East Midlands Airport upgrades CEM AC2000 for future-proof security

CEM Systems, part of Tyco Security Products, today announced that East Midlands Airport will upgrade their AC2000 integrated security management system to the latest version of AC2000, with PicoPass smart card validation and will include CEM intelligent card readers and innovative portable readers.

East Midlands Airport welcomes over 4.1 million passengers each year and offers flights to more than 90 destinations around the world. The award-winning airport was named Best Regional UK Airport and UK Airport of the Year at the British Travel Awards in 2011 and offers passengers a full complement of shops, restaurants and bars.

Upgrading the CEM AC2000 system means that East Midlands Airport security will be fully future-proofed with the most current technology. With the upgrade to the latest version of AC2000, East Midlands will be the first UK Airport to fully migrate to PicoPass smart card technology, having used dual-technology Wiegand/PicoPass cards through the migration process. PicoPass technology provides high levels of encryption and is considered to be one of the most secure card technologies currently available, as well as offering sector storage on the card which can be used for other applications such as cashless vending, photocopy access, membership to clubs, etc, with each sector being secured individually so that it can be provided to Airport clients as required.

“The CEM AC2000 security management solution has been successfully used at East Midlands Airport for over fifteen years,” said Andrew Fulton, Senior Director Global Sales, CEM Systems. “By upgrading the AC2000 system, East Midlands Airport is moving to CEM’s industry-leading IP card readers, and the highly secure PicoPass smart card technology. This move brings the East Midlands Airport system in line with the latest access control technology and gives the airport the ability to meet any future security requirements.”

“The upgrade of the CEM AC2000 system and PicoPass smart card technology is an important step for East Midlands Airport, bringing our system to the leading edge of airport security,” said Gary Simons, Security Technical Officer, East Midlands Airport. “The CEM AC2000 upgrade is vital to ensure that East Midlands Airport continues to run effectively and efficiently with the highest of security, and can successfully continue to grow and meet any future security requirements.”

East Midlands upgrade includes the installation of S610e readers. S610e IP card readers feature LCD screens to provide staff with instant feedback on the system such as ‘Wrong TimeZone’, ‘Card Expiring’ etc. With the added benefit of a keypad, staff can also enter PIN codes for additional security. The S610e reader offers the highest level of reliability as it features an internal database for offline card validation. This means that should communication be temporarily lost with the host AC2000 server, staff can still validate cards using the card records stored in the reader’s internal memory.

As part of the upgrade East Midlands Airport has also purchased CEM portable readers, giving airport security staff the ability to validate cards in areas with no mains power supply. The portable readers can also act as portable Muster Points in emergency evacuations and can be used to perform guard tours. The latest addition to CEM’s range of portable readers is the S3030 portable reader which has many new innovative features including the display of cardholder photographs on the reader along with details such as Name and Job Title to assist with visual verification.