Baldwin Aviation and Gray Stone Advisors Team to Offer Online Safety Management System ROI Calculator

Hilton Head Island, SC — Baldwin Aviation and Gray Stone Advisors, a change management consulting firm based in Knoxville, Tennessee (www.graystoneadvisors.com), have announced the availability of an on-line, investigative analysis tool for use by business aviation operators seeking to determine the financial impact of implementing a rigorous and formalized Safety Management System (SMS) on their flight operations. The jointly-developed proprietary software utilizes the basic building block approach of financial analysis to assist flight department operators in building a justification for expenditures and the return on investment associated with the creation of an SMS. It is located at www.graystoneadvisors.com/SMS_ROI_Calculator.html and demonstrations of this powerful tool will be given at the National Business Aviation Association’s (NBAA’s) Corporate Aviation Safety Seminar (CASS) in Tucson May 11-13, 2010.

“Mandated SMS programs are becoming the rule rather than the exception for flight departments conducting international flight operations in today’s global business environment,” noted Don Baldwin, chief executive and founder of Baldwin Aviation, “but demonstrating the reasons for investing in an SMS to non-aviation related executives within a company can still be an issue, so this ROI calculator is a simple way to shorten that conversation.”

“We have a lot of business aviation sector clients examining and implementing rigorous and formalized SMS programs, and others who needed a tool just to help them start the discussion with the folks in finance and accounting,” explained Jim Lara, Principal at Gray Stone Advisors. “When we didn’t find a tool on the web that was specific to Business Aviation, easy to use and didn’t require a purchase, we decided to create one so we got together with the ‘Best-in-Class-Leader’ in SMS, Baldwin Aviation and developed this calculator. It’s designed to start the value quantification process and it’s also intended to stimulate the budget discussions, facilitate the beginning of the journey down the ‘investigative road’ that will, undoubtedly, lead to getting something started! It’s our experience that when you attempt to start a level of sophistication that’s a long way from one’s comfort zone, a barrier is often created and nothing happens! This tool will, hopefully, overcome that barrier,” he added.

Baldwin Aviation, the only IS-BAO registered SMS implementor, is a recognized leader in developing and implementing customized safety management and monitoring programs that comply with the stringent standards required for International Standard for Business Aviation Operations (IS-BAO) certification. “The practical benefits of proactive safety management and consistent, up-to-date training can be measured in dollars as well as in time savings and increased operational efficiency,” Baldwin added. “In addition, insurance companies usually recognize the benefits of a well-defined program by reducing their rates for operators. Consistent monitoring of procedures and overall management of operations usually translate into competitive advantages, too,” he added.