Airport World, Issue 3, 2015

In the spotlight: Master planning Airport report: Orlando & Bahrain Special report: ASQ Awards Plus: SMART Airports & World Business Partners

Master planning: Looking to the future June–July 2015 Volume 20 Issue 3 www.aci.aero

OPINION ;OL THNHaPUL VM [OL (PYWVY[Z *V\UJPS 0U[LYUH[PVUHS

Airport World Editor Joe Bates +44 (0) 20 8831 7507 joe@airport-world.com Design, Layout & Production Mark Draper +44 (0) 20 8831 7504 mark@airport-world.com Sales Director Jonathan Lee +44 (0) 20 8831 7563 jonathan@airport-world.com Advertising Manager Kalpesh Vadher +44 (0) 20 8831 7510 kalpesh@airport-world.com Andrew Hazell +44 (0) 20 8831 7518 andrewh@airport-world.com Subscriptions subscriptions@airport-world.com Managing Director Jonathan Lee

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Better by design Airport World editor, Joe Bates, reflects on the importance of devising flexible plans for the future in this master planning themed issue.

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our terminal is old, out-dated or fast reaching capacity, so you just get the funding and build a new one, right?

If only life was that simple. Funding doesn’t grow on trees, of course, but before you even think about that you’ve first got to work out what you might need, when you might need it, what you want the facility to achieve and over what timescale.

Are you looking for a quick fix or a more long-term solution? Do you want something you can develop, adapt and expand over time or just a purpose built facility for one use only such as a dedicated low-cost carrier terminal?

And what is a low-cost carrier terminal anyway? The short answer is it means different things to different people. AirAsia, for example, thought that it meant no air conditioning in Kuala Lumpur’s original Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT). Fortunately for passengers, operator Malaysia Airports Berhad (MAHB) didn’t agree!

On the opposite end of the scale, is your airport looking for a new showpiece building that becomes a landmark in its own right?

Once again this could be down to personal opinion, but I would say facilities such as Shenzhen Boa’an International Airport’s Terminal 3 – famous for its manta ray design that features an external double honeycomb ‘skin’ – and the iconic and still stunning peaked roof of Denver International Airport’s terminal, modelled on the snow capped peaks of the surrounding mountains, fit into this category.

Others deserving the right to be called ‘showpiece’ terminals arguably include Montevideo–Carrasco’s main terminal; Beijing Capital’s colossal Terminal 3; LAX’s Tom Bradley International Terminal; Hong Kong International Airport’s Terminal 1; Incheon’s giant award winning complex; Adolfo Suárez MadridBarajas’ Terminal 4; and Terminal 1 at Doha’s new Hamad International Airport.

Having decided what you want, how do you know the market won’t change in the future, meaning that perhaps the airlines you are catering for now won’t be around at your airport in five or ten years time?

This is, of course, where the art of master planning comes into its own as airports have to prepare for almost every eventuality as the one constant in aviation is that it is an ever-evolving industry.

Gone are the days when airport CEOs only really had to know about operations, today they need to be experts in balancing billion dollar budgets and clairvoyants who can see into the future as well as all the other attributes required of big business leaders.

The importance of good leadership and vision statements with clear messages for staff is one of several thought provoking articles in the ‘master planning’ section of this issue of Airport World.

The section also includes a step-by-step guide to airport master planning; five trends to follow to help make airports destinations in their own right; a feature about the innovative design of Iqaluit’s new terminal; a review of the update of IATA’s Airport Development Reference Manual; and the latest on Frankfurt’s plans for a new Terminal 3.

Elsewhere in this issue we interview Phil Brown, executive director of Orlando International Airport, talk to Bahrain Airport CEO, Mohamad Yousif Al-Binfalah, and in People Matters discuss the importance of co-operation, collaboration and partnerships.

We also provide a picture round up of the Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Awards Ceremony held at ACI Asia-Pacific’s Regional Conference at the Dead Sea in Jordan and report on the highlights of the SMART Airports & Regions Conference and Exhibition in Atlanta.

All add up to a red-hot summer issue of AW your favourite airport magazine!

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

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CONTENTS

Issue 3 Volume 20

In this issue 3 Opinion Airport World editor, Joe Bates, reflects on the importance of devising flexible plans for the future in this master planning themed issue.

8 ACI news The 19th edition of ACI’s Airport Economics Report confirms that while the overall airport industry is in the black most airports lose money, writes Ryan White.

11 View from the top ACI World director general, Angela Gittens, discusses the economic contributions of airports and the challenges of planning for future increases in demand.

12 Orlando magic Orlando International Airport’s Phil Brown talks to Joe Bates about his gateway’s $3.1 billion renovation and expansion programme and ambitious route development plans.

18 The equaliser Bahrain International Airport’s new state-of-the-art terminal is set to make a big impression on passengers and significantly enhance airline operations, writes Joe Bates.

20 Make it memorable Exambela Consulting’s David Feldman and Laure Villeroux take a closer look at airport vision statements and consider why having a vision matters.

26 Planning ahead Each airport development programme is a unique project and should be treated this way to ensure the planning and design of efficient, flexible terminals, writes Louis Berger’s vice president for global aviation, Javier Gonzalez.

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

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CONTENTS

Director General Angela Gittens Chair Fredrick J Piccolo (Sarasota, USA) Vice Chair Declan Collier (London, UK) Immediate Past Chair Yiannis Paraschis (Athens, Greece) Treasurer Stefan Schulte (Frankfurt, Germany) ACI WORLD GOVERNING BOARD DIRECTORS Africa (3) Pascal Komla (Lomé, Togo) Bongani Maseko (Johannesburg, South Africa) Robinson Misitala (Livingstone, Zambia)

29 Maximising the brand Interbrand Germany’s managing director, Nina Oswald, considers five trends she believes will help make airports destinations in their own right and revolutionise the airport travel retail experience.

33 Built for extreme weather Stantec’s Noel Best reflects on the innovative design of the planned new terminal building at Iqaluit in Canada’s frozen north.

35 Guide to success Bechtel’s Steve Riano tells Airport World about the 10th edition update of IATA’s Airport Development Reference Manual, which is designed to act as an industry guide for airport master planning.

39 Project watch: Frankfurt Airport

Construction of its new €3 billion Terminal set to begin before year-end.

41 You’ve been framed Airport World provides a picture round up of this year’s Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Awards Ceremony, which took place at ACI Asia-Pacific’s Regional Assembly, Conference & Exhibition in Jordan.

42 Get SMART! Airport development and master planning was top of the agenda at the recent SMART Airports & Regions Conference and Exhibition in Atlanta, writes Joe Bates.

44 ACI’s World Business Partners 46 People matters Dr Richard Plenty and Terri Morrissey discuss the importance of co-operation, collaboration and partnerships.

Asia-Pacific (8) Kjeld Binger (Amman, Jordan) Dennis Chant (Gold Coast, Australia) Kenichi Fukaya (Tokyo, Japan) Saud AR Hashem (Jeddah, Saudi Arabia) Seow Hiang Lee (Singapore) Kerrie Mather (Sydney, Australia) Emmanuel Menanteau (Phnom Penh, Cambodia) PS Nair (Delhi, India) Europe (7) Declan Collier (London, UK) Arnaud Feist (Brussels, Belgium) Michael Kerkloh (Munich, Germany) Tonci Peovic (Bol, Croatia) Stefan Schulte (Frankfurt, Germany) Sani Sener (Istanbul, Turkey) José-Manuel Vargas (Madrid, Spain) Latin America & Caribbean (3) Martin Eurnekian (Buenos Aires, Argentina) Héctor Navarrete Muñoz (Merida, Mexico) 1 vacancy North America (7) Thella Bowens (San Diego, USA) James Cherry (Montréal, Canada) Fredrick J Piccolo (Sarasota, USA) Mark Reis (Seattle, USA) Maureen Riley (Salt Lake City, USA) Tom Ruth (Edmonton, Canada) William Vanecek (Buffalo, USA) Regional Advisers to the World Governing Board (8) Aaron Adderley (Hamilton, Bermuda) Haluk Bilgi (Tunis, Tunisia) Howard Eng (Toronto, Canada) Deborah Ale Flint (Oakland, USA) Xue Song Liu (Beijing, China) Tan Sri Bashir Ahmad Abdul Majid (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) Andrew O’Brian (Quito, Ecuador) Zouhair Mohamed El Oufir (Rabat, Morocco) Observer World Business Partner Board Chairperson Greg Fordham (Airbiz) Correct as of June 22, 2015

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CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF AIRPORT WORLD

ACI WORLD NEWS

World in motion The 19th edition of ACI’s Airport Economics Report confirms that while the overall airport industry is in the black most airports lose money, writes Ryan White.

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CI World director general, Angela Gittens, reflected on the financial resilience of the world’s gateways in a tough operating environment when reviewing the newly released ACI Airport Economics Report for the 2013 financial year.

“In the face of the ongoing uncertainties in the global economy, global airport revenues remained resilient through the downside risks that have persisted across the world’s markets,” said Gittens.

“Airport revenues experienced sound growth rates in 2013 compared to the previous year. Although there are some regional disparities, growth in key emerging market airports has circumvented the slowdown in the Euro area and other mature markets.”

She added that industry revenues as a whole grew by 5.5% from 2012, reaching $131 billion in 2013.

Dr Rafael Echevarne, ACI World’s director of economics and programme development, noted: “The latest data also paints an interesting picture of airport profitability. The industry as a whole experienced a return on invested capital of just over 6%.

“While a single measure of global airport profitability provides a good barometer of industry health, it often masks the important nuances and industry facts crucial for evidence-based policy decisions. The challenge remains that most airports in the world are small, with high traffic volumes concentrated in only a handful of airports. Therefore, the airport industry faces a conundrum.”

He went on: “Although the airport industry as a whole is profitable, most airports are actually in the red on their financial statements. The latest estimates suggest that as many as 69% of airports worldwide operate at a net loss.

“Most of these airports have fewer than one million passengers per annum. Smaller airports don’t have sufficient traffic to achieve economies of scale or generate significant aeronautical or non-aeronautical revenue.

“These results have important implications for national regulators involved in the economic oversight function of airports. Given that airports are asset-intensive businesses, they require large investments just to accommodate a single aircraft landing.

“Despite the important social and economic development that airports generate both for local communities and with respect to global trade, market size (in terms of traffic throughput) largely determines the financial health and viability of an airport.

“Taking this into consideration, there is no one size fits all approach for airports, irrespective of their location, ownership model and till regimes. Each airport has a different set of challenges, opportunities and circumstances. In turn, with an objective for sustainable development, this should influence how each airport is regulated.”

