Safran Identity & Security installs biometric egates at Christchurch airport

Through its subsidiary Morpho Australasia, Safran Identity & Security has completed installing biometric border processing egates at Christchurch Airport in New Zealand.

This installation is part of national upgrade and innovation program for the New Zealand Customs Service (NZ Customs). Once completed there will be a total of 51 eGates nation-wide (this is across Auckland, Wellington, Queenstown, and Christchurch airports). The final phase of the expansion project will be in Auckland in 2017

Since 2009, Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch airports have been using SmartGate to give eligible travelers the option of self-processing through passport control. The system uses facial recognition technology to compare facial images of the traveler against the data contained in the epassport’s chip. Over 18 million passengers have successfully used the system.

The new generation egates feature Safran Identity & Security’s latest workflow and biometric matching software and have a smaller footprint to meet the space constraints of airports.

“Since its introduction in 2009, SmartGate has been an increasingly popular with passengers and has helped manage growth in passenger volumes. The egates allow passengers pass through quickly and easily, and enable customs officers to focus on managing high risk travelers at the border”, said Carolyn Tremain, Comptroller and Chief Executive of NZ Customs.

Tim Ferris, Managing Director of Morpho Australasia, added: “As a company, we are focused on providing NZ Customs with a range of innovative services and technologies to help with passenger flow. We are proud of our joint innovation journey and are looking forward to launching the next series of passenger technology to help NZ Customs continue as world leaders at the border.”

Traveler volumes in New Zealand are expected to increase by 4-5% annually, or around 2.3 million to nearly 12.7 million by 2019.

Article Topics

airport biometrics  |  biometrics  |  eGates  |  epassport  |  facial recognition  |  New Zealand  |  Safran Identity & Security