The only purpose of an SMS is to preserve the vital resources of your company.
At first, safety may be perceived as an expensive obligation in order to do long-term business in the aviation industry. But let’s not miss the real targets. Accidents, incidents and even occurrences are much more damaging to your profit line, not to mention the reputation or the morale within the company. By the way, how much profit (if any) does your company loose every year in safety-related events? And how do you evaluate the return on your investments in safety improvements?
Preserve the vital resources of your company to maximise mission efficiency.
In these challenging times of wavering business models and cost reduction measures, put the outdated management tools from the 20th century where they belong: in a museum, not in your company! The objective of Safety Management is to find the perfect balance between the production of your services and products, and the protection of your human, financial and technical resources. The objective of SMS is not to put so many safety nets between you and your customers' needs that your company eventually goes out of business. The objective of SMS is not absolute safety (i.e. all airports turned into open-sky museums), but the reduction of the inescapable risks to a level as low as reasonably practical and still stay in business.
Maximise mission efficiency through SMS.
In clear and simple language, what are you expected to put in place? To reap the benefits of SMS and meet regulatory requirements, your company must demonstrate the following:
- mandatory and optional investments in safety (i.e. training, technology) are monitored and optimised based on their returns
- hazards and risks to your specific company are constantly identified, monitored and acted upon through mitigation measures
- a positive safety culture is achieved and maintained within the company
- staff members receive the appropriate training, tools, resources and accountability to perform their job efficiently and safely
- an emergency response plan (or business continuity plan) is put in place to weather the storms
- inspections, audits and performance indicators repeatedly inform you on the safety level achieved in the company
Where to start?
We've got two good news for you. The first is that you already took an excellent start by visiting us. The second is that we've put in place three outstanding programmes to help you implement SMS, named in reference to our corporate motto "high altitude solutions". The following table shows you the different constituents of our programmes and the possible combinations. A "YES" means that the item is included by default into a specific programme. "OPTIONAL": certain items may not be applicable to your company (i.e. Flight Data Monitoring in a maintenance organisation) and therefore will not be included. "OPTIONAL" also means that if your company already has something similar or acceptable to the authority, that item is not automatically included.
Items | Tropo | Strato | Astro |
| SMS gap analysis SMS training Hazard identification workshop SMS project management SMS / Operations Manual SMS / QMS Software Flight Data Monitoring SMS external audit (IS-BAO or other) | YES | YES | YES |
Based on several years of experience in SMS, these programmes match the capabilities of any aviation company. In a nutshell...
- Tropo (from the Greek tropos, or "turn"): marks the first turn of a company towards Safety Management. This program is specifically designed for companies with sufficient internal resources to develop their SMS but need to jump-start its implementation.
- Strato: this programme is specifically tailored for companies that already have internal processes, procedures and manuals but lack the specific tools to manage an SMS.
- Astro: the most comprehensive, time- and cost-effective programme for companies and organisations of any size that don't have the manpower and/or time to implement an SMS by themselves. If you're among the operators who see the regulatory deadline approaching very fast but have no plans, this is what you need to save your Airworthiness Certificates from the CAA paper shredders.
How much does it cost?
Our SMS support programmes can be applied to any aviation company, it is therefore impossible to publish pricing structures that would be pertinent in your case. Moreover, the whole point of SMS is about tailoring your safety nets to your company size and mission. Contact us to discuss the most appropriate programme or individual item for your company or project.
What if I'm just looking for an SMS course?
Unlike many others, we don't sell SMS training: we train people to preserve company resources! We offer all kinds of SMS courses, ranging from a half-day session to the 5-day ICAO course #139.