Talking about events last year, Gittens stated: “International tourism, in particular, was irrepressible in 2014 considering the geopolitical risks that have persisted in certain parts of the world such as Eastern Europe and the Middle East, as well as the Ebola outbreak. By and large, the international traveller in 2014 appears to have withstood the challenges.

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CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF AIRPORT WORLD

“As well, air cargo rebounded after almost three years of growth stagnation whereas passenger traffic continues to post growth in the realm of 5% year after year following the Great Recession.”

Some other key airport industry facts for the 2013 financial year: • Revenue per passenger growth year-over-year: 2.2% • Distribution of global revenues – aeronautical (56.7%), non-aeronautical (38.8%), and non-operating revenue (4.5%) • Global airport revenue per passenger: $20.96 • Total cost per passenger: $16.96 • Distribution of non-aeronautical revenue by key source: retail concessions (28%), car parking (20%) and property and real estate income or rent (18%) • Labour cost share of operating expenses: 35% • Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) per passenger: $5.95 • Global debt-to-EBITDA ratio: 5.45 • Industry net profit margin: 16% • Global return on invested capital (ROIC): 6.3% • Over 80% of the world’s airports have fewer than one million passengers per annum To learn more about the 2014 Airport Economics Report and Key Performance Indicators, visit ACI’s at http://www.aci.aero/Publications/ Full-Publications-Listing/2014-ACI-Airport-Key-Performance-Indicators

ACI WORLD NEWS

ACI events

2015

2015

2015

2015

2015

October 4-7

August 31-Sept 2

October 20-22

June 24-26

September 16-18

ACI-NA Annual Conference & Exhibition Long Beach, USA

ACI World and Latin America & Caribbean Annual Conference & Exhibition Panama City, Panama

ACI Africa Assembly, Conference & Exhibition Hammamet, Tunisia

ACI Europe General Assembly, Congress & Exhibition Prague, Czech Republic

The Trinity Forum Hong Kong, China

ACI offices ACI World Angela Gittens Director General PO Box 302 800 Rue du Square Victoria Montréal, Quebec H4Z 1G8 Canada Tel: +1 514 373 1200 Fax: +1 514 373 1201 aci@aci.aero www.aci.aero

ACI Fund for Developing Nations’ Airports Angela Gittens Managing Director Tel: + 1 514 373 1200 Fax: +1 514 373 1201 acifund@aci.aero

ACI Africa Ali Tounsi Secretary General Casablanca, Morocco Tel: +212 660 156 916 atounsi@aci-africa.aero www.aci-africa.aero

ACI Latin America & Caribbean Javier Martinez Botacio Director General Panama City, Panama Tel: +507 238 2691 jmartinez@aci-lac.aero www.aci-lac.aero

ACI Asia-Pacific Patti Chau Regional Director Hong Kong SAR, China Tel: +852 2180 9449 Fax: +852 2180 9462 info@aci-asiapac.aero www.aci-asiapac.aero

ACI Europe Olivier Jankovec Director General Brussels, Belgium Tel: +32 (2) 552 0978 Fax: +32 (2) 502 5637 danielle.michel@aci-europe.org www.aci-europe.org

ACI North America Kevin Burke President & CEO Washington DC, USA Tel: +1 202 293 8500 Fax: +1 202 331 1362 postmaster@aci-na.org www.aci-na.org

As of January 2015, ACI accounts for 590 regular members operating 1,850 airports in 173 countries. In 2014, airports worldwide welcomed 6.6 billion passengers and handled 100 million metric tonnes of cargo and 83 million aircraft movements. ACI is a non-profit organisation whose prime purpose is to advance the interests of airports and to promote professional excellence in airport management and operations.

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

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ACI VIEWPOINT

View from the top ACI World director general, Angela Gittens, discusses the economic contributions of airports and the challenges of planning for future increases in demand.

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ccording to statistics from the Air Transport Action Group, of which ACI is a founding member, aviation contributed $2.4 trillion to the global economy in 2012.

Airports have evolved from their former role as infrastructure providers to become businesses in their own right.

Many have moved from the public sector to the private sector, and we have seen a full range of ownership and governance models shifting with the interests and wishes of their original owners and the challenges posed by changes in airline business models. These ownership and governance decisions matter because airports are major employers.

Worldwide some 470,000 people work directly for airport operators.

When on-site workers at airlines, ground handlers, retail outlets, restaurants, hotels, government agencies and other employers are included, this number balloons to 4.6 million – and it is set to continue growing.

The ability to accommodate the growth their local, regional or national economies need is partially reliant upon airports’ ability to forecast demand, in many cases decades in advance, and adjust capacity accordingly. This they do at considerable risk since the airport can rarely move to a more lucrative market when its airline customers move away in search of better profits, nor can they usually put their assets to an alternate use.

Indeed, the threat of airline switching provides a direct and powerful competitive constraint on airports.

If an airport loses an airline customer to a competitor, it can incur both a loss of aeronautical revenue and of non-aeronautical revenue as fewer passengers visit the shops and other retail facilities or use car parks at the airport.

In turn, this negatively impacts airports’ ability to plan for future demand since airports subsidize the considerable cost of developing new infrastructure with non-aeronautical revenue.

These challenges are magnified for smaller airports. While the airport industry as a whole is profitable, with airports posting net profit margins in the realm of 16% in 2013, 69% of airports globally operate at a net loss, with 93% of those being airports serving fewer than a million passengers.

Some 80% of airports with fewer than a million passengers lose money, meaning that industry profitability is primarily driven by the 20% of airports that carry the bulk of passenger and cargo traffic.

Given the not insignificant risks associated with building new infrastructure, it’s no surprise that airports have become experts at anticipating the future needs of passengers and the innumerable businesses that operate on airport grounds.

I invite you to peruse this issue of Airport World, dedicated to master planning, an art that positions airports, and indeed the industry at large, for future growth.

AW

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

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AIRPORT REPORT: ORLANDO

Orlando magic Orlando International Airport’s Phil Brown talks to Joe Bates about his gateway’s $3.1 billion renovation and expansion programme and ambitious route development plans.

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he rumble of bulldozers and the pounding of pile drivers is almost as common a sound as the roar of aircraft engines at Orlando International Airport these days as the Florida gateway undergoes the biggest expansion and renovation project in its history.

The new additions to the airport sound track will be only temporary, of course, and are actually not within earshot of most visitors as the bulk of the projects involved in the $1.3 billion Capital Improvement Plan are taking place south of the airport’s main terminal.

The key new developments are the simultaneous construction of the South Airport APM Complex and Intermodal Terminal Facility (ITF) to improve connections between its facilities, make the airport more easily accessible and cement its status as the one of the US’s few truly multimodal gateways.

In addition to the new state-of-the-art facilities, the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) is carrying out a package of improvements to the central North Terminal Complex.

They will include the capacity-enhancing expansion of the ticketing lobbies in Terminals A & B; baggage system and security improvements; the renovation of kerbside canopies; construction of a new central energy plant; and construction of a new north cell phone lot with restrooms.

Airside improvements include expanding the terminal’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facilities; adding four international gates at Airside 4 capable of accommodating new large aircraft; and renovating restrooms.

While a new $90 million Automated People Mover (APM) train is to replace the existing one operating between Airsides 1 and 3.

GOAA believes the combination of new infrastructure and the renovation of its existing facilities – all set for completion by June 2017 – will “change the face” of Orlando International Airport and enhance its economic impact on Central Florida, where it already generates an estimated $31 billion annually.

It will also effectively equip the airport to handle up to 45mppa with the bulk of international travellers, on transatlantic flights, passing through a bigger and better Airside 4 courtesy of the new gates and expanded Federal Inspection Services (FIS) facility.

GOAA’s executive director, Phil Brown, has no doubt that the upgrade is vital to keep Orlando International Airport (MCO) ahead of demand.

“We are ready to make the next step,” says Brown. “Today’s travellers expect a higher level of service, so it is essential that we strive to stay at the forefront of innovation and customer care.

“Our goal is to identify, develop and implement projects that meet the needs of the community and provide an optimal travel experience.

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CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF AIRPORT WORLD

“The ticket counters haven’t been updated since the terminal opened in 1981, for example, but this is all about to change with the $100 million plus modification of the ticketing lobbies.

“This means a whole new look and designs based on the modular instead of a linear concept and incorporating new technology that will give us some additional capacity and reduce busy peak-time congestion.

“We will also be adding new retail and F&B facilities as we revamp our concessions programme as current contracts expire.

“In one of our airsides, for instance, we are in the process of taking proposals for the food court concession while the landside retail developer, Westfield, continues to open a number of fresh new outlets and attract more brand names.”

He adds that the airport is considering creating new retail opportunities by taking out some moving sidewalks and replacing them with “kiosk-type” retail/F&B concepts.

Hensel Phelps (South Terminal APM Complex), a Turner/Kiewit joint venture (ITF) and Mitsubishi (APM system) are among dozens of companies working on the airport’s $1.3 billion upgrade.

Next on the agenda “We are changing, but this is only the beginning in terms of our terminal facilities because the real change will come when we reach 38.5 million passengers on a rolling 12 month basis as this will trigger the development of a new South Terminal,” states Brown.

AIRPORT REPORT: ORLANDO

And with a total of 35.7 million passengers passing through MCO in 2014 and 36.4 million on a rolling 12 months basis, the day GOAA has to start work on the South Terminal might not actually be too far away.

At the moment it looks like the South Terminal will have between 16 and 24 “swing” gates that could be used for either or both domestic or international services, but Brown admits that its exact design will be determined by the traffic mix at the time the decision is made to build it.

Brown reveals that the estimated cost of an environmentally-friendly LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified 16-gate terminal is around $1.8 billion.

The design and construction period is expected to take four years once the 38.5 million figure is triggered. The airport is currently seeking RFPs and Statements of Qualification from architects and design teams interested in the project.

He also tells Airport World that GOAA is looking at developing 25 acres of commercial developments or travel plaza on the airport site that would contain offices, hotels and retail outlets in a mini ‘aerotropolis’ type development designed to boost non-aeronautical revenues.

The airport occupies a 14,000-acre site and only about 20% of it has been developed, which according to Brown, leaves a lot of room for expansion and the addition of aeronautical and non-aeronautical facilities.

Investing in Orlando SSP has been awarded a seven-year $70 million contract by the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) to develop and manage four restaurant concepts in Airsides 1 and 3 at Orlando International Airport.

According to GOAA, SSP America’s portfolio of highly customised, multiple award-winning proprietary brands are perfectly suited to the Orlando passenger demographic and are already proven, leading revenue drivers in San Diego, New York-JFK, Houston Intercontinental and Toronto Pearson international airports.

