The 2nd Meeting of the Technical Experts Group on Non-Intrusive Inspection (TEG-NII) was held 3-5 May 2017 in the WCO Headquarters in Brussels. The meeting brought together around 60 participants from WCO Member Administrations and NII Industry members. Interactive discussions were held in two main sessions – a session on the Unified File Format (UFF) Development Programme and a session devoted to other NII-related topics such as procurement of NII systems, equipment maintenance and training of operators and image analysts.
In his opening remarks, the Deputy Director of Compliance and Facilitation Mr. Luc De Blieck reminded the participants that the TEG-NII was established in 2016 with the objective of promoting synergies between Customs and the Industry to develop a standard NII data format. The standard format is aimed at facilitating interoperability of different NII equipment provided by different manufacturers, at enabling the exchange of images in a unified file format within and between Customs administrations for Customs purposes, at facilitating the development of databases or libraries of images and at assisting the training of image analysts.
During the UFF dedicated session, the participants discussed and endorsed the approach to implementing Phase 2 of the UFF Development Programme that involved setting the file structure and features, as well as testing the draft standard through a digital pilot. The practical aspects of implementation were also discussed at the meeting.
Customs and Industry discussed in an open and lively way the various issues Customs administrations around the world face in the procurement and maintenance of their NII systems, as well as in the training of operators and image analysts. Participants exchanged valuable knowledge and experience and, based on that, further guidance material such as a NII Equipment Compendium and model tender documentation will be developed and Members’ best practices will be compiled to assist the WCO Members in their efforts in the NII-related areas.