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COVER STORY 16 airportbusiness February/March 2016 did background checks on the drivers. The city of Mobile has a process in place for Uber driver checks and vehicle inspections, so the airport authority incorporated the same policies into its own agreement. It also included an agreement to bar Uber drivers who don't adhere to policies at the air- port if they repeatedly cause issues. "It really shouldn't matter to Uber at the end of the day," Wehner said. "We're both interest- ed in their brand and their brand's success, so they shouldn't want bad actors in their brand like we don't want those same bad actors on our property." Wehner said airport officials also turned to peers in the southeast with Uber agreements in order to place certain policies in the agreement. By knowing what the company agreed to at other facilities it allowed them leverage if the company fought them on implementing policies already agreed to in other places. Uber also agreed to paying $30 more per month than taxi service providers in an effort to make it "more equitable." Wehner said the airport is hoping for a com- plaint-free year related to the service and to make sure reliability and safety are sustained. "They're going to want the longest term possible, but we determined that's not in our best interest," Wehner said. "Keep them on a short leash." FBOS SEE CLEAR CHALLENGES FBO challenges seem pretty clear going into 2016, with 30 percent saying their top concern is attracting new customers. Only 5 percent were concerned about losing customers. FBOs planning on making major invest- ments in the next 10 years are focused on new hangar construction. About 38 percent are planning new hangar construction, while 27 percent are focusing on FBO renovation. Only 8 percent plan additiona l staff additions. Nearly half of all FBOs said they plan to make an investment in technology upgrades as well. About 38 percent plan office space reno- vations and 30 percent plan terminal upgrades. Only one-quarter of respondents planned secu- rity upgrades. About 40 percent want to invest in account- ing software along with 22 percent looking at fuel tracking software. Only 13 percent of FBO respondents said they're IS-BAH certified. Just 22 percent said they plan to achieve the certification within the next decade as 84 percent said they saw no additional value in obtaining it. Terry Yeomans, IS-BAH program director for the International Business Aviation Council (IBAC), said since the certification launched in 2014, the number of stakeholders taking part in getting the certification. "It's working well for those who have done it," he said. Rollie Vincent, president of Roland Vincent Associates of Plano, Texas, said given the makeup of the FBO world, it's not too surpris- ing to see reluctance to change among some players. Large FBOs adopt to new standards quicker while smaller "mom and pop" organi - zations may initially repel change. "Any sort of standard that comes in, it's going to take some time to build awareness," he said. "People are naturally a little bit skep- tical and say 'wait a minute, I've been doing this for 33 years and now you're telling me what I'm doing is wrong and who's to tell me that.' It's a natural progression and it's expected the earliest certified organizations are expected to be the bigger players." Vincent said with some costs associated with getting the certification, FBOs are more cautious of their spending and that's also a concern. Vincent said the certification is there to help FBOs have a smarter, safer business at its core. It also tackles new regulations on the horizon before they're in place. Vincent said it's key to educate FBOs on the certification as it moves forward to make sure they understand the cost benefit it will yield to them and accept this coming change. "I think communication has been an issue, which is not unusual," he said. "But anything as complex as a safety management system isn't going to be easy to put down on one page and say 'here, this is why you want to do it.' "It needs to be easy to understand and to take action." Uber drivers who don't adhere to rules at the Mobile Regional Airport can be barred from the grounds per an agreement with Uber. Brian Belcher/Mobile Airport Authority "But anything as complex as a safety management system isn't going to be easy to put down on one page and say 'here, this is why you want to do it.'" ROLLIE VINCENT