Proactively securing airport grounds requires strategic planning at the highest levels and access to critical information that serves to enhance safety measures for ground support crews. Without appropriate planning, implementation, and follow-through to ensure that a plan is producing the desired results, airport grounds exposure to deadly incursions is significantly increased.
Creating stopgap measures between incidences and securing airport ground environments is critical to a loss prevention program. In addition, incorporating proactive management components that include required safety training, regulatory safety integration measures, and proactive incident detection that include safety response tactics is equally important to sustain safe operating conditions. Finally, safety compliance verification, internal/external safety management, and disseminating critical safety information to create "proactive responses" for improved safety standards at airports is gaining congressional support.
Integrating safety management programs with higher visibility solutions while building a knowledgebase to address safety concerns, delivers safety results that are in the best interest of airport ground crews and support personnel. "Training and higher visibility product integrations are two key areas that will have an immediate influence on cost savings towards a strategic loss prevention program," says Tony Jackson, expert on “loss prevention" strategies and tactical airport grounds safety deployments in the incident management industry.
A Paradox that Sets Precedence:
Allocating funds that specifically target enhanced safety measures to reduce ground incursions or accidents require careful planning, and serves as a precursor to understanding the validity of all incident management programs that influence costs of airport operation.
Any investment should have a definitive return, and the first return for higher visibility alternatives opposed to complex detection/avoidance systems leads to a higher return-on-investment. The number one savings is in the actual costs of alternative solutions; considering hidden costs of complex systems such as time to deploy, installation, training, technology reliability, and the benefits of loss prevention strategies that influence the bottom-line.
Training Ground & Maintenance Crews:
By far, one of the most important loss prevention strategies require investing in airport ground safety training programs that increase awareness of assured incident management practices. While investing in “individual" training for select employees could have an appearance of saving money, it becomes costs prohibitive to “group" training. Hiring a professional firm to perform safety training on-site is more costs effective. In this instance, more ground personnel are trained in critical safety standards to avoid a potential ground incursion and significantly improve safety measures.
Cost savings is realized immediately by ensuring that everyone is on the same page through consistency in following safety rules and procedures. Training stakeholders in highly effective avoidance practices yields effective safety results. In addition, web conferencing, intranet online CDs, technology laden training with emphasis on interactive hands-on training, have all become popular in recent years, and have lasting benefits for implementing costs effective training for ground personnel and support crews.
Safety Documentation, Policy, and Procedure Reviews:
There is no substitute for clear and unambiguous airport grounds safety policies, documentation, and procedures. "The documentation should provide vital information to inform ground personnel, flight crews, and pilots about reducing or eliminating real-time ground incursions as a “stop-gap" measure to influence outcome before they occur," says Jackson. If your documentation and procedures are collecting dust, have not been updated lately, or simply exist as a legal requirement against litigation, now is the time to initiate a review process and remove dated material.
Investing in periodic reviews will ensure that safety documentation and procedures are “living documents" designed to insure that ground personnel, flight crews, contractors, and maintenance crews have the highest level of safety and security information while working on airport grounds. Any changes in documentation or procedures require a comprehensive distribution network. Depending on the complex nature of the updates, a roll-out plan maybe required to train all stakeholders.
Finally, follow-up on quality assurance programs designed for adherence to documentation and procedure guidelines. These simple, yet mutually beneficial initiatives will lead to safety improvements and serve to foil ground incursions before they occur--creating a comprehensive approach to airports operating safely for the benefit of all stakeholders.
About the Author:
Tony Jackson is an expert on “loss prevention" strategies and tactical airport grounds safety deployments in the incident management industry. He is located in Atlanta, Georgia USA. To learn more, and to receive Tony’s free “aviation newsletter," please visit http://www.globalnologies.com You may also contact Tony directly at tonyj@globalnologies.com .
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