NetworkWorld's Ann Bednarz reports that Finnair is using RFID technology to streamline ground operations at Finland's Helsinki-Vantaa International Airport.

"Finnair Group's Northport division, which supplies ground handling services, will outfit staff with RFID-enabled Nokia phones and install RFID tags at key work locations," Bednarz writes.

The system will let managers know where staff are at all times, and will transmit work assignments to employees' mobile phones. "In the past, employees had to call a service center and enter a password to get their next assignment and work location," Bednarz writes.

"Assigning personnel to all the tasks taking place at any given moment is a true challenge," says Jari Viitanen, Vice President of Business Development for Northport. "The better information we have on all tasks, the better we can manage our workforce. Especially tough are the last-minute changes of arrival schedules, which in turn result in changes in the allocation of tasks."