The Client:
easyJet flies passengers between 72 European
airports across an extensive network of routes. easyJet’s HQ, easyLand, is
situated at London’s Luton Airport and close by is the easyJet Training Academy
and Hangar 89, their offices/aircraft maintenance facility. easyJet has 16
European bases and all sites are operational seven days a week. easyJet is not a
traditional company; it operates a low-cost business model and has a strong
emphasis on flexibility and individual accountability. As a business that
operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year, staff need constant
access to the operation centres.
The Situation:
easyJet had been using a number of
stand-alone access control systems that had become outdated and could no longer
accommodate the changing requirements of the growing business. The access
control had become expensive and time consuming to operate, as the numbers of
users grew.
easyJet currently employs 4000 staff of which 3500 are cabin
crew and another 500 management and admin staff. Any member of crew may be
required to fly to and from any of easyJet’s European destinations at any time.
This is a unique approach, which easyJet considers to be more cost effective and
flexible – meaning that no aircraft or crew are idle.
As a result, easyJet required an access control system that could centrally
manage all doors at all bases around the UK and Europe – allowing a more
efficient, manageable but secure process for staff access to all authorised
areas, whilst improving the responsiveness of the system to changing situations.
easyJet’s Property Department manages its access control requirements and Jo
Huggett, easyJet’s Regional Facilities Manager, was responsible for sourcing the
new access control solution. With assistance from Building Services Consultancy
NorWood Consultants, they specified an access control system from Honeywell
Security, which was installed by Total Security Protection (TSP). As the project
commenced it became obvious that the Training Academy, then relocating to a
newly refurbished building, would also need an access control system. This
became even more important following the installation of a new £1m cabin and
emergency evacuation training facility within the Academy.
“We had lots of specialist requirements of
the system – all of which were possible through the standard software
package.”
Jo Huggett, easyJet’s Regional Facilities Manager
The Solution:
Using easyJet’s internal IT network, the
Property Department can now manage the access control for all buildings across
Europe - from any location. The access control software allows each reader to be
programmed individually if required; for example at one of easyJet’s crew rooms
at an airport, or for all readers across the system to be updated simultaneously
with information regarding access requirements or changes for staff and
contractors. It also provides system reports on usage at different locations,
times and days. Jo comments: “The reporting system is easy to use and provides
extensive information. For example, I can check everything from whether doors
are being left open to monitoring subcontractor access.”
Total Security Protection (TSP) is one of Honeywell Security’s
leading installation companies, specialising in CCTV and access control
solutions. TSP’s ability to provide a dedicated installation team to work across
Europe was a key requirement for easyJet. easyJet admits that it is a demanding
customer; it gave TSP just three weeks from agreement of the security system to
completion of the installation at the Training Academy. Following this success,
an access control system was next installed at easyLand. Bases at Bristol
International Airport and Milan Malpensa Airport have now been brought on-line,
and the access control solution will be rolled out to 12 more easyJet bases
across Europe. easyJet chose Honeywell because of its reputation as a reliable
global security brand, whose products have a proven track record at other
airports and airlines around the world and are used extensively in similar
multi-national enterprise level solutions. Jo Huggett comments: “Honeywell and
TSP won the project on competitive tender, offering the best solution, the best
package and the most flexible approach. Honeywell is our partner of choice.”
ID Card Production
The Department of Transport authorises
approval for airlines to produce their own ID cards and so far, only easyJet and
one other airline have this licence. To maintain simplicity and reduce costs,
easyJet wanted the ID and access control functions to merge, working towards a
system whereby staff would only need one card for all ID and access
requirements, Jo adds: “Enabling operational integrity and flexibility –
wherever staff work.” To date, this has been implemented for all non cabin crew
staff.
The photo ID cards are produced and managed via the access
control software – which provides a central database of all staff and
contractors - from which the Property department can view, modify, add or delete
card holder data, and produce new or replacement ID cards. Jo adds: “We had lots
of specialist requirements of the system – all of which were possible through
the standard software package.”
The Benefits
Seamless transition
The door readers were changed in just
two days to minimise disruption to staff. Jo Huggett explains: “This is a very
fast moving business, decisions are made quickly and we needed the transition
from the old to new system to be quick and smooth. TSP has managed a seamless
transition to the Honeywell system.”
Running smoothly
Should a member of staff lose their ID
card it can be cancelled centrally with immediate effect – so that access is
denied at all bases - and a replacement card can be created quickly and easily
with a new access code. In addition, the access system automatically disables
any staff cards that have not been used at any of the readers within a 30-day
period. Jo Huggett adds: “The headache has been lifted. We can now solve most
problems at the touch of a button. Access control is just a small part of the
Property function, and it’s a benefit that we do not need to focus on it all the
time. It just runs along smoothly in the background.” The access control system
runs across the company’s WAN, with no bandwidth or IT department concerns.
Emergency Training Centre
In addition to the installation of the new access control system at
easyJet’s Training Academy, TSP also installed a Honeywell digital video
recorder (DVR) in the Emergency Evacuation Training room. easyJet had a
requirement to capture images of all staff training on the emergency slides. The
recordings are required for health and safety purposes, and for future reference
to check events. All recordings are stored for seven years. The DVR provides one
terabyte of storage and images are regularly copied to DVD for archiving as part
of the health and safety requirement. Between 250 to 400 people attend the
Training Academy each month
Flexible working methods
When a decision is made easyJet
expects instant delivery. Their standards are high and flexibility is key to
success. easyJet runs on a very flat informal system and wanted to work with a
pan-European security company that would offer flexibility to meet their current
business needs, and change as the business needs changed. TSP has provided a
future-proof solution and an installation team that is flexible enough to deal
with changes at short notice. Jo Huggett concludes: “We try to be fair with our
service providers – they are all important partnerships for us. We try to do
what’s right for them and for us, which is why the relationship with TSP and
Honeywell works so well. Our aim is: ‘Keep it low cost and keep passengers
flying, whilst ensuring security remains our top priority’.”
“We try to be fair with our service providers
– they are all important partnerships for us. We try to do what’s right for them
and for us, which is why the relationship with TSP and Honeywell works so well.
Our aim is: ‘Keep it low cost and keep passengers flying, whilst ensuring
security remains our top priority.”
Jo Huggett, easyJet’s Regional Facilities Manager
Leading airline makes access easy (pdf) | 