Michael Svagdis, president and CEO of SSP America, commented: “Our win with MCO is a perfect example of how SSP America can specifically tailor a portfolio to meet the needs of the airport and work with it to achieve the best outcome for all stakeholders.

“We believe that a strong capital investment always yields higher rewards, in that a better passenger experience draws a higher level of throughput and allows our spaces to maximise revenue for the airport. We have been operating with the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority since 2005 and look forward to building on that partnership with our newest concepts.”

The new concepts for MCO, which will open throughout 2016, include Le Grand Comptoir, Camden Food Co, and UrbanCrave, a brand that brought the first ‘street eats’ to the airport arena.

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

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AIRPORT REPORT: ORLANDO Route development It is also an exciting time for Orlando when it comes to new air services, with the planned September 1 launch of daily Emirates services between Dubai and Orlando arguably being the pick of the bunch of its new routes.

Indeed, Brown describes the new service as a ‘landmark’ route for Orlando as for the first time the airport will be able to offer passengers non-stop flights to the high-growth Middle East region and quick and easy onward connections to India, China, Africa, and Southeast Asia.

“It is something we have worked very hard for and I believe can be a game changer for us in terms of opening up the world,” remarks Brown. “It effectively means that almost anywhere on the planet is reachable within one stop of Orlando.”

He is genuinely excited about the service, which will be operated by B777-200LR aircraft offering 266 seats in a First (8), Business (42) and Economy (216) class configuration.

And he is not alone in his enthusiasm as speaking about winning the new route earlier this year, GOAA chairman, Frank Kruppenbacher, called it “a great day for Orlando”.

Kruppenbacher explained: “The benefits of this new service will be measured not only financially with a $100 million economic impact annually to the region, but also for decades to come as our business community takes advantage of efficient access to new destinations on several continents.”

While Orlando Mayor, Buddy Dyer, said the new service would boost the airport’s status as an engine for economic growth and job creation in Central Florida.

Orlando welcomed more than 1,000 new international passengers every day last year and Brown is confident that the new Emirates flight together with other new route launches this year to Brasilia and Lima in South America will lead to a healthy upturn in international passengers in 2015.

MCO’s list of global destinations actually increased by 9.6% in 2014 as international traffic accounted for 12% of all passengers, and Brown has high hopes that these figures will continue to rise going forward.

So what is the secret of MCO’s success when it comes to route development?

“It’s a team effort as we have a number of people who work on route development, including myself,” answers Brown.

“It is not a short-term process and it takes a lot of time and effort as routes sometimes take years to come to fruition, but the rewards are worth it.

“We first started talking to Emirates five years ago, for example.

On the other hand Azul’s new non-stop service between Orlando and São Paulo happened quite quickly as the airline’s CEO David Neeleman, one of the co-founders of JetBlue, is very familiar Florida and the US market.

You’ve just got to stick with it.”

The biggest of MCO’s 40 airlines in terms of market share is Southwest (28%) followed by Delta, JetBlue and American with around 15% each.

Growing appeal of Orlando region Brown attributes MCO’s slowly rising passenger numbers to a thriving local economy, the airport’s route network and, of course, the huge and ever growing appeal of the Florida market.

“We are predominantly an O&D destination, which makes us very different to Atlanta, Charlotte and Miami and what drives the traffic here is the local economy,” explains Brown.

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CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF AIRPORT WORLD

Executive director, Phil Brown, talking at the SMART Airports & Regions conference in Atlanta.

“A lot of it is leisure driven, the theme parks attracting huge numbers each year, although we are starting to see more business related traffic with an increasing number of conventions being held in the Orlando region and developments such as Medical City, a high-end health cluster, and a growing high-tech industry specialising in fibre optics, photonics and simulation.

The University of Florida is also the second biggest university in the United States.

“Leisure, however, remains the main draw and there is a lot of on-going investment in the hospitality industry. In fact, there are over 120,000 hotel rooms here now after some $6 billion worth of investment in infrastructure.”

Baggage phenomenon Its high mix of leisure travellers, fuelled by the close proximity of Disney World and a host of other theme parks and tourist attractions has led to somewhat of a baggage phenomenon at MCO, which arguably handles more luggage than any other airport in the world of a similar size.

Indeed, an incredible 16.4 million items of hold luggage and some 39.6 million pieces of hand luggage passes through the airport every year and the constant battle with bags is the driving force behind GOAA’s strategy of always looking to update its baggage screening system.

“We are constantly exploring ways of how we can improve the baggage handling process as we are a very baggage intensive airport and handle a lot of bulky items such as oversize bags, strollers and golf clubs,” says Brown.

AIRPORT REPORT: ORLANDO

Intermodal Orlando Brown believes that it is difficult to understate the difference the new South Airport APM Complex and Intermodal Terminal Facility (ITF) will make to the airport in terms of its multi-modal connectivity, passenger convenience and operational efficiency.

Motorists will be pleased to learn that the $470 million South Airport APM Complex will have its own parking garage and the ITF is expected to be home to four different rail systems that should include an inter-city service between Miami and Orlando, commuter trains and a regional light rail system.

Brown reveals that the airport is currently in talks with a potential operator of the light rail system, although he is remaining tight lipped about the details.

GOAA already has state funding to build an inter-city train station at the airport while the new Orlando commuter rail line is set to open this year before eventually being extended to the gateway.

It is hoped that the much talked about Miami-Orlando rail link operated by All Aboard Florida, a subsidiary of Florida East Coast Industries, could become reality by mid-2017 and guarantee three hour and fifteen minute journey times between the two cities.

“If all goes to plan by the summer of 2017 we will have trains, planes and automobiles,” jokes Brown, who says that the light rail system line would run from the gateway to Orlando’s Orange County Convention Center and the commuter rail would serve downtown as well as Orlando’s surrounding communities.

He quips that many Brazilian guests arrive with two bags, typically buy two more and ship them all back home when they return.

A separate, remote, baggage-sorting facility just for Walt Disney World hotel guests that sign up for its Disney Magical Express luggage service certainly helps MCO cope with such high demand.

Set up in 2005, the programme effectively means that once passengers check in for their flights to Orlando the next time they see their baggage is in their hotel room.

At the last count the Disney facility was handling in excess of three million bags annually.

“The system does a couple of things,” states Brown. “It makes flying here very convenient for passengers but it also allows us to manage baggage more efficiently.”

The new South Airport APM Complex should also help MCO’s baggage efficiency as well as ease kerbside congestion as the idea is that motorists will be able to drive to the complex, park their cars, drop off baggage and check-in remotely for their flights before being transported to the main terminal complex by a three minute APM ride.

Brown says that baggage dropped off at the facility will be transported to Orlando’s main baggage sorting facility where it will be screened and put on aircraft in a similar way to the remote check-in system already operated by a number of hotels across the region.

“Being able to quickly ingress and egress out of the airport is critical when you are a 95% origin and destination airport and that includes baggage,” says Brown.

Clearly Orlando is very much in demand from holidaymakers and is growing as a business destination. Fortunately, under Brown’s leadership, MCO appears more than ready for the all the opportunities and challenges this will bring in the future.

AW

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

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AIRPORT REPORT: BAHRAIN

The equaliser Bahrain International Airport’s new stateof-the-art terminal is set to make a big impression on passengers and significantly enhance airline operations, writes Joe Bates.

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ohamed Yousif Al-Binfalah, CEO of Bahrain Airport Company (BAC), has no doubts about the impact the planned new terminal will make to Bahrain International Airport.

“Our new terminal won’t be the biggest in the region and we will never become the biggest airport, but I assure you that it will allow us to provide an exceptional passenger experience in terms of efficiency, comfort and technology,” he enthuses.

“I promise that the new terminal building will be very special and position the airport to be at the forefront of providing an exceptional passenger experience for all.

“We are creating a boutique airport in the sense that passengers will feel the difference when they arrive here and experience our facilities as compared to others. Walking distances will be short, processing times quick and easy and customer service standards high.”

Bold words, indeed, from Al-Binfalah who would be the first to admit that Bahrain has had some tough times in recent years as Gulf Air has restructured on more than one occasion in a bid to adapt to the new super competitive environment.

The good news is that the airline is now in a better place after its latest restructure, and with the diverse Bahraini economy booming, traffic is on the rise, soaring by 10% last year to 8.1 million.

In fact, Al-Binfalah refers to 2014 as “a remarkable year” due to the healthy upturn in traffic driven by new routes launched by Gulf Air and others.

And with the airport predicting that passenger numbers will rise by around 10% per annum for at least the next three years, BAC has taken the huge decision to invest $1 billion on upgrading the airport to ensure that it is more than capable of meeting future demand.

As a result, its soon to be completed new master plan will include a modernisation programme that includes plans for a new state-of-the-art passenger terminal to help fulfil the Kingdom’s vision to become a regional hub for financial, cultural and aviation services.

The new terminal will raise Bahrain’s capacity to 14mppa, although it will initially be equipped to accommodate up to 12mppa when opens in late 2018.

Also on the agenda are plans to enhance the airfield and add new facilities ranging from a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) base, fuel farm, fire rescue station and two multi-storey car parks to a central utilities centre and new power sub-stations and water treatment plant.

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Indeed, such is the size of the project that BAC is effectively building a new gateway on the existing airport site and Al-Binfalah expects that it will transform the airport and people’s perceptions of it.

At 201,000sqm it will be nearly four times the size of the existing 1970s built terminal it will replace and boast a 4,600sqm Departures Hall, centrally located 9,000sqm retail, duty free and F&B zone area, five E-gates for arriving passengers and a host of new airline lounges as well as unique facilities such as a national museum and art gallery.

Both the retail and F&B outlets will also feature a number of local brands to provide a sense of place for visitors, especially the 60% of transfer passengers that never leave the airport.

Al-Binfalah says BAC wants the one-kilometre long building to be Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certified by the US Green Building Council.

It will have 12-gates and will be located next to today’s distinctive ATC tower and air traffic control building.

ADPi won the international tender to design the terminal and supervise its construction. Hill International is the programme manager. BAC is overseeing the project on behalf of the airport owner, Bahrain’s Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications.

He notes that BAC is currently considering what do with the existing terminal building, part of which has to be demolished for the new one, with one potential option on the table being to use it as a dedicated low-cost carrier (LCC) facility.

All add up to a sizeable investment in the airport, but Al-Binfalah is quick to point out that Bahrain is not alone in its commitment to upgrading its

AIRPORT REPORT: BAHRAIN

aviation infrastructure, noting that regional investment in airports is taking place “from Kuwait in the north all the way to Oman in the south and throughout the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia”.

