Keflavik Airport transforms its ID pass application process

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Isavia has instigated a major alteration to its ID pass management process at Keflavik International Airport in Iceland by adopting MTrust, the online identity assurance tool created by Human Recognition Systems.

By going paperless with its airport ID pass management and moving the entire vetting and issuance process online, Isavia hasjoined other major airports such as London Gatwick by adopting the MTrust solution.

MTrust is the first system of its kind to handle the full process of airport ID pass application management, vetting and issuanceonline. MTrust is a single online portal for sponsor companies, airline and airport users to manage and issue people, vehicle and driver passes. Keeping this complex process in a protected, cloud-based environment saves money and time for the airport, as well as being a more secure, efficient and error-free system compared with paper-based alternatives.

Neil Norman, CEO and Founder of Human Recognition Systems:

โ€œWe are delighted to be working with Isavia on this project and providing a solution that will deliver increased operational efficiency, enhanced security and auditing, and a positive experience for on-airport customers by allowing passes to be issued faster. Isaviaโ€™s decision to deploy MTrust for Keflavik International Airport shows the growing trend toward automated cloud-based systems by major airports to improve security and efficiency in vital operational processes.โ€

Keflavik International Airport has been experiencing enormous growth in passenger traffic since 2010 after the volcanic eruption in Eyjafjallajokull. Every year growth has been in double digits and on average growing by 21%. Back in 2010, Keflavik International Airport welcomed about 2.1 million passengers. This year (2017), the airport expects a record number of 8.7 million passengers or growth of 2 million from 2016 (29% growth).

The volume of transfer traffic is also growing, with local carriers Icelandair and WOW air using the airport as a hub between Europe and North America. During summer 2017, 26 airlines will have scheduled flights to the airport and 12 of which operate year-round. The largest tourist markets for Iceland are the United States and the UK.

Throstur Soring, Operations Director at Keflavik International Airport:

โ€œIn an ever-growing airport, we are always looking for ways to improve self-service automation for passengers and airport staff. Our massive passenger growth over a short space of time has inevitably led to a parallel growth in employees, which then also leads to a major increase in the number of airport ID passes being verified and issued. We wanted to make the process easier, both for us and the employee. Thatโ€™s exactly what we look forward to in using MTrust at our new ID Office.โ€

Before Isavia chose MTrust, the organisation was looking to move away from a paper-based process for airport pass applications, aiming to shorten the procedure and strengthen the auditing trail. Approximately 1,000 new airport employees start at Keflavik International Airport for every additional million passengers, and there are also a high number of seasonal employees at the airport. Implementing a paperless, cloud-based system to manage them would, therefore, be highly beneficial.

In a recent visit to another airportโ€™s ID Centre that used MTrust, Isavia representatives learned the online pass application process. They were particularly impressed with the interface between MTrust and CEM AC2000 access control system, the same system Isavia uses at Keflavik International Airport. The CEM integration became one of the major reasons for choosing MTrust over other providers.

The challenges associated with facing an average of 21% annual growth year on year are great for Isavia. To introduce new solutions at a faster rate, Keflavik International Airportโ€™s preference was to choose COTS systems with a proven track record and reliable references.

Other key benefits Isavia will gain from adopting Human Recognition Systemโ€™s tool is the standardisation of the ID pass procedure, the minimisation of manual input at Keflavik International Airportโ€™s ID Office and the elimination of incorrect, invalid and rejected passes. Isavia will also benefit from remote printing of temporary passes with enhanced security features, such as photography to aid visual verification and real-time checking of application validity.

About the author

Avatar of Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen Thomas Steinmetz has continuously worked in the travel and tourism industry since he was a teenager in Germany (1977).
He founded eTurboNews in 1999 as the first online newsletter for the global travel tourism industry.

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