirements for IT Cabling in Customer Premises

Information technology – Generic cabling for customer premises – Part 1: General requirements

In this foundational standard, the requirements for generic, multi-vendor cabling designs are established to support voice, data, and video services—including power delivery—within diverse customer premises environments. This document harmonizes core requirements applicable by itself and integral to the wider ISO/IEC 11801 cabling series. Notably, this edition incorporates the contents of the April 2018 corrigendum for enhanced clarity.

Key requirements:

• Define multi-vendor, interoperable cabling architectures (balanced, coaxial, optical fiber, and single pair)
• Prescribe performance classes, installation practices, and test regimes for cables and connectors
• Specify component compatibility, environmental classification, and expected transmission performance (attenuation, crosstalk, delay, bandwidth)
• Integrate safety, labeling, and documentation priorities
• Support convergence of data, voice, and video including Power over Ethernet (PoE) and other advanced applications

Target audience:

• IT infrastructure integrators, building developers, data center operators, facilities managers, and network engineers

Practical implications: Uniform cabling specification ensures reliable service delivery and future scalability while simplifying multi-vendor procurement, installation, and maintenance.

Key highlights:

• Common technical foundation for all customer-premises cabling
• Comprehensive coverage of cable types, testing, and performance requirements
• Future-ready for power, data, and converged building systems

Access the full standard:View ISO/IEC 11801-1:2017 on iTeh Standards

(Note: This standard appears twice in the current release and is relevant for consistent application across customer IT infrastructure portfolios.)

ISO 18674-7:2025 - Geotechnical Strain Measurements in the Field

Geotechnical investigation and testing – Geotechnical monitoring by field instrumentation – Part 7: Measurement of strains: Strain gauges

This new standard is an important reference for professionals involved in structural and geotechnical monitoring. It details both the principles and instrumentation for measuring strains using surface-mounted and embedded strain gauges—extending to applications like foundations, retaining structures, tunnels, embankments, dams, and earthworks.

Core requirements:

• Specify instrumentation and techniques for strain measurement in 1-D (piles, struts), 2-D (retaining walls, slabs), and 3-D (dams, fills) structural contexts
• Demand robust installation, calibration, and data-handling protocols for accuracy over time
• Enforce rigorous reporting of installation, monitoring, and evaluation data
• Provide rules for strain-to-stress conversion and technical conventions regarding measurement sign and gauge length
• Support performance monitoring, construction design validation (observational method), and safety evaluations

Who should comply?

• Civil, geotechnical, and structural engineers; owners and operators of critical infrastructure; consultants and contractors in construction monitoring

Practical benefits: Accurate strain monitoring supports risk management, informs adaptive construction decisions, and enables the detection of early signs of structural distress, ultimately protecting assets and lives.

Key highlights:

• Comprehensive methodologies for field instrumentation (surface and embedded)
• Clear guidance on gauge selection, installation, and data analysis
• Emphasis on full lifecycle reporting for traceability, code compliance, and safety assurance

Access the full standard:View ISO 18674-7:2025 on iTeh Standards

Industry Impact & Compliance

The release of these standards introduces significant advances for organizations operating in the environmental, health protection, and safety arenas:

• Access to up-to-date best practices for system design, installation, testing, and lifecycle management
• Mandatory or recommended compliance pathways as referenced by national, regional, and international regulations or clients
• Enhanced resilience to environmental hazards (from battery system protection to surveillance resilience and structural instrumentation)
• Streamlined procurement and interoperability, especially in multi-vendor and cross-disciplinary implementations
• Clear guidance on documentation, inspection, and training, reducing error rates and improving outcomes
• Improved risk management for critical infrastructure, energy, and building operations

Compliance considerations and timelines:

• Organizations must review current processes, update internal procedures, and train personnel in line with new requirements as soon as possible after publication
• Compliance deadlines may be dictated by legislation, client contracts, or regulatory enforcement—engage legal and risk specialists where necessary
• Certification or third-party assessment may be required for high-value or high-risk installations

Benefits of early adoption:

• Competitive differentiation through demonstration of best-in-class safety and operational reliability
• Reduced downtime, liability, and remediation costs
• Improved stakeholder confidence and market access

Risks of non-compliance:

• Regulatory penalties, lost contracts, and insurance challenges
• Increased exposure to incidents, injuries, or environmental damage

Technical Insights

Several cross-cutting technical requirements recur throughout these standards:

• Rigorous risk assessment and operational requirements for site-specific safety
• Compatibility and interoperability—particularly for IT cabling and surveillance systems
• Emphasis on robust documentation, training, and ongoing inspection/maintenance
• Environmental and resilience design integration—especially for battery storage and built structures exposed to weather, geological or biological factors
• Testing and certification: Each standard references specific performance, acceptance, or conformance testing (factory acceptance for surveillance and cabling, field calibration for geotechnical instrumentation, environmental hazard analysis for BESS)

Implementation best practices:

1. Conduct a gap analysis between new standard requirements and current practices
2. Update risk management and operational guidelines for assets and sites in scope
3. Train relevant staff in technical and compliance requirements
4. Document all changes and maintain ongoing inspection/calibration/testing regimes
5. Engage accredited inspection and certification bodies if external verification is needed

Conclusion / Next Steps

The standards published this November are set to shape best practices in environment, health, and safety for years to come. Rapid adoption and effective implementation will drive higher resilience, lower risk, and increased trust from customers and regulators alike.

Recommendations for organizations:

• Review and disseminate the new standards internally
• Start a compliance project for each relevant area—security systems, energy storage, cabling, geotechnical monitoring
• Implement technical and organizational changes, with a focus on timely training and documentation
• Engage with iTeh Standards (standards.iteh.ai) to access full texts, updates, and future guidance

Explore the latest updates, ensure compliance, and lead your industry with standards-driven excellence.