Traffic growth Upon completion of the first eight-gate phase of the new terminal in 2018, the airport will be equipped to handle up to 12 million passengers per annum, the total rising to 14mppa upon the completion of an additional four gates a year later.

It will certainly be needed for although the airport is not expected to beat the record 9mppa it handled in 2010 until 2016, the 8.7 million passengers that are set to pass through its facilities this year will be close to its design capacity.

Al-Binfalah cites the national flag carrier’s resurgence as the key reason for the upturn, although he admits that 2013 was a negative year for the airport due to a number of factors that included the collapse of LCC, Bahrain Air, and the downsizing of Gulf Air after it reduced its fleet to 26 aircraft and axed a number of routes.

Today, Gulf Air boasts a fleet of 28 aircraft and operates services to 42 destinations in 23 countries across a network concentrated on Africa, Asia and Europe.

Its fleet and route network ensure that it is the biggest operator at Bahrain International Airport by some considerable margin, accounting for some 60% of all passengers.

Other airlines serving Bahrain include Air Arabia, Air France, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Etihad, KLM, Qatar, Qantas and Saudi Arabian Airlines.

According to Al-Binfalah, Bahrain’s prominent location in the middle of the Gulf region ensures that its airlines primarily serve destinations in the northern Gulf and Saudi Arabia, whose border is just 25 kilometres from the airport.

However, he is keen to get more routes to expand the airport’s appeal and tells Airport World that the would like to see more new services to Asia and the Far East, in particular China and India.

Indeed, the week after this interview BAC led a government-led trade delegation to China to talk to at least three major Chinese airlines about the possible launch of new services to Bahrain.

Long-term future With the airport surrounded by the city and little room to expand further, Al-Binfalah knows that it is effectively living on borrowed time before it is replaced by a new off-shore gateway, expected to be sometime around 2030.

Indeed, the site for the new airport has been identified and construction of it will be triggered when passenger traffic hit a certain as yet to be revealed annual figure.

Al-Binfalah, however, insists that BAC will refuse to use this as an excuse to simply run down the clock with the no further improvements to the airport’s infrastructure after the completion of the $1billion development programme.

“We know what is planned and what we have to do until the new airport is built,” he says. “We currently handle less than 130,000 aircraft movements per annum but I believe we can handle up to 170,000. There is still room to grow on this site that’s for sure.”

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AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

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SPECIAL REPORT: MASTER PLANNING

Make it memorable Exambela Consulting’s David Feldman and Laure Villeroux take a closer look at airport vision statements and consider why having a vision matters.

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ooking at the airport’s senior management team gathered in the boardroom, The new CEO said: “So, tell me, what does this airport stand for? What makes us unique?

What’s our strategy?”

The questions are met with blank looks and a stony silence from all in the boardroom.

“Tell me this, then,” continued the CEO. “If we don’t know where we’re going, how can we ever expect to get there?”

It is, of course, possible that the management has never been asked these types of questions before. It’s also possible that the new CEO may need to make some changes to his management team over time. But the best place to begin in taking a new direction is by defining a strategy. And a strategy begins with a vision statement.

A well-crafted vision statement – one that clearly, succinctly, and memorably defines the business’ sense of direction – does matter to an airport.

Airports operate in an increasingly competitive environment for passengers, airlines and businesses. For instance, two-thirds of all Europeans live within a two-hour drive of more than one airport. What will be behind the decision to use Airport A instead of Airport B? To thrive, an airport needs to start to say not only what it stands for today, but also where it’s going, why that’s important, and how it will know when it gets there. The vision sets the strategy and, when communicated effectively, pulls stakeholders together in a common cause.

But a vision statement needs to be more than a tagline or a motto on a marble plaque – it drives the airport’s strategy and sets the course to achieve this strategy.

Get it wrong and disgruntled employees snigger at it; get it right and it becomes the rallying cry for all airport stakeholders, binding the airport staff, local community, customers and management to a single, achievable goal.

If key stakeholders don’t collectively buy into the strategy, it probably will fail. A clearly defined vision can unify a management team, breaking them out of their functional or organisational siloes and bringing them together on a common platform from which a more detailed strategy can be developed.

It can also build stronger connections with customers, employees, local communities and political leaders.

Taking the vision statement seriously, combining the aspirations of all stakeholders, is a litmus test of management leadership. The key to achieving this is instilling a sense of pride in the people whose lives are entwined with the fate of the airport.

A regional airport catering for mainly low-cost carriers may not have the cachet of the world’s busiest hub, but it still has a vital role to play in the regional and national economy.

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Why have a vision statement and a mission statement?

First, what a vision statement is not: it’s not a replacement for a strategy. It is a concise expression of the strategy, setting the direction for the airport.

A vision is not a brand, which is the ensemble of the ways that a customer experiences the airport.

A tagline in the vision is frequently used to communicate what the brand represents to customers.

The vision statement ideally says where the airport is heading, and the mission statement says how it intends to get there.

Both should work together, and the words used in each should reflect the culture of the organisation. The vision statement focuses everyone’s attention on their own aspirations for the airport and their own part in the process – what they think is achievable and worth working towards. The mission statement – the ‘how we get there’ part – is equally significant.

In examining different airport vision statements, Exambela Consulting has observed that a successful airport vision statement needs to have a least three characteristics: • It needs to be unique to the airport • it needs to be measurable in one form or another • It needs to be memorable – originality helps.

Without careful consideration of these success factors, the vision statement risks becoming just an illuminated plaque behind the airport headquarters’ entrance, all too easily overlooked and ignored.

To be avoided are vision statements that are three paragraphs long or are so general they could apply to any airport in the world.

For example: “To be a world-class airport providing the highest level of customer service” as no one is going to argue, but no one is going to take much notice either.

Lessons learned from outside the airport sector Before looking at airport vision statements, it’s interesting to look at the vision and mission statements of some successful companies outside of the airport industry.

• Apple: To change the world.

• Starbucks: Our mission: to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighbourhood at a time.

• L’Oréal: To help men and women around the world realise their beauty aspiration, and express their individual personalities to the fullest.

• Disney: To make people happy.

• Kraft: Vision – Helping people around the world eat and live better.

Mission – Make today delicious.

• Southwest: The mission of Southwest is dedication to the highest quality of customer service delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness, individual pride, and the company spirit.

SPECIAL REPORT: MASTER PLANNING

WHAT IS A VISION & MISSION? • Answers the “what” and “why” • Where the organisation wants to be in 5–10 years • What keeps the ogranisation moving forward even against sometimes discouraging odds Where we want to be Vision

• Sufficiently clear and concise that everyone can understand it, remember it, and buy into it with passion • Answers the “how”

What we are doing to get there

Mission

Excluding Apple, all of these statements are very specific to the company and its industry. And they are memorable.

An employee on the shop floor could clearly remember them, and so could a shareholder in any of these companies. For a loyal customer, these vision statements would resonate and probably encourage greater loyalty.

How should this be applied to the airport environment, with all the diverse businesses and functions that can be found there?

Only by recognising that the airport is a unique community and that the service levels of all businesses there reflect directly on the success of the overall operation. The restaurant concession employee might not report to the airport manager, but making passengers smile is an integral part of what differentiates one airport over another.

Successful airport vision statements, successful airports In our experience, a vision statement should not focus on areas such as safety and security, which airlines and passengers should (rightly) take for granted. Do food manufacturers mention that their chocolate bars are safe to eat?

Instead, ask yourself: How will your airport stand out from the crowd? Examples of airports/airport operators getting their vision statement’s right include Amsterdam Schiphol, Dubai Airports, Mumbai–Chhatrapati Shivaji and TAV Airports.

Amsterdam Schiphol states: “Schiphol Group views an airport as an airport city, a dynamic hub integrating people and businesses, logistics and shops, information and entertainment.”

Dubai Airports says: “We are driven to change the course of aviation history, and to achieve our vision of being the world’s leading airport company.”

Chhatrapati Shivaji declares: “To be one of the world’s best airports that consistently deliights customers and to be the pride of Mumbai.”

TAV Airports states: “A diversified and integrated business in airports, which will create connectivity ending up with productivity.”

Why do we like the examples above? Because they say clearly what the airport is; they think in the long-term, without sounding generic; and they focus on those areas where their airports compete and can make a difference.

• The raison d’être for the organisation, why it exists, what it does • Must be re-examined and refreshed periodically if an organisation is to remain dynamic In addition they have a specific objective: for example, in terms of market, of customer satisfaction, or of size/performance; they are inspiring and challenging, with a desirable goal; and they keep it simple.

Something in the vision has to be specific to the airport, going beyond the generic and reflecting the character and aspirations of the city the airport serves. Amsterdam Schiphol, for instance, was one of the pioneers of the airport city concept, and its vision statement clearly reflects this core identity.

Dubai Airport, on the other hand, focuses on its game-changing role in the global air transport sector. And even though it talks about being the world’s leading airport company – what seems like a generic statement – in the case of Dubai, it’s possible; it reflects what, in fact, Dubai Airport and Emirates Airlines are doing.

For the shareholders of the GVK-led Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport Ltd, which acquired the concession to develop and manage Mumbai’s airport, it was extremely important to set a new bar in quality, but they also wanted to create a sense of pride that was historically lacking for India’s largest city.

While in its vision statement TAV Airports emphasises its strategy to develop synergies with its portfolio of airports and airport services companies.

How will you measure success?

Being ‘world-class’ cannot be measured, yet the phrase is used all too often. So, too, are generic adjectives and superlatives such as the world’s ‘best’ or ‘biggest’, which are usually meaningless.

Indeed, passengers and airlines value concrete achievements such as ‘America’s most on-time airport airport’ far more than being the world’s best.

A relatively new trend is for airports to come up with very specific goals in their vision statements.

In 2010, for example, Munich Airport set a clear five-year time frame and established three criteria – to be one of the most attractive, efficient and sustainable hub airports in the world – for which the airport detailed how success would be measured.

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

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SPECIAL REPORT: MASTER PLANNING LINKING VISION WITH STRATEGY

3-Year Strategy & Road Map

Long-Term Vision • Often reflects the dream of the leadership team • Typically developed top-down • Must be sufficiently clear and concise that everyone understands it and can buy into it with passion CHALLENGES

Tendency to do it once and then forget about it

• One or more plans that are used to make the vision a reality • Typically developed by each department in support of the vision, but with very specific year-byyear KPIs based on international benchmarks

The really hard part, but where few airports devote sufficient resources

An ambitious goal, certainly, but by 2014 it became evident through the various measures that the airport had put in place that it was going to achieve its goal.

