Airports are complex, high-pressure environments where every inspection matters. Menzies Aviation wanted to modernise its global safety inspection system, a process that relied on slow, paper-based workflows and made it difficult for teams to share updates or track issues. Our goal was to create a digital-first safety management platform, a unified system that allowed inspectors to log, track, and resolve safety issues instantly across web and mobile. By making inspections faster and data more visible, we aimed to raise safety standards and efficiency across hundreds of airports worldwide.
The existing system created bottlenecks and risks:
We needed to digitise everything, inspections, audits, and corrective actions, and bring them together into one seamless platform that worked in real time across web and iOS.
Create a digital-first safety management platform that allowed inspectors to log, track, and resolve safety issues instantly across web and mobile.
As the Lead Product Designer, I led the end-to-end design and strategy for three core systems: the Question Management System (QMS), Corrective Action Request (CAR) tool, and Smart Inspection app (Web & iOS).
My responsibilities included:
I began by running workshops with Menzies Aviation leads to uncover pain points. Since we couldn’t access live systems for security reasons, I gathered screenshots, walkthroughs, and user feedback to reconstruct existing workflows.
This groundwork allowed us to map how inspectors worked day-to-day and where the biggest inefficiencies were.
I redesigned the entire inspection experience to be clear, efficient, and mobile-ready:
I worked closely with front-end and API engineers in parallel sprints, ensuring smooth handoff via Zeplin. I stayed involved through QA and sprint testing, resolving usability issues quickly to keep the release on schedule.
I piloted the system at Edinburgh Airport, observing inspectors in action and collecting feedback directly on the tarmac. These insights shaped refinements that improved real-world usability, like simplifying navigation and clarifying error states.
The redesigned system was first piloted in Edinburgh, then scaled globally across Menzies Aviation’s network.
It transformed safety operations at scale:
I helped turn a manual, paper-heavy process into a real-time digital platform that made global airport safety faster, smarter, and more transparent.
This project didn’t just digitise a workflow; it redefined how global aviation teams communicate, collaborate, and keep airports safe.