neXus – Top-flight solutions for airports

Case Study
CardDesk Aviation –
Top-flight solutions for airports
neXus – Top-flight solutions for airports
A world of its own
Airports have highly specific security requirements that differ extensively from those
typically encountered in the industrial sector. Not only are their processes exceptionally
complex, airports must also comply with strict statutory regulations. In Germany, these
regulations are footed to a large extent in the Aviation Security Act, which determines the
procedures surrounding personnel, the classes of ID cards persons may hold, and the airport
areas they are authorized to access. Thus, airports have particularly rigorous requirements
for ID card and entitlement management.
A centralized view of ID cards and entitlements
neXus is a leading supplier of ID cards and entitlement
management systems for the aviation sector. CardDesk
Aviation is a platform solution that provides a singular, vendorindependent view of all access control systems and enables
administrators to manage all user groups and their credentials
centrally, in one unified system. The solution covers everything
from ID card offices and access control points to parking
facilities and canteen management. The benefits are
considerable: The solution eliminates the laborious, errorprone manual processes and work duplication commonly
associated with bureaucratic data handling. As a result, data is
not only consistent but also instantly available across all
subsystem. The result is a significant gain in efficiency, with
improvements in speed and cost, and an unparalleled increase
of airport security. A further benefit is that, in contrast to large
organizations, where the process of ordering and issuing ID
cards is generally free of charge, airports usually charge for
these and similar processes. CardDesk Aviation provides the
option to record all chargeable costs and transfer them to the
respective target system.
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Case Study
CardDesk Aviation –
Top-flight solutions for airports
ID card office
By and large, airports distinguish between personnel who
require a special ID card granting access to the restricted
airside area and those for whom a regular ID for the remaining,
landside areas is sufficient. In Germany, this distinction is
governed by Section 8 of the Aviation Security Act. Persons
applying to the ID card office for a badge with access to the
restricted area must submit a background check certifying their
integrity. Their applications are forwarded to the regional
aviation authority in the relevant federal state, which has the
applicants vetted by security and law enforcement agencies like
the Federal Intelligence Agency, the Federal Bureau of Criminal
Investigation and the State Office of Criminal Investigation, as
well as local and fiscal authorities. Background checks can take
between six and eight weeks to complete. Visitor ID cards, too,
are tightly regulated, and a person is only granted access for a
set number of visits per week, month or year, depending on the
airport's own or federal state policy. The neXus solution
supports these policies and secures compliance airport-wide.
E-learning testimonials
The software also keeps track of testimonials issued by
e-learning programs. Airport personnel are required to take a
number of trainings and tests, for example for safe conduct in
restricted areas. Registrations for a test or training on the
e-learning platform are submitted through the neXus software.
When a staff member passes one of these tests, the result is
recorded in the system and a certificate is printed automatically. Test failures are recorded in the same fashion. If a
staff member fails a test repeatedly, they are summoned to
attend an individual training. Because trainings of this kind are
generally subject to charges, the system automatically initiates
the charging process.
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Case Study
CardDesk Aviation –
Top-flight solutions for airports
Blacklists
Once staff members have passed a background check and
successfully completed security training, their identity and
personal details have to be verified by the ID card office against
the aviation authority's security list. This is a nationwide list,
updated continuously for all airports, that names individuals
who are banned from working in airports' restricted areas.
Parallel to this, airports maintain their own in-house blacklists.
When an individual's personal data record is opened in
CardDesk Aviation, their details can be checked easily against
current global and local blacklists.
External companies
A large proportion of the workforce at airports is employed by
external service providers - which represents an important
aspect of airport security management. For every regular
member of airport staff, there may be as many as nine external
employees working, say, for airline companies or for ground
services operators in areas like baggage handling and catering.
These people are all subject to the same security procedures as
the airport operator's own employees. CardDesk Aviation
features a functionality that enables external companies to
register their employees and to request and conduct
background checks and security trainings. Here, too, external
companies are charged automatically for fee-based services.
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Case Study
CardDesk Aviation –
Top-flight solutions for airports
Access control points
Following the ID card office, access control points are next in
line in terms of importance. Anyone wishing to enter the
restricted airside area – employees, suppliers and visitors alike
– has to pass through one of these control points. Here, too, the
regulations are strict: For instance, under the terms of the
Aviation Security Act, an visitor may only enter the restricted
area on 12 days during the calendar year. In addition to that,
each federal state has its own local regulations on the
frequency of visits. But it is not just people who are screened at
the access control points – cars and trucks need clearance as
well. To enter the restricted area, vehicles must be authorized
by the ID card office or an access control point. These entitlement management procedures are managed centrally by the
neXus software and can be logged for cost-tracking purposes if
required.
Expiration monitoring
The expiration of ID cards and entitlements is monitored
airport-wide. At airports, security ID cards are only valid until
the earliest expiration date of any of the linked certificates. If,
for instance, an individual's background check has expired,
their ID card for the restricted areas has to be revoked
immediately. The same applies if the supervising aviation
authority adds a person's name to the blacklist. When the
system is alerted to a banned individual, that person is
immediately excluded from all areas that require security
clearance. In addition, if someone's certificate for mandatory
security training expires, their ID card is revoked for zones that
require a valid certificate – ramp areas, for example.
Other functions and features of CardDesk Aviation include:
žžID card production: The solution produces security ID
badges that are not just encoded as appropriate but also
incorporate visual identifiers to denote specific groups of
persons. Other options available range from adding special
markers to visitor ID cards to dispatching vehicle escorts
and managing their automatic payment.
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Case Study
CardDesk Aviation –
Top-flight solutions for airports
žžNotifications: In all the situations described, the persons
involved – card holders and security operations staff alike
– can be notified automatically by e-mail about events
or procedures of any kind, such as forthcoming security
reviews or ID card expiration dates.
žžVisitor groups: Airports often need to accommodate large
groups of visitors such as schools. Groups like these can be
easily pre-registered to the system.
žžBiometric verification: Biometric screening systems have
already been integrated during customer projects.
žžElectronic signatures: Integration of signature pads for
capturing electronic signatures is easily possible.
žžDriver's permits: All airside areas accessible by vehicle,
including aprons and runways, have their own traffic
regulations, and anyone driving in these areas must have a
special permit. Ramp area licenses mandatory for jet bridge
operators, for instance, are printed directly onto the ID card
by the software.
žžVehicle badges: Vehicles with full-time access to airside
areas require permit badges. These must be applied for in
much the same way as security ID cards for personnel. The
software supports all needed processes.
žžKeys: The solution can incorporate key cabinet and key
management systems for keys issued at airports.
A flexible solution for Germany's ATC operator
Besides numerous airports, neXus' customers include
DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung GmbH, Germany's air traffic
control operator. The security requirements that apply to
DFS employees and non-DFS personnel are similar to those
commonly in place at airports. Given that the organization's
control towers, for example, are sited directly on airport
campuses, employees need to be background-checked and
issued with ramp area driving permits. For the ATC operator,
the exceptional flexibility of the neXus solution has proved
especially compelling. "What we particularly appreciate
about the solution is that neXus tailored it to match our
requirements – we didn't have to align our processes to suit the
software," remarks a spokesperson of the DFS.
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Case Study
CardDesk Aviation –
Top-flight solutions for airports
neXus: At home in the world of airports
Effective security management at airports calls for an indepth understanding of the operational complexities and
the extensive statutory regulations on-site. neXus has the
requisite expertise in this field and speaks the same language
as its customers. The group offers a proven solution designed
specifically to cover the full gamut of airport security needs
and unite the many separate systems currently in operation at
many airports.
nexusgroup.com
[email protected]
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