Consequently, the airport leadership set the new goal of becoming Europe’s five-star airport in the Skytrax survey.

Warsaw Chopin Airport provides another example of a measurable airport vision statement. Here again, its vision statement – to be the leading East Central European airport with respect to the quality of service, number of passengers and performance by 2020 – contains a specific time frame, a specific market and specific goals.

Make it memorable Keep it simple. If an employee can’t remember the vision statement, chances are it won’t work. And if a vision statement is more than one sentence, chances are an employee can’t remember it.

Embracing this concept, Bahrain Airport came up with ‘A friendly, efficient airport for a proud country’, easy-to-understand and easy-toremember vision that positions the airport in a unique way, compared to neighbouring super hubs such as Dubai.

Indeed, this short vision statement successfully turns the focus on three keywords: friendly, efficient and proud. All employees in their everyday work can keep these in mind, and all are very specific to Bahrain.

Another good example of being short and succinct is Copenhagen Airport’s one time vision of ‘Largest in Scandinavia, most efficient in Europe, best in the world’.

Why? Because the objectives are clear and simple, and even if ‘best in the world’ is slightly tongue-in-cheek, it sets the tone; it’s definitely memorable for its ambition. Everyone from the employee on the ramp to the Board knows where the airport wants to be.

Arguably just as memorable is Denver International Airport’s ‘To be America’s favourite connecting hub, where the Rocky Mountains meet the world’.

Its statement is based on the realisation that much of its growth potential comes from capitalising on its strategic location at the heart of the US, ample capacity to expand and relatively modern facilities to further develop its route network.

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Annual Operating Plan • Forecasts, budgets • Quantifies the specific actions and results • Scenario plans to model and analyse the risks • Identifies next steps, required involvement and conditions for success

Most airports typically get caught up in the near term, too often managing the crisis of the moment

Now the hard part begins Developing a compelling vision statement is hard work. It requires multiple rounds and a lot of frank discussion. Then, if the vision has any chance of being realised, a robust three to five year strategic plan also needs to be developed.

The next step in the process is even harder: it involves communicating this vision and translating it into clear, measurable objectives.

This means working together and making sure department-by-department, year-by-year objectives and key performance indicators (KPIs) filter down through the organisation. It also means tracking the measures constantly.

The problem is that it’s all too easy to avoid the hard work and slip back into the day-to-day, managing the crisis of the moment. After all, what manager was hired to write a vision statement?

In actuality, this is when vision statements truly come into their own. They become reminders of what the real goals are for the organisation, so the ever-longer list of priorities and projects can be constantly re-framed within the context of the overall vision or, in some cases, junked altogether because they do not add value.

Reaching for the stars…one step at a time When it comes to picking the winners in today’s increasingly competitive airport environment, there is no such thing as ‘one-sizefits-all’. While some parts of the world, such as China and India, are witnessing an era of unprecedented airport growth, others like Europe have entered an era of unprecedented airport contraction.

A compelling vision statement can be a pivotal part of the process of defining what will make your airport come out on top. It brings everyone together to define, plan and then implement a focused and concrete strategy.

If you do it well, the result will be that everyone gains a new understanding of their contribution and value to the overall success of the business.

The airport’s goals which, at first, seemed abstract and remote, become gratifyingly real and definitely achievable In that way, the vision statement becomes much more than just the plaque behind the entrance.

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SPECIAL REPORT: MASTER PLANNING Face of the future: Kenya Jomo Kenyatta’s new terminal.

Image courtesy of Pascall + Watson Architects Ltd.

Planning ahead Each airport development programme is a unique project and should be treated this way to ensure the planning and design of efficient, flexible terminals, writes Louis Berger’s vice president for global aviation, Javier Gonzalez.

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ith passenger and cargo traffic expected to grow by around 5% per annum for at least the next 15 years, demand for new and updated airports has arguably never been so high.

Planners have, of course, many issues and stakeholders to take into consideration when building a new airport or renovating, modernising or expanding an existing facility.

Among other things this means that an airport’s layout must be purposefully planned and designed to support an array of carefully balanced services and facilities from landside to airside and from customer-facing areas to the backend.

An airport’s location, customers (airlines and passengers), peak travel times, stakeholder interests and construction budgets are among many variables in planning a new or renovated airport.

Louis Berger’s global footprint has allowed us to participate in some of the world’s most dynamic airport constructions and rehabilitations – each mandating a unique approach to airport master planning.

And experience has taught us many lessons in how to plan, design and build airports that operate safely and efficiently. They include the fact that airport planning requires a specific fit that will meet the 21st century needs of users and stakeholders.

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Below are some of the lessons we’ve learned over the years from aviation assignments in nearly 80 countries.

Airport and passenger profiles A first planning step is to assess the new or updated airport’s profile. Is it located in a tourist destination that mainly serves leisure travellers? Is it likely to be used mostly for business passengers? Is it a mix of both? Is the airport a hub or a destination airport with relatively few connecting flights?

An airport in a tourist destination, such as Jamaica’s expanded Sangster International Airport, is likely to have most passengers arrive and depart in charter buses and hotel shuttles, affecting kerb lengths and check-in counter queues.

Tourist airports have – in general – less busy periods throughout the day, causing higher peak hours and generally requiring expanded areas in passenger processing facilities.

The volume of tourists’ luggage may exceed that of business travellers, a consideration in baggage handling systems and facilities design.

SPECIAL REPORT: MASTER PLANNING Geographic location matters, too. In South East Asia, for example, passengers carry a lot of luggage, whereas in the US, checked bags are statistically substantially lower.

As a result of the regional differences, hubs like Bangkok Suvarnabhumi typically accommodate a lot of baggage transfers.

It therefore requires robust baggage handling facilities as well as a clear directional visual information system and easy to navigate circulation areas to facilitate the flow of passengers on connecting flights.

Annual, seasonal and peak hour passenger and cargo forecasts also are needed. An airport’s traffic is affected by its country’s gross domestic product, the market profile of the region, accommodation capacity in the vicinity and whether it has significant hub traffic.

Forecasts help determine an airport’s size and projected lifecycle.

In Yucatan, Mexico, Louis Berger performed traffic forecasts for the new Riviera Maya Airport, accounting for likely growth in hotel and other tourist accommodations through 2025.

Air traffic forecasts were established for the new airport as well as for the existing Cancún and Cozumel airports during this period, keeping in mind potential competition between them. Our analysis included passenger traffic, cargo volumes, aircraft movements and peak travel times.

Sized for peak hours Determining peak travel times is essential in the sizing of an airport. Tourism destinations can have the most pronounced peak hours, correlating with hotel check-out times and/or the most desirable departure times from their primary originating markets.

A hub airport also tends to have pronounced peak hours as operations are concentrated to facilitate flight transfers. An airport used largely for business travel can also have marked busy periods, generally early or late on weekdays.

Use of an airport also can vary by season, notably in tourist destinations. These airports may need a more flexible layout to accommodate partial closures – if needed, and operationally feasible – during off-season to save on staff and utility costs.

Peak travel forecasts will dictate the number of gates, the size and design of passenger processing areas, airport and terminal systems, and other facilities. Airport use patterns also can impact concession space to be provided in addition to the general layout and type of offerings.

We use time-tested programming tools and schemes to forecast airport traffic and establish the best airport design and size.

Because numbers only tell half the story, our analysts ensure that figures are being applied accurately and comprehensively. That not only goes for how the traffic forecasts impact the airport terminal design, but also the airfield, taxiways, cargo facilities, warehouses and other buildings and support facilities onsite.

There must be a balanced relationship between the size and capacity of the airport terminal and other services and facilities.

Balancing demand with capacity Another step in airport planning is to compare projected demand to capacity. We look at the passenger processing times and how many people can be accommodated in the terminal and other facilities.

This exercise is an essential component of the planning process and ensures adequate service levels.

For example, Louis Berger performed a demand/capacity study for Arturo Merino Benitez International Airport in Santiago, Chile, determining through 2027 the maximum traffic existing facilities could handle while providing positive service levels as established by IATA. The capacity of an airport terminal is measured in peak hour passengers. Cargo areas are calculated in annual tonnage, while runway capacity is measured in peak hour operations. The master plan for any airport, no matter its location or size, is based on the projected forecasts.

Rebuilding or expanding an existing airport poses different challenges than that of an airport in a new location, greenfield or both.

An existing airport must continue to function during construction. Passenger processing areas, baggage handling systems, runways, access roads and other facilities cannot be shut down, but their use must sometimes be restricted to make room for construction activities. That requires an extra level of phasing in the planning and design process.

There are fewer restrictions at a greenfield passenger terminal, such as the new facility at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport outside Nairobi, Kenya.

The new terminal complex will include a rail link, roads and surrounding aircraft aprons. But a new site poses its own issues such as environmental protection, new road and utility access and working with surrounding property.

Once the best design and size of an expanded or new airport is determined, the preferred option is selected and presented.

Many stakeholders will review the plans, including the airport operator, the airlines, security interests, ground handlers and government agencies. A feasibility analysis will estimate capital and operating costs and projected revenue.

No-one-size-fits-all model Although no standard model exists for airport design, ongoing changes in technology and security promise to impact most airports.

The IATA-ACI Security Access and Egress (SAE) project, for example, was created to speed processing times through security control points and reduce queuing times by using current technology and existing infrastructure.

Other worldwide programmes being implemented at airports include automated border control (ABC), aimed at expediting the processing flow of low-risk passengers through international borders without compromising their integrity.

IATA’s inBag project focuses on reducing the percentage of mishandled bags worldwide.

The most widely known programme, though, is the Fast Travel initiative, which provides passengers with control alternatives over the journey through time-saving self-service options, including automatic check-in, bag check, document check, flight rebooking, boarding and bag recovery.

These programmes and others being implemented (or piloted) are aimed at creating a ‘hassle-free’ passenger experience at airports. They do, however, present constant challenges, making airport planning and design in our era of exciting technological advances a constantly evolving practice that AW must keep pace with the times.

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

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Maximising the brand Interbrand Germany’s managing director, Nina Oswald, considers five trends she believes will help make airports destinations in their own right and revolutionise the airport travel retail experience.

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uelled by strategic brand partnerships and the customer-centric use of technology, are airports turning into our new ‘third place’?

Starbucks has, of course, long made the claim that its brand is the third place for people after the social environments of home and work. So in the context of travel, can airports ever become so popular that people actually want to visit and spend time at them on a journey, in effect becoming our third place after home and end destination?

And, if so, what does this mean for travel retail experiences in the future? Does the role of retail brands have to change? And what role do airport brands play in this context?

