Airport Integration – Mission Impossible?

Ghost-written for John Jarrell, vice president and general manager, SITA Airport Services.
Published in Airports International magazine, July 2002.

When you talk to most people about airport integration their eyes quickly glaze over and attention wanders to the game on TV last night or their next appointment. Ask for a concise definition and you are likely to get a different answer depending on whom you ask. The result is that for many across our industry airport integration remains a distant dream.

Over several years of working with all levels of airport management I developed a presentation that explains the main principles by transposing the issues faced in an airport with those of a film director aiming to deliver the next Hollywood blockbuster. A highly edited version is given below.

How many times have airport operators had all their labour saving IT systems running, but wondered why the special effects they are expecting resemble South Park rather than Jurassic Park? While the individual applications appear to work well enough, something is lacking.

In terms of time, integration feels like the Ben Hur of tasks, and in terms of cost it makes a biblical epic seem like a home video. It may not be a case of your CUTE not being quite cute enough, or your BRS being irreconcilable, but that many airport operators are letting their primadonna applications run the show as independently as Liz Taylor and Richard Burton during a tantrum. However, at least five of the main applications can be integrated to work in harmony for the benefit of all parties.

Airport Systems Integration is a classic in development worth paying attention to. The benefits are not just “Pulp Fiction”, as the increased efficiency of airports, increased staff motivation, and subsequent increased revenues it can create have airport operators on the edge of their seats.

The Plot
Similar to a Hitchcock thriller the integration plot is full of suspense.

For many years airlines have benefited from having interdependent functions such as fleet scheduling, yield management, reservations and departure control systems (DCS) brought together on a mainframe system to operate in perfect synchronisation. If this philosophy were transferred to airports it would make for an easier life. So, why aren’t common use terminal equipment (CUTE), baggage reconciliation systems (BRS), resource management systems (RMS), flight information display systems (FIDS) and airport operational databases (AODB) set up in this way? By taking this co-ordinated approach and bringing in an AODB, each system can communicate with each other, making the entire system more effective and more efficient.

Unfortunately many airport operators are still experiencing the shortcomings of using old applications, or using new applications independently. The biggest challenge is then attempting to make forward-thinking commercial and operational decisions based on information that isn’t sufficiently up to date. Even where information is up to date, it may be in an unwieldy format, or simply too difficult to extract from its source application to be of practical use. Therefore, to guarantee the ‘feelgood factor’ we must discover how airports can get accurate information in real time in order for them to do their job. This is the next step in the evolution of integration.

The Action
There is already plenty of action at airports. Ramps, gates, and check-in counters can become congested, and flight information displays may not always display the same information. Today there are numerous applications designed to support airport operations: passenger processing, finance, maintenance, ramp, cargo, safety and security, air traffic control and many more functions. Whilst many of these applications produce individual customised reports, unfortunately those reports do not always match. A single source of data would resolve many management problems.

Having these airport systems operate on a shared local area network (LAN) immediately solves the problems of proprietary, dedicated and sometimes redundant cabling worming its way around the airport. The LAN is a high speed, high capacity, voice-data-video backbone, accessible to all that need it. Along with the latest internet protocol (IP) and web applications this network also supports all passenger processing systems such as CUTE, local departure control systems and boarding applications. Resource management applications are equally important. These real-time tools for facility usage planning can help an airport to run more efficiently and effectively. When the facilities are full, the revenue for both owners and concessionaires is assured.

Building management systems can be arranged in the same way. Power, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to track tenant lease space, and finance systems to automatically track utilisation and invoice tenants are all possible. The network is also self-maintaining in that it runs self-diagnostic programs, and will alert users at the first sign of failure, recommend solutions, and provide call-out information at the same time.

Each of these systems is an important component of the overall airport operation. However, each one is still isolated, and there is a risk that information entered in one application (e.g. flight times) may not match another. Systems integration can achieve the goal of secured, shared information, in turn enabling the airport operator to make customised queries to the database. In the same way, getting all of the scriptwriters and editors to talk together ensures that the final dialogue, costumes, props and sets are all agreed.

The Cast
Each of the individual airport applications such as CUTE and FIDS plays its part - like Beatty and Bening taking the lead roles in the integration flick. CUTE is one of the stars, speeding up the process of passenger check-in and reducing the number of manual errors at the same time. CUTE also maximises airport check-in resources, enabling up to 25% more passengers to be processed. The other lead role is taken by BRS, the seasoned performer which reduces the quantity of mishandled baggage, and makes it easier for airlines and airports to track baggage in general. In the event of a last minute baggage offload BRS has cut the time required to locate and remove the bag from more than 30 minutes to less than ten. In turn this reduces flight delays, helps to maximise airport capacity, and enhances the security process.

Other stars FIDS and RMS add to the cast of supporting applications. A centralised, multi-user FIDS can ensure that all of the flight data is standardised across the airport. RMS offers everything from planning the usage of gates, check-in counters, baggage carousels and ramp equipment to real-time day-to-day operations of the same. Flights running off-schedule can be reallocated a parking resource with minimum impact to overall operations. Inside the building, the limited space available for check-in, gate hold, and transit lounges can be maximised at the same time. Additionally the system will ensure baggage assignments are allocated evenly across all available carousels.

The Crew
As the camera is to the final footage, so the AODB is to ensuring each separate application is pulled together to one whole. AODB captures what is pertinent from each airport application, or ‘zooms out’ to take in information from more than one application at once. This is then disseminated over a secure network whenever and wherever required. It is also flexible enough to adapt to any airport, and to any range of airport applications. Imagine a camera that comes with its own editing suite, and automatically cuts the out-takes from the film to help make a better movie.

However, cast and crew alone do not make a blockbuster film. The Master Systems Integrator (MSI) is the ‘Spielberg’ of airport integration, and provides the final stage of human/computer interface. The MSI “Director” ensures that the actors are in place, the script is memorised, and the cameras are in position, so that together they produce an automated stream of information, or an Oscar winning film. In other words, an airport operator pans across all of the applications through AODB, or zooms in to a particular application to suit any circumstance. It makes all of the applications interact in real time, regardless of what platform or protocol they are using, while following the script already provided. Furthermore, preferences can be customised to each individual using it, making it suitable for any airport manager.

Recipe for a Blockbuster – Mission Possible
Why should the airport strain to cajole the most out of its stars when it can settle back calmly as the producer, and let the director do that? With the MSI “Director” the airport operator will be able to maximise the value for money of CUTE, FIDS and all other systems, by using all of the functions of those applications to the fullest extent, and as a matter of course. Meanwhile the studio is running at its fullest capacity, and highest efficiency. Instead of wasting time with manual operations and re-entering of information into disparate systems, management can concentrate on using the information available to improve customer service, increase security and generate new revenues. Whether reviewing finances, expansion plans, marketing or staffing, the IT-integrated airport can provide the information necessary for the airport operators to remain informed and stay ahead of the growing competition.

At the same time the tenants are happy because they receive value-added programs from the airport. Perhaps most importantly, the audience i.e. passengers can see and experience the benefits these systems bring, and may rush back for the sequel a few months later. Again, instead of spending time on the administration of reports or paperwork, airport and airline staff are able to concentrate on customer-focused activities.

You should expect IT integration to arrive soon at an airport near you, and now it even has a name – in some cases it is already there. Those who haven’t yet experienced it can rest assured - it isn’t Mission Impossible.