Nashville, Tenn. — PrimeFlight Aviation Services has been awarded a contract by Continental Airlines at Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport, according to Mike Wein, President.
PrimeFlight will be responsible for the airline’s electric cart and wheelchair services at Terminals B, C, D and E. The contract is valued at $4.2 million annually, with an indefinite term. The first phase of service began on April 1, 2007, with PrimeFlight supporting Terminal B. Service for Terminals C, D, and E, commenced on May 1, 2007. PrimeFlight is hiring 250 employees for the work, Wein said.
To better track its wheelchair traffic and usage for its clients PrimeFlight has also recently introduced a new proprietary software program according to Wein. Developed by PrimeFlight programmers over a three-year period and tested in Atlanta Hartsfield Airport, the program, called EPush, uses GPS tracking and automated dispatching software, to track every wheelchair in an airport at any given time. According to Wein, the technology provides better customer service for passengers while providing the airlines and PrimeFlight with valuable information on wheelchair usage, information they’ve never had before.
“This is a very visible part of an airline’s customer service and affects their passengers’ most valuable commodity — time,” Wein said. “With EPush we can now locate any of our wheelchairs in the airport. That means we can plan utilization better, insuring that the necessary wheelchairs are available where they are most needed so the passengers don’t have to wait. And it helps the airlines and us plan wheelchair usage as schedules dictate. It’s a powerful tool that can only improve customer satisfaction and airline efficiency.”
EPush is being implemented in PrimeFlight’s expansion with Continental Airlines at George Bush Houston Intercontinental Airport. Wein said PrimeFlight is also talking with additional airline partners about the service and expects to roll it out into other locations this year.
Citing an expansion of its workforce development initiatives across the country, PrimeFlight also announces it has named Brent Weil as its vice president of staffing. Weil comes to PrimeFlight from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Business Relations Group, where for three years he managed national corporate partnerships with the public workforce system. Previously, he managed employer partnerships for Job Corps, the nation’s largest residential employment and education training program for economically disadvantaged youth ages 16 to 24.
“PrimeFlight has demonstrated its commitment to being a mutually beneficial and long-term partner with government agencies and community-based organizations,” Weil said of his new employer. “I am very pleased to be associated with them and welcome this opportunity to build on such a successful legacy.”
Weil’s background combines partnership-building and communications to complement his work in workforce development. Prior to his Department of Labor experience, he was the communications director for the Privacy Leadership Initiative and helped to forge alliances with corporate leaders and business associations that found common ground in their advocacy of consumer privacy.