Changing times Traditionally, being in-transit has been the least enjoyable part of travel for many people. In fact, a large percentage find simply reaching their intended destinations to be the best part of the journey.

Fortunately, many airports are busy figuring out how to make the customer experience more efficient, relevant, and enjoyable. They are working to become more than just airports. And using technology in a more customer-focused way helps airports evolve into digitally enhanced destination brands.

In addition to testing out innovations, airports are partnering with food and retail outlets as well as airlines to offer travellers a more enjoyable, convenient experience while shopping in transit.

Technology certainly promises to make the flying experience easier, but airports may see their greatest financial opportunities in non-flying revenue.

Faster ticketing, check-in and security processes mean that travellers may potentially spend more time at the airport. If the airport itself becomes a desirable destination, passengers won’t mind lingering. Some may even arrive earlier or stay longer simply because it’s a fun place to be, while non-travellers might come just to experience what the airport has to offer.

Multi-media entertainment, transmitters that send messages about retail discounts, and virtual shopping walls featuring QR codes will all be part of a seamless experience that entices travellers to stay longer and spend more.

At its best, the airport is an integrator in which practical technology applications and direct partnerships with other brands can create “joined up experiences”.

I believe the following five trends will revolutionise the travel retail experience of the future.

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

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SPECIAL REPORT: MASTER PLANNING Beyond time and space

Purchasing with purpose

Shopping does not require a predetermined sequence of events in a certain location in which a person needs to close the deal.

Online and mobile shopping, for example, makes it possible to gather information, choose products, pay for merchandise and organise delivery outside of a brick and mortar store, fundamentally changing the economics of retail space.

Some consumers will still go out of their way to see and experience the merchandise first hand. Instead of focusing on the actual duty free retail sales at the airport, it will be more significant to see how many people are convinced to purchase before, during or after their travel retail experience.

Physical retail spaces at airports will need to take on a new role, offering an integrated experience – a unique, memorable moment within the traveller’s journey.

It will be important to connect and stay connected with passengers before and after they walk through the store. This will also change how we calculate the value of individual retail spaces – for both retailers and airports.

Many retailers have successfully moved towards a conscious design and evolution of their merchandise categories. Products and brands are selected based on their fit within a greater theme.

Shoppers return to discover new stories brought to life through dynamic arrangements of products and artifacts. Concept stores reinvent themselves on a regular basis. Digital and interactive interfaces augment the space and become storytelling devices.

In becoming the new “third place” for mobile people to relax, shop, work and be entertained, airports need to meet customer expectations and tell overarching stories.

People want to purchase with purpose: confronted with mindboggling volumes of information, consumers now expect brands to act as filters and curators.

Indeed, faced with a surplus of choices, consumers tend to engage only with the content and offers that are personally relevant to them.

Today, many people are better acquainted with their screens than their neighbours – and a desire for genuine connections and authentic, meaningful experiences remains.

Brands that understand these needs – for the complex to be simplified, the random to be made relevant, and the impersonal to be made personal – have opportunities to get closer to consumers, play a key role in their lives, and connect in new ways.

From an omni-channel to a brand experience A touchpoint can have a stronger impact when people interact with it in a different context. Strategic partnerships frequently extend the physical travel retail experience into mobile environments.

For retailers, services make it possible to embed content in a browsing routine and place targeted incentives to draw customers to retail locations, resulting in planned buying behaviour in a highly competitive retail environment.

Airport brands need to understand that a holistic service design and specific mobile-based service offers are key differentiators in their overall brand experience, and a very effective marketing and selling tool to drive non-flying revenues.

A stage or a curator?

Most airport retail spaces arrange personalised brand concepts next to each other like a chain of pearls. Indeed, retail managers rarely take an active role in curating the elements that make the overall experience.

As a result, stores compete for attention while the airport brand plays a less visible role. The focus of these efforts is maximising the profitability of each retail space, not on creating an overarching experience.

Times are changing, however, as more airports than ever before are beginning to realise the potential of strengthening their own brands to become more desirable destinations with carefully selected individual experiences.

This new role challenges the authority of world-class brands and demands a more customised, localised approach to each unique retail environment.

As curators, airports need to be venue creators, not just store managers. Today’s consumers no longer depend on stores – they can do just about all of their shopping at the touch of a button.

Retailers need to work even harder to create a unique multi-sensory experience for their customers, and offer something that is unavailable online. This means creating more memorable in-store experiences, communicating a strong point of view, developing captivating environments, and encouraging audiences that are hungry for more.

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Getting personal As tech innovations continue to dominate the global marketplace, consumers long for a personal touch when it comes to their retail and brand experiences.

Our interpersonal connections greatly influence our perceptions of authenticity. Direct contact with experts, such as craftsmen, producers and artisans can convince us of the quality of a product or service.

Employees who emphasise service and “live the brand” enhance the customer experience and build trust.

While the connection between authenticity and performance may be challenging to quantify, the experience – long with all of the human moments and personal touches that bring it to life – definitely contributes to a brand’s value.

To stay ahead of the curve, retailers will need to provide high levels of personalised service and experiences. They need to not just fulfill, but anticipate the needs and preferences of their customers.

Data is the key – collecting, gaining insights from it and putting these findings to work. In this sense, adopting digitally integrated mechanisms offers a huge potential advantage to retailers.

Summary Airports will take on a new role in people’s lives. Instead of just providing the infrastructure to travel from point A to point B, they are becoming destinations and brands themselves.

Non-aeronautical revenues are an important area of future growth, and the travel retail experience is at the heart of it.

In addition to expecting a variety of world-class retail brands at airports, customers seek a unique travel experience that tells an overarching story, giving purpose to their purchase and connecting with them on a personal level.

Today and in years to come, airports will need to focus more on people’s individual needs, on partners and brands within their AW environment, and on being a relevant space in the mobile world.

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SPECIAL REPORT: MASTER PLANNING

Built for extreme weather Stantec’s Noel Best reflects on the innovative design of the planned new terminal building at Iqaluit in Canada’s frozen north.

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n Canada’s far north, the temperature can plunge to minus 50F (minus 45C), winds can reach hurricane speeds, and winter is locked in perpetual night.

This extreme climate creates significant design challenges for the new Iqaluit International Airport terminal, where passenger comfort, an efficient building envelope, and natural light become top priorities.

Iqaluit is the capital of Nunavut, the territory that stretches across the eastern half of the Canadian Arctic.

Although a small town, it is the legislative, commercial and administrative centre, and the hub for connecting flights to many smaller communities.

There are no roads to Iqaluit – access is exclusively by air and by sea, the latter only for the brief months of summer. The airport takes on a primary role in the capital, not only as the key transportation facility, but also as a central meeting place for the community.

The Iqaluit International Airport Improvement Project, currently under construction, and with a budget of $130 million, has three components: the upgrade of the runway; a combined-services building; and a new greenfield terminal building.

The new complex is needed as the current terminal, dating from 1986, is too small and will be retrofitted for new functions.

Iqaluit is North America’s first P3 greenfield airport terminal project to be constructed. Three international consortia were shortlisted for the competition to provide a package that includes financing, design, construction and maintenance and operation for 30 years.

Arctic Infrastructure Partners won the bid, with Bouygues Building Canada as contractor, Winnipeg Airport Authority as operator, and Stantec as designer.

The innovative, compact design proposed by Stantec was key to the winning P3 bid. Through creative passenger-flow planning, the walking distances from entrance to gate were dramatically shortened, and the area of the terminal was reduced without compromising the level of service.

Furthermore, the terminal was designed so that loading bridges can serve a wide range of aircraft gauges without the need for an upper level. Stairs, elevators and escalators have all been eliminated from passenger flow in response to the relatively high proportion of passengers with mobility challenges.

The design of the 10,000sqm terminal has taken into account Iqaluit’s extreme weather conditions in innovative ways.

The major challenge for buildings in this climate is to avoid the heat from the building melting the frozen “permafrost” below.

Many of Iqaluit’s buildings are built on stilts to let the wind blow beneath, but the terminal building is too large for that, so a system of thermosyphons will be installed under the concrete slab, which will dissipate heat in order to keep the permafrost intact.

The snowfall in Iqaluit never melts, so blowing and drifting snow is a major determinant in the building form and orientation. The roof shape for the terminal is a soft continuous curve that allows the prevailing wind to scour it clean of snow, and on the lee side, wind scoops use that same wind force to direct the large drifts away from the building perimeter.

The cost of energy in Iqaluit is very high, and therefore it is critical that the building be as efficient as possible. The Stantec design meets these rigorous performance criteria with high double height spaces in the middle of the building that allow the low winter sun to penetrate deep into both the public areas and the offices beyond.

The central rotunda, which evokes the circular form of the igloo, is a natural public assembly space for community events, and an opportunity for the installation of art reflecting the Inuit culture.

The terminal will be a dramatic and passenger-friendly building that will form the heart of this unique, remote community.

AW

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AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

33

Bechtel applied IATA standards when preparing the master plan and terminal design for Hamad International Airport.

SPECIAL REPORT: MASTER PLANNING

Guide to success Bechtel’s Steve Riano tells Airport World about the 10th edition update of IATA’s Airport Development Reference Manual, which is designed to act as an industry guide for airport master planning.

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or the past 40 years IATA’s Airport Development Reference Manual (ADRM) has defined excellence in airport design and has been the gold standard guidebook to assist thousands of airport owners, airport consultants and airlines around the world with successful airport development decision-making.

According to IATA, it brings together aviation industry best practices with respect to the development of world-class airports through better comprehension, briefing and design.

The manual’s content, it says, represents the consolidated recommendations of world-renowned industry specialists and organisations seeking to promote the development of sustainable world-class airport facilities.

IATA, in collaboration with ACI, has now published its 10th edition update of the ADRM, which has been transformed to address the ever-evolving aviation industry.

Redefining the framework The most relied upon industry standard in the ADRM is the Level of Service (LoS) concept for airport terminal design.

LoS for airport terminals was originally developed by Transport Canada in the 1970s based on the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) guidelines for highway design and work done by John Fruin for the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey’s bus and train terminals.

Both methods used ‘A through F’ system of classifications, ranging from excellent to system breakdown. IATA adopted this method and it has been the cornerstone of the ADRM for years.

As groundbreaking and ubiquitous as IATA’s airport terminal LoS system has been, the ADRM 10th edition redefines the LoS framework

and modernises capacity calculations to introduce a new ‘Space-Time’ concept, which seeks to find the optimum balance between available space and acceptable waiting times without over-designing or under-providing facilities (See diagram on page 36).

In addition, the new system includes a range of values for space and time that reflects the global nature of the aviation market where different regions require modification of the airport environment to match their service needs.

