Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to outline the findings from a research project seeking to develop and test a set of key performance indicators for airport facility management, with particular focus on safety and security. Design/methodology/approach -A case study approach was adopted for this project and data was collected from a series of interviews, workshops, the internet and other media. Findings -The need for airport security and safety is paramount, post 9/11. Airports generate revenue from the facilities they provide so they seek to maximise their potential revenues but must do so with safety and security foremost in the operators' minds. In the UK a system for boosting security at the airports termed "multi-agency threat and risk assessments" has been developed jointly by the Department for Transport and the Home Office after Sir John Wheeler's report on airport security and policing in 2002. This provides a framework for this research and enables the evaluation of current practice to be undertaken. Originality/value -Previous research has not directly measured the relative performance of airport safety and security and the role of facility management in achieving that level of performance and this is the focus of the study. This paper concludes by presenting a potential list of key performance indicators for airport safety and security that emerged from the interviews and workshops.

ABSTRACT. This research study set to develop KPIs for airport safety and security using a case study and ethnographic approach to research, the focus was on the role of Facilities Management (FM) in improving safety and security at the airport. The study centred on the management and staff of the case study airport and experts in the fi eld of facilities management and aviation. The methodology for this study is a case study of three Scottish airports, owned and operated by the BAA Scotland (Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen international airports). Data was collected from Civil Aviation Agency, analysed and presented in the study. The study developed a three 'AAA' model (Airport -Aircraft -Airport) and a 3 stage approach to the research process. Evidence in this paper supports the conclusion that planning for airport safety and security are airport specifi c because no two airports are exactly the same, they differ in their; sizes, mode of operations, passenger type and fl ight destinations.