operational-excellence-positioning-paper

MAIN TITLE in sita DIN headline

OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE – IT’S ALL ABOUT RESILIENCE

POSITIONING PAPER

INTEGRATE, ORCHESTRATE, COLLABORATE

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CONTENTS

Executive summary 4

Airports and operational excellence 5

Operational excellence delivers passenger satisfaction 6 Monitoring passenger flow 6

Better anticipate and manage disruption 7 Sharing information 7

Improving operation through better collaboration 8 ATM network management 8

Agile and connected infrastructure 9 Look to the cloud 9 Network and messaging 9

Manage growth with existing infrastructure 10 Optimizing utilization 10

Why SITA? 11

Aiming for operational excellence 12

Notes and references 14

OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE POSITIONING PAPER | © SITA 2015


Airports worldwide rely on operational excellence to optimize their use of resources, deliver passenger satisfaction and handle disruption effectively. It allows them to be profitable and competitive, and to attract both airlines and passengers.

Operational excellence can enhance the passenger experience through automation and process improvement. By allowing passengers to take control of their own journey through self-service check-in, self bag drop and other measures, airports can use their resources more effectively and improve the overall traveling experience.

Operational excellence is also key in helping minimize the effects of disruptions by putting a framework in place to share information between stakeholders. This is achieved through collaboration between different stakeholders which provides benefits beyond disruption. Initiatives such as Airport Collaborative Decision Making (A-CDM) can help the entire air transport industry (ATI) optimize the use of limited resources such as airspace.

Technology is a key enabler of operational excellence, and the growth of shared IT and network infrastructure in airports provides increased agility for all stakeholders. This helps break down silos and drive opportunities for greater process integration to improve overall airport operation.

This paper will look in detail at the five areas that airport operators need to address to achieve operational excellence.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


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Operational excellence is one of the three key imperatives of airport operators, along with passenger satisfaction, and commercial and financial success. Airports are complex ecosystems that support many different stakeholders and ensuring they all work together smoothly towards a common goal is the role of airport operations.

The ultimate operational objective for airport operators is punctuality. On-time flights help airports optimize turnaround and queuing times, and punctuality is a key metric against which all airports are judged.

Ensuring on-time flight performance requires many different stakeholders, including air traffic control, airlines and border control, to work together, and remain agile enough to manage the unpredictable nature of weather and other external critical factors, such as industrial disputes (strikes).

Better efficiency provides a whole range of benefits for airports, such as improved cost control, increased capacity for passengers and aircraft, and a better passenger airport experience. It helps them be more competitive and more attractive in larger catchment areas, where all airports want to attract the same airlines and passengers.

To complement the latest generation of Airport Management Systems, airport operators should look to business intelligence to drive operational excellence. At a management level, this would be a dashboard that shows the progress of passengers through the airport, the status of flights and resourcing constraints. Because all processes and stakeholders are interlinked at the airport, it could allow airport operators to spot any problems, such as potential congestion. They then could take remedial action, such as alerting ground handlers to redeploy staff to meet a rescheduled flight.

The following sections take a deeper dive into the five challenges that airport operators need to overcome to achieve operational excellence.

AIRPORTS AND OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE


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Delivering passenger satisfaction in an airport is highly dependent on operational excellence. Airport key performance indicators (KPI), such as the Airport Service Quality (ASQ) benchmarks are focused on reducing time at touchpoints such as security, check-in and border control. Process automation and improvement can pay massive dividends, for example by allowing passengers to take control of their journeys.

ACCORDING TO THE DKMA AIRPORT CONSUMER REVIEW 2015, AN INCREASE OF SATISFACTION WITH THE AIRPORT OF 0.1 (ON A 5 POINT SCALE) LEADS TO AN INCREASE IN NON-AERONAUTICAL REVENUE PER PASSENGER OF US$0.80.

The key is to identify the parts of airport processes that can be improved with automation, for example providing different check-in channels, such as web, mobile and self-service, and self bag drop. And from a security standpoint, incorporating biometrics can greatly accelerate the authentication process. Therefore, integrated end-to-end passenger processing is key in delivering operational excellence and passenger satisfaction.

MONITORING PASSENGER FLOWInformation technology is also vital to monitor the different processes in terms of queuing time or passenger flow. Passenger flow monitoring capabilities need to allow airports to capture and access real-time data at all stages of the passenger journey. This allows the operator to deal with bottlenecks efficiently and effectively without compromising flow and service quality.

Union regulations can create a mismatch between the supply and demand of staff for key equipment, such as X-ray machines, which can result in unnecessary queues. Shift rostering needs to be linked to demand for the machines, otherwise staff could be scheduled to go on breaks during busy periods. This requires process integration with other stakeholders at the airport to consolidate and analyze all relevant information.

OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE DELIVERS PASSENGER SATISFACTION

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BETTER ANTICIPATE AND MANAGE DISRUPTION Disruption is an unavoidable fact of life in air travel and can be caused by anything from strong winds to strikes. With operational excellence, stakeholders will be able to better manage and mitigate the impact of disruption throughout the airport. Integrating operational processes and sharing information between stakeholders means that airports are able to keep all parties – including the passengers – informed and allow them to take appropriate action.

The Airport Operations Control Centre (AOCC) plays a central role in determining and automatically coordinating what actions stakeholders need to take in case of disruption. Business intelligence can work out where capacity is available and allow airports to take action, such as moving international flights to the domestic terminal. By understanding passenger flow and analyzing queue times, business intelligence systems can also help airports assess how long it will take to clear a disruption.

SHARING INFORMATIONThe AOCC is instrumental in sharing any decisions made with all stakeholders, to allow them to plan their resources accordingly. Information to broadcast includes how long it will take to clear the disruption, any changes to the schedule, and the reallocation of flights and other resources.

Keeping passengers informed is a vital part of disruption management. Key to this is displaying important information, such as gate or schedule changes to passengers on the flight information display system (FIDS) and over mobile apps. Way-finding apps on mobiles are particularly useful in helping clear disruption, because they can help move many passengers to the other side of the airport to access a new terminal or gate, for example.

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Collaboration with other stakeholders isn’t just a priority in cases of disruption; it is an essential part of delivering operational excellence throughout the airport. Consider the collaboration between airports, airlines and air traffic control (ATC). In Europe, Airport Collaborative Decision Making (A-CDM) is a vital part of improving the efficiency and utilization of airports, and is becoming a more-readily accepted concept worldwide.

A-CDM drives collaboration between airports, airlines, ground handlers and ATC – such as EUROCONTROL in Europe and FAA in the US. Because all stakeholders share data, they have accurate and timely information and a consistent operational view, which allows for better decision-making on routing and scheduling.

Operational improvements can be made by all stakeholders: airspace is used more efficiently; airport operators can enjoy better usage of stands and gates; ground handlers can optimize their use of resources; airlines can reduce fuel costs; ATC have more predictable traffic; and passengers have reduced delays. For example, if a flight is delayed, ground handlers can reallocate cleaning staff and the airport doesn’t need to turn on the air-conditioning in an air bridge.

ATM NETWORK MANAGEMENT In regions such as Europe and the US where there are capacity constraints, both in the air and on the ground, the governmental bodies tasked with safety oversight of civil aviation have a “Network Management” role balancing demand with capacity to ensure the air transport system remains safe.

With A-CDM, the airport exchanges departure planning information with Network Management, which allocates take-off restrictions to individual flights, thus reducing unnecessary delays. In return, it receives flight update messages from Network Management.

In busy regions where there is no dedicated Network Manager, such as the Middle East or Asia Pacific, CDM-controlled flights are being trialed using airport-to-airport exchange of departure and arrival information in order to improve utilization of the air space and other finite resources at those airports.

Achieving tangible A-CDM benefits relies on people, processes and enabling IT solutions. Key stakeholders need to share a common objective, allocate appropriate resources and adopt new ways of working. Training and change management are as essential to the success of A-CDM as the creation of a common center of situational awareness, which integrates the multiple data sources and efficiently distributes the information.

Getting the people, processes and technology right leads to collaborative decisions and operational excellence.

IMPROVING OPERATION THROUGH BETTER COLLABORATION

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In fact, overhauling airport ICT infrastructure is a key enabler for improving operational efficiency throughout the airport. Legacy IT infrastructure still dominates in airports and it is common to have all stakeholders running their own IT infrastructure. This can represent upwards of 300 different IT systems in the airport all running in their own silos. Combined with the continuing reliance on manual processes, these silos pose a significant challenge for airports looking to automate or improve operational processes.

LOOK TO THE CLOUDA popular solution to breaking open silos is cloud computing. To meet the specific requirements of the ATI, SITA has created the ATI Cloud that provides a secure shared infrastructure for all airport stakeholders. It provides rapid and flexible access to a range of IT resources including infrastructure as a service (IaaS) and software as a service (SaaS).

There are a number of use cases for the ATI Cloud that can help with operational efficiency. Consider desktop-as-a-service, which allows stakeholders to deploy business-critical applications and workspaces over the network quickly and without any requirement for on-site IT staff. It means that remote staff at small outstations can have the same applications and service levels as those available to the corporate head office.