The new ‘Space-Time’ concept is consistent with IATA’s modernised static capacity calculations included in the ADRM 10th edition as well as dynamic airport passenger terminal simulation modeling, such as CAST Terminal.

Collaborative effort with ACI Recognising the importance and value of a truly collaborative effort, IATA has worked closely with the airport industry to ensure that critical ACI initiatives were taken into consideration during the ADRM update process.

ACI World’s assistant director for facilitation and airport IT, Arturo Garcia-Alonso, led the organisation’s efforts on the project.

And at the official launch of the 10th edition earlier this year he described the importance of contractual service level frameworks between airport owners and airport operators, and explained the commonalities of ACI’s Airport Service Quality (ASQ) programme with IATA’s LoS system.

Garcia-Alonso also spoke of the importance of incorporating joint ACI-IATA programmes into the latest ADRM update.

He was referring to initiatives such as the Smart Security programme, a combination of ACI’s ‘Better Security’ programme and

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

35

SPECIAL REPORT: MASTER PLANNING

A new ‘Space-Time’ concept seeks to find the optimum balance between available space and acceptable waiting times without over-designing or under-providing facilities.

IATA’s Checkpoint of the Future; Airport Community Recommended Information Services (ACRIS), which allows airports, airlines, and service providers to better communicate; and the Automated Border Control (ABC) and Automated Passport Control (APC) self-service passenger processing systems.

Airport Consultants Council peer review In addition to collaborating with ACI, IATA was keen to incorporate the views of the airport development consultant community in drafting the new ADRM. As a result, on behalf of the Airport Consultants Council (ACC), I acted as the team leader of a technical peer review of the draft modules on master planning, forecasting and terminal design prepared by IATA to ensure that key aspects of airport planning, design and development from the consultant’s perspective were represented in the update.

I believe that the ACC’s involvement in this process ensured that the manual incorporated a comprehensive set of peer review comments from an ACC member firm (Bechtel) with subject matter experts and real world experience.

From a Bechtel experience I can confirm that we often used the IATA ADRM to guide joint decision-making, most recently when we worked on developing the new master plan for Sharjah International Airport in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Sharjah is the third largest emirate in the UAE in size and population and is located immediately north of Dubai. The airport is the home base for Air Arabia, the Middle East’s first and largest low cost carrier, and the master plan was part of a broader business planning and capital improvement effort.

36

CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF AIRPORT WORLD

Virtually accessible While previous versions of the ADRM were only available in traditional bound paper format, the 10th edition is entirely electronic and delivered through licensed copies via an interactive CD ROM. This ensures that the reference manual is virtually accessible either via laptop or cloud computing and easily updateable when new information is available.

Indeed, users can now search for key words and use hyperlinks to access specific ADRM sections or other relevant external sources.

New modules The latest release of the ADRM also includes additional modules on Airside Infrastructure, Cargo Terminal, Baggage Handling System, Passenger Security Screening (amended chapter), Operational Readiness and Training and Airport Automated People Mover Systems, which are now available to existing license holders and new users alike.

Future releases will include Surface Access Systems, Airport Support Elements and Simulation Modelling.

For further information, contact IATA at adrm@iata.org or visit http://www.iata.org/publications/Pages/airport-development.aspx You won’t regret it!

AW

About the author Steve Riano is an aviation business development manager as well as professional technical specialist for airport planning with Bechtel’s global aviation business, which has successfully managed or delivered some of the largest airport projects in the world.

SPECIAL REPORT: MASTER PLANNING

Frankfurt Airport Construction of its new €3 billion Terminal set to begin before year-end.

project details Location: Frankfurt Airport

Important developments:

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rankfurt Airport has confirmed its intention to start work on the construction of its new Terminal 3 later this year.

The decision comes after a comprehensive and detailed analysis of an audit study commissioned by the Hesse state government to assess the airport’s future capacity requirements.

The €3 billion terminal will be located in the southern part of the airport on the site of the former US military base.

Construction will be done on a modular basis in two building phases. The first phase, which was approved in August 2014, covers the building of the main terminal complex with two piers and 24 building positions.

The new terminal is being designed to accommodate up to 14 million passengers per annum.

It will be connected to the existing terminals (T1 and T2) and airport train stations by Frankfurt Airport’s Sky Line people-mover system, which is to be extended.

The first phase development programme also includes the construction of roads and access facilities around Terminal 3 as well as an additional motorway slip road.

Airport operator, Fraport, says that the new complex will boost its capacity and increase its green credentials as it is expected to be one of the most energy efficient terminal buildings in Europe.

Indeed, the airport claims that Terminal 3 won’t use any fossil energy sources or rely on the external supply of external energy for heating, which is in line with Fraport’s commitment to reduce its CO2 emission levels.

Fraport claims its decision to start construction this year is based on expert studies by two independent research institutes on Frankfurt Airport’s forecast passenger growth.

New Terminal 3 The studies forecast that passenger volumes at Frankfurt will rise to between 68 million and 73 million passengers per annum by 2021, ensuring that the airport’s current design capacity of 64mppa will be exceeded in the next six years.

“Frankfurt Airport is Germany’s largest place of employment and serves as the ‘Gateway to the World’ for the state of Hesse and Germany as a whole. The new Terminal 3 will underscore this role and thus further strengthen our region,” said Fraport’s executive board chairman, Dr Stefan Schulte.

Fraport’s CFO, Dr Matthias Zieschang, added: “With an investment volume of between €2.5 billion and €3 billion, Terminal 3 will be one of Germany’s largest infrastructure projects.

“Refraining from using a single general contractor for the entire terminal construction, Fraport will instead award targetted multiple contracts to various companies performing specific tasks related to the project.

“This method already proved successful with the new Pier A-Plus at Terminal 1 that was inaugurated in 2012 on schedule and on budget.

“In addition, this method allows regional companies to offer their expertise and thus to benefit from the construction of the new terminal.”

Fraport will soon issue an EU-wide notice and invitation to tender for the first phase of the excavation works on the site of the future Terminal 3.

Due to the time frame required for the EU tender process, the excavation works are scheduled to start towards the end of the year.

Construction time for the terminal is scheduled to take place over a period of seven years to ensure it opens for business in 2022.

Scheduled opening date: 2022

Principal companies involved: TBC

Total investment: Up to €3 billion

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

AW

39

ASQ AWARDS

You’ve been framed Airport World provides a picture round up of this year’s Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Awards Ceremony, which took place at ACI Asia-Pacific’s Regional Assembly, Conference & Exhibition in Jordan.

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wards galore, people punching the air with delight, men holding bouquets of flowers and others dancing long into the night can only mean one thing, ACI’s annual Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Awards Ceremony, which this year took place against the spectacular backdrop of the Dead Sea. It is almost hard not to mention Incheon International Airport and ASQ in the same breath these days, such has been its incredible success in the customer satisfaction survey over the past decade, and it didn’t disappoint by collecting two awards.

The look of joy on the face of Incheon’s president and CEO, Park Wan-su, when picking up the award for winning the over 40mppa

and Incheon’s president ens, celebrates with general, Angela Gitt after presenting ok wo Kig Jan ACI World director der on lea (right) and labour uni CEO, Park Wan-su 40mppa category. for winning the Over ard aw the h wit ort the airp

Guayaquil was anothe r double winner, tak ing the top honour in Caribbean and 2-5 the Latin America & mppa categories.

category also told everyone in the audience what it meant to him and his team.

And he wasn’t alone as it was smiles all round for over 25 airports receiving awards on the night and some, like Hyderabad, Queen Alia, Taipei Taoyuan and Incheon did so in style with up to a dozen members of staff on stage posing for pictures.

Some have called the ASQ awards the airport industry’s equivalent of The Oscars, and while that claim might be a bit ambitious there is no denying that the buzz of excitement created by the annual awards or venues like the Dead Sea wouldn’t look out of place in Hollywood.

h en Alia, whic e airport, Que ved for hom gories. te sa e ca er st w Ea an e rd iddl e night in Jo ovement: M cheers of th the Best Impr The loudest e East and dl id M e th in e Best won both th

Sir Seewoosagu r Ramgoolam Int ernational Airpo Africa and Best rt in Mauritius wo Improvement: Af n the Best in rica crowns.

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

41

SMART ATLANTA

Get SMART!

Airport development and master planning was top of the agenda at the recent SMART Airports & Regions Conference and Exhibition in Atlanta, writes Joe Bates.

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nnovative airport design, sustainable growth and master plans for the creation of new commercial developments on airport land or just over the fence were all part of the programme of the first SMART Airports conference held in the US. Arguably the highlight of Day 1 was an aviation leaders panel chaired by CNN news anchor and chief business correspondent, Christine Romans, which helped draw a bumper crowd of close to 500 delegates to the opening sessions.

Romans, a well-known face in the US, moderated a panel that contained Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport’s Miguel Southwell; Vancouver International Airport’s Craig Richmond; Miami’s Emilio Gonzalez; Philadelphia International Airport’s Mark Gale and Delta’s Holden Shannon.

Southwell, Hartsfield-Jackson’s aviation general manager, noted that the role of Hartsfield-Jackson is a city or region’s chief tool for economic development and driving jobs.

A key member of the Atlanta Aerotropolis Alliance, Southwell noted that co-operating, collaborating and working with the City of Atlanta and the many different jurisdictions and municipalities surrounding Hartsfield-Jackson alone took up around 40% of his time.

Richmond, president and CEO of Vancouver Airport Authority, said some of the reasons behind the popularity and success of YVR included its ‘sense of place’ artwork, reputation for delivering top quality customer service, retail innovation, growing route network and investment in new technology such as its Border Express kiosks, which it has since exported to a number of US airports.

“Route development is good for the economy. We plan to add five million more passengers per annum by 2020 and that equates to between 5,000 and 7,000 new jobs for the region,” stated Richmond.

Gonzalez noted that MIA was the biggest economic engine in Florida by generating $33.7 billion in economic impact each year and employing a quarter of the population of southern Florida.

“If an airport is not breathing life into the economy, there is something wrong,” he said, revealing that this importance to the social and economic prosperity of communities came with its own pressures as making mistakes could have huge ramifications for a lot of people.

“I don’t want to be the one that screws things up,” he joked.

Philadelphia International Airport CEO, Mark Gale, admitted that his airport was landlocked by surrounding developments, which made it hard for it to establish its own aerotropolis.

In answering a question about what one piece of regulation he would change, Gale stated that he believed the current US legislation for funding and promoting airport development needed an overhaul as it “shackled” many gateways.

The conference opened with a welcome address by the deputy mayor of Atlanta, Cesar Mitchell, president of Atlanta City Council, and the mayor of College Park, Jack Longino.

