Out With the Old, In With the New

Securing Long Beach Airport

• By Greg Hetrick
• Apr 01, 2013

Located just 18 miles southeast of Los Angeles International Airport lies a hidden gem for Southern California air travelers. Long Beach Airport (LGB), which serves more than 3.2 million passengers annually, has one of the strictest noise-abatement ordinances in the nation for its neighboring residential communities.

Forty-one daily commercial flights and 25 commuter flights provide a steady pace without the overwhelming crowds of the dominant airports to LGB’s north and south. JetBlue Airways has established the airport as its West Coast hub, while US Airways, Alaska Airlines and Delta Air Lines also provide carrier service. Air cargo carriers such as UPS and FedEx transport 57,000 tons of goods through LGB annually. The airport also is home to the production of the Boeing C-17 military transport jet, and maintenance facilities for Boeing and Gulfstream Aerospace.

Touted as one of the busiest general aviation airports in the world, LGB offers a large number of flights that include charter and private aviation, flight schools, law enforcement helicopters, advertising blimps and tow planes with advertising banners.

Landmark Gets Updates

Owned by the city of Long Beach since 1923, Long Beach Airport has also been known as Daugherty Field, named after the famous barnstormer, Earl S. Daugherty. LGB has one main terminal, notable for its circa 1941 streamline modern architecture. Today, it is a historical landmark with the original tower and two, small, outdoor baggage claims still in use. A newer, modern control tower overlooks the west side of the field. Due to the airport’s age and limited size, its passenger concourse area has recently been renovated.

A new $45 million terminal modernization project began at LGB in late 2010. A modern, inviting and comfortable passenger concourse of new eating and shopping destinations, including an outdoor garden, has been built. The 36,000-squarefoot eco-friendly facility, with rows of palm trees and native plants, is in an open courtyard between the north and south concourse. It is a welcome change to the cramped, temporary trailers that travelers once had to deal with.

In addition to TSA security procedures for passenger traffic, LGB’s infrastructure and administrative facilities require complete access control. Commercial Controls of Valencia, Calif., was tasked with being the airport’s electrical contractor, specifically for access control and security. For the access control product manufacturer, Commercial Controls selected PCSC.

“It was an easy decision to choose PCSC,” said Doug Scripture of Commercial Controls. “We’re replacing an outdated system that existed prior to the renovation.”

PCSC’s line of IQ Series access control panels are used throughout the facility to manage doors, passenger gates, elevators and more. HID Global keypads, along with small dome cameras, are some of the visible hardware seen by the public throughout the terminal’s concourse.

The system is securely integrated by PCSC’s enterprise-level access control software, LiNC-PLUS.

“We’re proud to have our products installed in our own backyard,” said Dan Smith, PCSC’s western regional sales manager. “PCSC’s corporate offices in Torrance, Calif., are just several minutes north of the airport. We’re able to stay in close contact with the integrator and the end-user to ensure the system’s products meet and exceed everyone’s expectations. Security and access control of an airport’s facility is a multifaceted situation. It is complex and should always be adapting to the needs and requirements.”

The end-user of PCSC’s access control software is managed by Long Beach Airport’s safety and security operations.

“I don’t take securing the airport lightly,” said John Blood, chief of security and airport safety. “Security is a high priority here at LGB, and passenger security and safety is taken very seriously.”

This article originally appeared in the April 2013 issue of Security Today.