TMA Launches Effort to Develop Video Alarm Monitoring Procedural Standard

The Monitoring Association (TMA) is seeking participants to help develop a new American National Standards Institute (ANSI) initiative focused on video alarm monitoring center operations.

The proposed standard, titled TMA-VMS-01 Monitoring Center Video Procedural Standard, is intended to define normalized and repeatable procedures for monitoring centers that process video-based alarm events. These events may include live video, recorded clips, still images and audio associated with alarms.

According to an announcement, the primary objective of the project is to establish minimum requirements that support consistent decision-making protocols. These protocols are designed to help monitoring centers classify risk or threat levels and initiate appropriate actions based on video and multimedia data.

Committee structure and participation requirements

TMA cited the continued expansion of monitoring center services that rely heavily on video surveillance systems, often enhanced by artificial intelligence, to detect and analyze unusual or potentially dangerous behavior. Video-initiated events frequently require notification to responding entities such as public safety agencies. The proposed standard is intended to complement other American National Standards that address notification methods and terminology by focusing on how monitoring centers interpret and process video-based alarms.

The association said standardized procedures and clearly defined minimum workflows are needed to ensure monitoring centers can interpret media-initiated alarms efficiently and consistently, resulting in timely and uniform response outcomes.

As part of the ANSI standards development process, the committee responsible for drafting the standard must reflect balanced representation and avoid dominance by any single interest category. TMA said the committee will include representation from users, producers and general interest participants. Proposed interest categories include alarm monitoring, public safety, installer or maintainer, special expert, service provider and manufacturer or software provider.

TMA membership is not required to serve on the committee. In addition, individuals may submit comments on the draft standard without being committee members or TMA members, with all comments receiving equal consideration under ANSI and TMA procedures.

TMA leadership will determine the final number of committee members based on applications received and the need to ensure the group can work effectively. The committee is expected to complete an initial draft of the standard within 120 days of its first meeting. Committee members will then be asked to remain involved for an additional three to six months during the public review and comment period and the preparation of the final draft.

Those interested in being considered for committee membership are asked to complete a short online application available here.