Technology at work: Airport Access Updated to Address Fresh Concerns
Eppley is owned and managed by the Omaha Airport Authority (OAA). After a distinguished career in the U.S. Air Force, Ralph Holtmann came to the OAA in 1989. Holtmann’s wide ranging responsibilities included the OAA’s security programs. In 1990, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations sent Holtmann in search of technology solutions that would enable the OAA to comply with these new security regulations.
His search would lead him to Omaha’s Security Equipment Inc. (SEI). After evaluating the limited number of electronic access control systems available at the time, Holtmann gave Tom Hruby, then security engineer and now executive vice president of SEI, the approval to begin installation of a UNIX-based access system that used magnetic stripe cards. While much of the rest of the airport was updated over the years, Holtmann managed to get by with the system with help from SEI. That was before September 11.