b'42 PHL SECURITYhas come to the fore, largely because the technology hasalso required the airport to explain to passengers why facial become more robust, she says. Its also easiest to implementrecognition will have a positive impact on their travel.because its the matter of comparing a face to a document.During the proof-of-concept phase, there were a lot of Stein, the recipient of a 2019 Women in Biometrics Awardconcerns about privacy and how it would be used, he recalls. from the Security Industry Association, explains that the rateBut everyone is using facial identity now; I cant even use my of failure or mismatch is influenced by environmental factorsphone without it. Its part of life now. The first time around, a lot such as lightning conditions or a glare on the screen, orof folks were opting out. But now Im seeing a lot of excitement, whether a passenger is wearing a hat, for instance. However,especially with kids who want to take selfies. Young people personnel at PHL are reporting an impressive 99.5% successwant to participate.rate. If a mismatch occurs, the gate agent can manually checkPHL launched the biometric boarding process in January to the passengers passport. Exit row seat assignments are anbypass the holiday rush and start fresh. As of early February, example of a situation that might require more time-consumingthe first set of 10 gates was operational; the remaining 15 gates manual checks, because a boarding agent must check toare expected to be online by April. In total, PHL is deploying make sure those particular passengers are aware of theirtwo units per gate at 25 gates. This technology is used only for responsibilities in case of an emergency.international flights. Currently, passengers can choose to opt out of the facialPlanning, design and implementation for the project cost recognition process. Stein notes that passengers with smallabout $4 million. Updated, brighter lighting is not included in children are the most likely to prefer a manual process forthat figure because it wasnt part of the initial scope and the boarding verification.airport absorbed that expense in a separate budget.People love the speed and simplicity of the system so far,Stein notes that costs for biometric boarding systems vary Stein says. We see a very high opt-in rate.depending on existing infrastructure such as power access, millwork and internet connections. She reports that SITA has Gaining Acceptance recorded reductions in boarding times of up to 30% at other Mehta says that the pandemic was a big challenge to the project,airports, which she considers very significant. as well as installing the system during off hours to minimize impact on PHLs airlines. This new technology and processesGiven the progress of biometric boarding systems, another near-term project for NEC is biometric bag drop. Van Sice explains that these systems are of interest because they can positively and quickly affect the customer experience. Airports know that happy, relaxed passengers will spend more money in the terminal, and it behooves everyone to implement technology that helps route travelers through as expediently as possible. Airports are looking for ways to enable passengers to be more empowered and gain a good understanding of where they are in the process, explains Van Sice. For airports, its very helpful for passengers to NOW TSA QUALIFIED know how long something will take. SITAs Stein adds that future-oriented EXPANDING YOUR AIRPORT? technology yields more opportunity. Find out why airports worldwide are choosing When you start to broaden the scope, the R&SQPS201 Advanced Imaging Technology other value propositions we can support High-definition screening include bag drop, lounge exits, pre-security Industry-leading throughput and more, she says. We have looked Relaxed scan pose at how to scale beyond just international to include domestic travel, and as the Expands access for disabilities Philadelphia International Airport team Optimizes checkpoint layout and space www.rohde-schwarz.com/qps chooses to grow its ambition and strategy for passenger processing, it will have the ability to do that. March | April 2023AirportImprovement.comQPS-Expanding-airport-ad.indd 1 2/14/23 8:06 AM'