AGILE AND CONNECTED INFRASTRUCTURE

SITA’S CLOUD INFRASTRUCTURE HAS BEEN DESIGNED FROM SCRATCH SPECIFICALLY FOR THE AIR TRANSPORT INDUSTRY. AT ITS HEART ARE THREE DATA CENTERS ON THREE CONTINENTS, WITH THE CLOUD CENTER OF EXCELLENCE BEHIND IT ALL. CONSTANT CONNECTIVITY, REDUNDANCY AND TIGHT SECURITY ARE ALL ESSENTIAL PARTS OF THE SITA ATI CLOUD.

NETWORK AND MESSAGINGShared network infrastructure can also support integration between stakeholders. SITA’s AirportHub means that airport stakeholders no longer need to install or manage their own infrastructure. It is an airport-wide shared platform that simplifies how aviation companies connect to their central systems and applications from their airport destinations.

Another key area that is instrumental in improving operational efficiency is messaging. These systems underpin how the airport and stakeholders work together. Messaging needs to connect all stakeholders to enable process integration. Standardization of messaging protocols, therefore, is an essential part in driving both collaboration and operational efficiencies.

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Airport infrastructure is built to a long-term Airport Master Plan, which can have a horizon of up to 20 years. This means that operators have to balance their short-term challenges, such as increasing the number of passengers, with a long-term view of the airport business. Relentless growth will see passenger numbers exceed 3.9 billion by 20171, and very little current airport infrastructure has actually been designed to handle that volume.

In addition, airports need to handle the increasing size of aircraft, which has a wide-ranging impact on many services at the airport, such as boarding gates and baggage reclaim belts. They will need to be prepared to process many more passengers wanting to travel through the facilities at the same time. Operational excellence offers airports the flexibility to provide resources when and where they are needed.

OPTIMIZING UTILIZATIONSmart airport management systems allow stakeholders to plan their day-to-day operations more efficiently by intelligently allocating resources. This helps optimize utilization of the airport infrastructure. The intelligence it provides also includes the operational forecasts essential for future resource planning.

Also within the airports, space can be used more effectively with common-use systems that allow stakeholders to share physical infrastructure. Shared self-service infrastructure in the airport such as common-use self-service (CUSS) check-in kiosks and baggage self-drop points all help in optimizing the space available for all stakeholders.

Using the cloud for other common-use self-service functions like kiosks, automatic self-service bag drop and self-boarding gates provides scalability. Coping with varying demand is a real challenge for airport IT departments. Provisioning for the peaks means expensive capacity sits unused at other times. With the cloud, you use what you need when you need it, making cost-effective expansion easier.

Digital tools are instrumental in helping airports expand out of limited space. Online check-in effectively pushes much of the check-in process out of the airport and into the passenger’s home or hotel and now even at train stations. The passenger enjoys the convenience and it frees up check-in counter space at the airport.

MANAGE GROWTH WITH EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE

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To deliver operational excellence, airports need a technology partner that can help them solve all of these challenges. SITA is the number one ICT provider to airports worldwide and has a unique understanding of the complexity of running an airport. SITA is the only ICT provider that can offer solutions that meet all of these varying demands.

Designing and implementing technologies such as these requires an understanding of how an airport really works. That’s why it is so important for airports to partner with an IT provider who has a deep understanding of the day-to day processes in airport management. SITA is the natural choice.

WHY SITA?

SITA HAS THE BROADEST PORTFOLIO OF AIRPORT-SPECIFIC TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVE OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE:• AIRPORT OPERATIONS: planning and resource

management tools to give airports the right resources at the right time in the right place; a single database to store all flight management, billing and reports; flight information displays that can offer revenue generation possibilities; and business intelligence and analytics.

• PASSENGER PROCESSING: innovative solutions for self-service check in, bag drop and boarding; beacons; common-use terminals for airline staff.

• PASSENGER FLOW MONITORING AND BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE: SITA’s solution captures real-time data at every step in the journey, analyzes and shares this critical data via dashboards to support on-the-spot decision-making.

• BAGGAGE OPERATIONS: self-service bag drop to beat queues; complete baggage management system for single or multiple sites; a global shared messaging system for baggage distribution; a global tracing system for mishandled bags.

• SITA AIRPORT CLOUD SOLUTIONS: provides airports with common-use self-service functions including kiosks, automatic self-service bag drop units and self-boarding gates, plus baggage, FIDS, resource management and business intelligence solutions, and mobile solutions for passengers and staff.

• TRANSPORTATION SECURITY: offers governments speed and accuracy to facilitate traffic flow, enable rapid immigration and verify problem passengers with a unique end-to-end solution that brings together passenger biographic data and biometric technologies. It is the only one to combine pre-arrival risk assessment and true identity management at a global level.

