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Airport contract worth $6 million goes to Honeywell

Airport contract worth $6 million goes to Honeywell

PHOENIX -Honeywell Automation and Control Solutions has won a $6 million contract to install and service an integrated access control system at Sky Harbor International Airport here. The contract, awarded in late November, will take until the end of this year to complete. The job will employ up to 20 Honeywell people, plus a local fiber contractor, lock installation company and a quality inspection service company. The contract win is a coup d´etat for Honeywell. “As a single contract, it’s probably one of the largest in the U.S.” said Simon English, airport marketing manager for Honeywell in Minneapolis. Honeywell was one of eight companies that bid for the job, with the list narrowed to five companies for consideration, said Dennis Murphy, technology project manager for Sky Harbor. The other five top bidders included ADT Security, Siemens, Johnson Controls and Henry Bros., Diversified Security Solutions’ installation arm, he said. For Honeywell, the work will include replacing the airport’s existing access control system at 300 entry points used by employees with a new proximity based system. Some access points will also include a biometric hand reader as a trial. “Our existing system was not easily expandable to include secondary badge holder confirmation through a biometric device,” said Murphy. The job is unique, said Murphy, because the airport needs to keep its old magnetic stripe access control system online while at the same time implement a new one that incorporates smart card and proximity technology. To accomplish that, the new system needed to accept all three – magnetic stripe, proximity and smart card technology. “It will make the transition a lot easier because we can rebadge our 17,000 badge holders and once that badging is done, we can go through the process of transitioning out the old system,” said Murphy. Along with an access control system, Honeywell will also install a digital video monitoring and recording system that will tie into the access control system. Most of the equipment set for installation is manufactured by Honeywell, with the exception of the biometric hand reader, which is a product from Recognition Systems Inc., a division of Ingersoll-Rand. Other work entails integrating access and security data with airport operation information, along with streamlining the process of managing and issuing security badges. “It’s a complete solution,” said Simon about Honeywell providing installation, equipment and service. “The airport was looking for a turnkey solution provider.”

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