The recent Egypt to Larnaka airport hijack passed without injury; however this incident, and the Brussels terrorist attacks of March 2016, highlights the need for consistency in technology to help airports respond to emergencies, according to an airport web-based emergency operating centre product company. Crisis emergency incidents at airports are mainly unanticipated, usually unprecedented, and sometimes, catastrophic; ranging from severe weather, to a terrorist or criminal incident with injuries and fatalities, says Intermedix.
Kim Frierson, VP Corporate Business Solutions at Intermedix, said: “Airport emergency situations require rapid responses across multiple organisations and by multiple teams to be implemented simultaneously, amid what can often be a chaotic and confusing environment. This is where specially developed software takes over, acting automatically yet intelligently, to ensure that everything that needs to happen, does happen. Such preparedness tools do already exist, and it is possible to plan ahead for a wide range of possible scenarios.”
Intermedix offers crisis incident management tools for the airline and airport sector. Its web-based tool, WebEOC, allows multiple airport personnel and external agencies to share status updates and recovery information in real-time. Frierson said: “When you have to coordinate multiple airlines and government organisations and when the responsibility can fall on different parties, tools that can expedite this ensure any situation is handled as efficiently and safely as possible. The ability to set plans and checklists, track actions and provide a secure communications medium for staff and outside agencies are essential for airport operations or emergency management leaders.”
WebEOC is used by five out of ten of the largest airlines in the world, the product firm adds. Kim Frierson said: “It’s clear that an information management system is vital during an emergency. However, can it also aid in daily airport operations and special events? The answer is a resounding – YES! A tool that allows users to manage daily processes in a configurable environment and doesn’t limit functionality to emergency response, offers users the highest rate of success when the inevitable ‘something’ does occur.”
Intermedix launched a new UK and Europe base in 2016, headed by Ian Carr, Market Development Director. Visit www.intermedix.co.uk.
