Greater Toronto Airports Authority
Airport Signage Information System
GTAA has more than 10,000 road, building, and internal signs in use at any one time, and devising a new system for tracking, inspecting, and documenting them all was no small task. The ASIS team was aware of a small project at Toronto Pearson that employed a Windows Mobile® powered Pocket PC to inspect defibrillators, fire hydrants, and other life-safety equipment. Upon further inquiry, they were placed in contact with Irwin Consulting Services, a Microsoft® partner working with other groups within GTAA.
“The ASIS project team approached us and asked what it would take to develop a mobile solution that could help them track and inspect all airport signage. With extensive experience using Windows Mobile and the Microsoft® .NET Compact Framework, and having just developed an asset tracking solution for GTAA’s life-safety equipment, we knew we could quickly create an effective and robust solution for their signs.”
George Irwin, President and CEO of Irwin Consulting Services.
Three months after the specifications had been established, Irwin Consulting Services and the ASIS project team deployed a sign tracking and inspection solution that has paid significant dividends. Key to the solution is a mobile device-based software product—called ABOUTIME and developed by Irwin Consulting Services—that combines global positioning system (GPS), Bluetooth, digital photography, and barcode scanning technologies. ABOUTIME creates a chronologically indexed sign inspection history that can be securely accessed across GTAA’s corporate intranet.