Aviapartner’s Brussels cargo meets new Cargo Security Standard (TACSS)
By 2012, the standard will be in place at all of Aviapartner's cargo sites
Brussels, 7 September, 2011 - After months of preparation, Aviapartner Brussels station is ready to adopt the TAPA Air Cargo Security Standards (TACSS). This new security standard promises to become the determining factor in Air Cargo security processes. The certificate was developed by the Transported Asset Protection Association (TAPA) that unites 600 members, global manufacturers, logistics providers, freight carriers and law enforcement agencies.
Aviapartner's Brussels station complies with all requirements of this new certification. Aviapartner will apply this standard to all of its Cargo stations before end 2012.
From this privileged position, Aviapartner hosted a workshop organized by TAPA to explain the importance of the new TACSS.
The 10th anniversary of 9/11 reminds everyone involved in aviation of the importance of security measures. The air cargo supply chain is a complex process with goods passing through many hands. Around the world, there has been a demand for more extensive screening of cargo goods prior to allowing them on board aircraft. Better measures are needed from initial security checks at the departure station until the moment that goods leave the aircraft.
TACSS is the first security standard that has been developed specifically for Air Cargo. The programme is based on a risk assessment model which ensures the implementation of appropriate levels of security. It sets out a set of stringent requirements that integrates specific security equipment with equally strict procedural rules.
Aviapartner is a cargo processing company, fully ready to comply with the new regulations at one of its sites. In its Brussels cargo site, a network of 146 state-of-the-art cameras, provides assurance that nothing enters or leaves the 50.000 m² storage facility undetected. Aviapartner Brussels station is moreover regularly used as a training site for the European Commission's Aviation Inspectors and will be open in the future for the TACSS auditors' training.
Workshop proves Aviapartner to be a pioneer.
On September 6th, Aviapartner hosted a special
workshop for the TAPA EMEA organisation on the TAPA Air Cargo
Security Standards (TACSS). It took place at the Aviapartner
station in Amsterdam, for a large audience of airlines,
transporting companies and ground handlers. With the workshop,
Aviapartner hopes to inspire all stakeholders to use TACSS as a
tool to heighten security throughout all the phases of air cargo
transportation.
Aviapartner has consistently taken the lead in safety and security issues. In the field of safety, Aviapartner has already 13 stations certified, and was the first multistation handler to be ISAGO certified in each of the countries it operates, and the first in all Europe. In the field of security, Aviapartner is now doing the same with the TACSS-programme. "We have of course always been compliant with EU Security regulations and with Belgian national legislation and TACSS means yet another step forward," said Luc Clauwaert, Aviapartner's Group Security Manager. "We have made a voluntary commitment to adopt this programme for all of our cargo sites. Brussels was the first site at which we implemented it, but by 2012 it will be in place at all of our airports. We don't just talk about security, we act upon it."
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Aviapartner, which is headquartered in Brussels, is the biggest player in ground-handling services on the European continent. The Group services more than 250 airline companies at 30 airports in Europe. The Group employs about 6 000 people. In 2010, the Group's turnover increased organically by ~10%.
The Group was recently awarded licences for Zurich and Cologne airports. In January 2010, it was also the first ground-handling group to be granted the ISAGO (IATA Safety Audit for Ground Operations) quality label by IATA (International Air Transport Association). This certification guarantees compliance with the most stringent safety standards and constitutes a unique acknowledgment by operators as a whole.
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For further information
Luc Clauwaert
Group Security Manager
GSM +32 476 262 500