Keeping automated border clearance running around the clock
Objectives
- Keep automated border clearance running reliably around the clock across every checkpoint
- Deploy a stable, security-cleared on-site engineering workforce built to scale
- Resolve incidents quickly to minimize disruption for travelers
Why Unisys?
- Field services expertise beyond PCs, including biometric gate systems and point-of-service hardware
- Proven ability to run complex managed-workforce programs in secure, multi-site public sector environments
Solution
- Unisys Field Services to support automated border clearance across multiple site locations spanning the country’s air, land, and sea checkpoints
- 24/7/365 monitoring and frontline (Level 1) on-site engineering support for biometric gate and point-of-service hardware, consistently meeting demanding service-level agreement (SLA) targets
- Centralized ticketing, escalation management, and help desk support for rapid triage and routing of incidents to resolution
- Structured change management for smooth system updates and changes
Results and benefits
- Delivered one standardized frontline support framework across the operation
- Built a security-cleared workforce that stays stable through ramp-up and backfill
- Kept biometric gates reliably operational for travelers
- Freed the provider's engineers for higher-value integration and upgrade work
Keeping a nation's checkpoints running
For one border control authority, biometric hardware enables automated clearance for travelers passing through the country’s checkpoints. Reliable round-the-clock operation of that hardware is central to the authority's mission to secure entry points while keeping legitimate travelers moving.
The authority's technology partner, a global biometric identity and security provider, builds and operates these systems and needed a specialized, security-cleared engineering workforce to keep them running at every checkpoint at every hour.
Unisys brought the right experience to meet the provider’s needs. Field Services go beyond standard IT hardware fixes to cover biometric devices, scanners, and automated gate systems. A public sector record in government identity and security work, combined with the security and compliance credentials this environment demanded, made Unisys a strong fit. So did a managed-workforce model, proven at multi-site, round-the-clock scale.
Unisys mobilized a team of frontline Level 1 engineers, placing them on-site to complete training and become familiar with the system alongside the provider's implementation teams so they were ready from day one. The rollout moved in phases, each with its own ramp-up period. New hires who join after go-live complete a further month of training before taking on full duties.
Once live, engineers provide continuous 24/7 on-site coverage across every checkpoint for monitoring and incident ticketing. Every ticket moves through a structured escalation matrix to closure, and preventative maintenance rounds twice per shift catch problems before they reach the gate. New and replacement staff move through structured onboarding, keeping the standard consistent as the operation grows. Every engineer works under security clearance within a governance model that is reinforced by regular reviews with the provider and built to keep the workforce stable and fully staffed.
More than 95% of incidents are resolved on the first visit, with engineers responding on-site in under 15 minutes. Routine upkeep catches many faults early, so hardware stays operational and passengers move through checkpoints with minimal disruption.
The standardized framework maintains security incidents at fewer than one per month and keeps the provider's satisfaction with Unisys' support above 90% annually. The frontline coverage provided by Unisys field engineers frees the provider's engineers to focus on higher-value integration and upgrade work. For the border authority and the travelers it serves, that means faster, more reliable clearance.