• ATI CLOUD: provides the airport with agility and flexibility with on-demand IT services; ATI applications and software adapted to the airport’s user profiles.

• SITA’S COMMUNITY MESSAGING: connects over 2,400 ATI stakeholders through a managed service that handles over 30 billion operational messages every year.

• COMMUNICATIONS AND INFRASTRUCTURE: global IP VPN connecting 95% of airports worldwide; managed LAN and wireless networks across the entire airport footprint; reduced cost of voice calls with VoIP; mobile workforce solutions for airport staff; mobile applications and information for passengers.

• AIRPORT MASTER SYSTEMS INTEGRATION (MSI): helping airports design and implement the technologies within a new terminal.

• PROFESSIONAL SERVICES: to assist airports in choosing the best solution to suit the airport’s requirements; outsourcing, program management and consultancy.


SITA has helped many airports around the world achieve operational excellence.

T.F. GREEN AIRPORT (RHODE ISLAND - USA)2: ATI CLOUD DEPLOYMENT The benefits of common-use at airports are well proven: it allows any airline to check-in and board passengers from any location and enables them to deliver a consistent level of customer service. The added benefit for Green Airport is that SITA’s innovative cloud offering is scalable both in terms of the level of usage and pricing so costs are in line with the varying levels of airport business and revenues.

HURGHADA AIRPORT (EGYPT)3 : INTEGRATED AIRPORT TRANSFORMATION The airport is using SITA’s passenger processing platform, baggage management and airport operations systems to enhance the passenger experience with new self-service options, the latest baggage management solutions and shorter queues. The new solutions are also helping it improve operational efficiency by integrating airport systems and providing a single control point for airport operations.

BAKU AIRPORT (AZERBAIJAN)4: COMMON PLATFORM USE SITA deployed a common network infrastructure across the terminal in Baku Airport. This puts most airport systems on a single network, boosting operational and integration efficiency and laying a foundation for future technology improvements as the terminal’s needs evolve.

SÃO PAULO GUARULHOS (GRU) AIRPORT (BRAZIL)5: IT TRANSFORMATION SUCCESSThe airport’s infrastructure had been built to handle 30 million passengers per year, but by 2012 it welcomed more than 32 million passengers with a forecasted growth of more than 10% per annum. SITA delivered an IT transformation plan that generated the following results: the airport handled 39.5 million passengers in 2014; 95% of the 830 daily aircraft movements are now automated; and check-in allocation time has decreased from 1 hour to 5 minutes.

AIMING FOR OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE

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Note 01 Page 10

IATA Airline Industry Forecast 2013-2017: www.iata.org/pressroom/pr/pages/2013-12-10-01.aspx

Note 02 Page 12

SITA Press Release 6 May 2015

Note 03 Page 12

SITA Press Release 16 February 2015

Note 04 Page 12

SITA Press Release 14 January 2015

Note 05 Page 12

SITA Press Release 4 March 2015

NOTES AND REFERENCES

For further information, please contact SITA by telephone or e-mail:

Americas+1 770 850 4500 [email protected]

Asia Pacific+65 6545 3711 [email protected]

Europe+41 22 747 6111 [email protected]

Middle East, India & Africa+961 1 637300 [email protected]

SITA AT A GLANCE

The air transport industry is the most dynamic and exciting community on earth – and SITA is its heart.

Our vision is to be the chosen technology partner of the industry, a position we will attain through flawless customer service and a unique portfolio of IT and communications solutions that covers the industry’s every need 24/7.

We are the innovators of the industry. Our experts and developers keep it fuelled with a constant stream of ground-breaking products and solutions. We are the ones who see the potential in the latest technology and put it to work.

Our customers include airlines, airports, GDSs and governments. We work with around 430 air transport industry members and 2,800 customers in over 200 countries and territories.

We are open, energetic and committed. We work in collaboration with our partners and customers to ensure we are always delivering the most effective, most efficient solutions.

We own and operate the world’s most extensive communications network. It’s the vital asset that keeps the global air transport industry connected.

We are 100% owned by the air transport industry – a unique status that enables us to understand and respond to its needs better than anyone.

Our annual IT surveys for airlines, airports and passenger self-service are industry-renowned and the only ones of their kind.

We sponsor .aero, the top-level internet domain reserved exclusively for aviation.

In 2014, we had consolidated revenues of US$1.7 billion.

For further information, please visit www.sita.aero

© SITA 15-THW-104-2 All trademarks acknowledged. Specifications subject to change without prior notice. This literature provides outline information only and (unless specifically agreed to the contrary by SITA in writing) is not part of any order or contract.

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