42

CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF AIRPORT WORLD

Mitchell praised the regional leadership of Folz and the Atlanta Aerotropolis Alliance and work and vision of Southwell in his second stint as Hartsfield-Jackson after working for the gateway earlier his career.

He noted that airports had become central to people’s everyday lives and business, calling them “places of connectivity, innovation, culture, economic delivery and gateways to the world.”

“Our airport is great, and if we work on our strengths we will continue to be great, but if we want to get even better the way forward is to work on improving our weaknesses,” said Mitchell.

During his presentation, Southwell reiterated his belief that airports are a key economic tool for cities and regions and places where people can work, rest and play.

Meanwhile, Joe Folz, chairman of the Atlanta Aerotropolis Alliance and vice president and general counsel and secretary of Porsche Cars North America – which relocated its North American HQ to Atlanta because of the existence of Hartsfield-Jackson – said he was proud that the company’s new $120 million facility was just a 10 minute drive from ATL. “Being located here was perfect for Porsche as it makes visiting us and our Experience Centre, the first outside of Europe, within a day’s reach of 80% of the population of the USA,” enthused Folz.

The driving force behind the formation of the Atlanta Aerotropolis Alliance, Doug Hooker, executive director of the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), told delegates: “The alliance seeks to leverage the airport’s economic power to increase economic development, mobility and quality of life and presence for communities neighbouring the airport.

“The Alliance is focused on creating a business hub centred on Hartsfield-Jackson, attracting more corporate headquarters, businesses, retail, jobs and housing. Such a hub is critical to the success of our region.

“There are tens of thousands of people living in this area and the more jobs we can bring closet to their homes, the less congestion we will have in other places around the region.”

In a dedicated session on master planning, Lambert-St Louis International Airport’s director, Rhonda Hamm-Niebruegge, explained how the airport had to reset its goals and ambitions to match today’s status as the 31st biggest US airport compared to the eighth busiest back in 1999.

She said this had meant coming up with a new 20-year master plan to replace one that previously focused on its major hub status (based on the presence of hub carriers TWA and then American), formulating

SMART ATLANTA

strategic five year plans and focusing on the key goals of financial stability, sustaining and growing air service, enhancing the customer experience and economic development.

Economic development included finding ways of raising the airport’s non-aeronautical related revenues to help pay off its $1 billion debt associated with opening of the fourth runway in 2007, noted Hamm-Niebruegge.

“We have gone from being a major hub to a medium hub and needed to revise our master plan to reflect this,” she remarked.

“We have also engaged with the community to reassure them about the value of the airport and that that we are going in the right direction.

“We are still a major economic engine with 265 flights a day to 68 destinations and a workforce of 6,000 taking into account all the tenants. People had forgotten this because they wanted what we had before, but that’s history now.”

Berlin Brandenburg Airport’s head of corporate planning and strategy, Uwe Hörmann, admitted that it would be a challenge for the city’s existing airport infrastructure to keep up with demand, improve passenger customer satisfaction levels and boost nonaeronautical revenues until the much-delayed opening of the new airport finally happens in 2017.

However, such has been the delay in its opening – Germany’s new €4.3 billion Berlin Brandenburg Airport was meant to be unveiled in 2012 – that Hörmann noted that its opening capacity of 27mppa would now not be enough to accommodate demand on its own, meaning that one of the city’s existing gateways would have to remain open.

That would most likely be Schönefeld, he told Airport World, despite it only handling 7.2 million of the near 28 million passengers

to use Berlin’s airports in 2014, as keeping its existing facilities open would effectively be like operating two airports on the same site.

In a highly entertaining session about innovative airport design and development, Alliance’s Eric Peterson revealed how his firm often based its designs on key words or images identified by clients or various stakeholders during the planning process.

He explained that this involved picking words, phrases or images that “most resonated with people” about an airport or location.

The process, he said, led to the ‘landscape’ and progressive, forward looking ‘spirit’ of Little Rock providing the inspiration for the design of Bill and Hilary Clinton National Airport’s new terminal, while ‘culture’ (music, art, the civil rights movement etc) was the driving force behind its work at Memphis International Airport.

Tourism Richmond’s CEO, Tracy Lakeman, discussed the international appeal of Richmond, the importance of Vancouver International Airport and role of destination marketing in promoting the region and developing its route network.

Lakeman, whose organisation will co-host next year’s SMART Airports & Regions Conference & Exhibition in Richmond, British Columbia, said: “If you are an airport and you are not working with your CBD or DMO (destination marketing organisation), you should be.”

Around 500 delegates, 75 speakers and 40 exhibitors attended the event, which was jointly hosted by the Atlanta Aerotropolis Alliance and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International AW Airport at the Georgia International Convention Center (GICC).

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

43

WBP NEWS

The latest news from ACI’s World Business Partners Adding value to VIP lounges

Unisys Corporation has launched three new intelligent passenger recognition systems designed to help airlines and airports improve the passenger experience in their VIP lounges while reducing expenses and providing opportunities to generate ancillary revenue.

The offering combines Unisys’ systems integration experience and aviation industry domain expertise with innovative AIMS technology developed by Information Engineering Group (IEG) that can be delivered via cloud, software-as-a-service or on-premises.

According to Unisys, the solutions enable airlines and airports to better service passengers based on their location, preferences and travel needs. The new lounge tracking solutions include: • Scan and Go provides automated passenger recognition upon scanning a boarding pass, credit card or ID for quick and seamless processing of each customer entering the lounge.

• Customer Insight provides a powerful CRM solution that tracks traveller patterns and preferences, including food, drink, hobbies, and business travel needs. E-kiosks identify repeat passengers when they arrive at the lounge and scan their boarding pass, credit card or ID, allowing staff to provide customised services based on their likes and dislikes.

• Ancillary Management provides a revenue generation tool to offer value added services to travellers including premium food and drink packages, health and relaxation tools and business travel support.

Data captured across all solutions is accessible via a comprehensive dashboard that can run reports on passenger traffic, revenue generation, and provide details on where customers are going and where they’ve been.

The solutions offer Simplified Interline Settlement (SIS) compliant reporting and billing services, providing standardised billing and accounting for faster transactions between airline partners that share lounges.

Olivier Houri, president of global transportation for Unisys, said: “Millions of dollars are lost by unqualified passengers gaining access to airline airport lounges.

“AIMS intelligent passenger recognition helps lounge operators manage costs and enforce access requirements while supporting the sale of more ancillary revenue products to passengers.”

A survey of aviation industry executives conducted by Air Transport News found that the majority of airport lounges still use manual, spreadsheet based systems instead of an intelligent passenger recognition system.

Additionally, a four-week trial conducted at a major European airport in early 2014 estimated that real-time automation to enforce business rules and lounge access could provide airlines with more than €2.5 million in annual savings.

AIMS can be hosted and managed in a data centre or on-premises at client sites and is available on a per-lounge basis.

44

CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF AIRPORT WORLD

Latin expansion for AERTEC AERTEC Solutions has expanded its international presence by winning the contract to design the new airfield at Lima’s Jorge Chávez International Airport.

It will work alongside Arcadis, Ramboll and Grimshaw on the project for operator, Lima Airport Partners (LAP), a subsidiary of the German airport operator Fraport.

LAP wants to upgrade the Peruvian gateway to ensure that it is equipped to meet demand for the next 15 years and cement its status as one of South America’s largest international hubs.

The airfield expansion project includes the construction of a second runway parallel to the current one and new apron and intersecting taxiways.

AERTEC will also be responsible for designing all the associated aeronautical systems, including visual runway and taxiway aids, lighting systems, fuel supplies, the apron docking guidance system and the electricity supply systems needed for all these facilities.

Paving the way

C&S Companies has been selected to design and manage a $20 million project to reconstruct the ramp at Michigan’s Gerald R Ford International Airport.

The project will include close co-ordination with the airport and airlines to develop a construction-phasing plan to maintain a ccessibility and service to passengers.

It will involve the reconstruction of 80% of the terminal apron and have a direct impact on 11 of the airport’s 15 gates.

The airport wants to reconstruct over 150,000 square yards of Portland cement concrete pavement, replace existing drainage systems including storm and sewer drains and upgrade utilities and ramp lighting.

The Grand Rapids located airport is the second busiest airport in Michigan, handling around 2.3 million passengers annually and generating $3.1 billion in annual economic output throughout West Michigan.

C&S Companies has been providing airport consulting services for more than four decades and has offices in six US states.

WBP NEWS Mayer Brown Europe Brussels LLP

LaGuardia’s high-tech food hall OTG has unveiled a new 10,000 square feet, techenhanced Food Hall in Delta’s Terminal C at New York–LaGuardia Airport.

It claims the new outlets offer an array of world-class culinary options in a dynamic and innovative setting.

With a focus on local, fresh ingredients, travellers are met with dine-in and grab-and-go options from four chef-driven, café-style concepts that include New England inspired seafood shack Anglers, globally inspired sandwiches from Chef Andrew Zimmern at Interwich, contemporary Japanese cuisine from Chef Jamison Blankenship at Kombu, and gourmet burgers from Pat LaFrieda at Custom Burger.

“The newly designed food hall is part of a complete transformation of terminals C and D,” enthuses OTG CEO, Rick Blatstein.

“For the first time ever, the food hall becomes an open chef’s kitchen where travellers can grab to go on one side of a café, or pull up a seat and dine in on the other.

“Inspired by New York, the culinary-rich and tech-savvy programme channels everything we have

Host of opportunities

learned from our customers, our crew members and our business partners to bring the guest experience to even higher levels.”

New York based design firm ICRAVE designed the double-sided streetscape that connects each food offering within the space.

In addition to the 110+ new iPads installed throughout the Food Hall featuring OTG’s award-winning iPad app, the introduction of NCR”s sophisticated self-check-out systems and Apple Pay serve to further enhance and the customer experience.

Contactless readers stationed throughout the food hall allow customers to make transactions with an iPhone or iPad. “These consumer technologies enable us to offer our customers more control over their experience,” adds Blatstein.

“By offering mobile payment options such as Apple Pay and an intuitive user interface, we continue to introduce technologies our customers are familiar with, and allow our crew members to spend more time on hospitality.”

It has been a good half-year for HMSHost, which has announced major new contracts at George Bush Intercontinental and Montréal–Trudeau airports and been recognised for its environmental efforts at Seattle-Tacoma.

In Houston, HMSHost has been awarded a contract to open 15 new restaurants and six new Starbucks across George Bush Intercontinental Airport’s Terminals A, B, C, and D. Nearly all of the locations are part of a joint venture with HMSHost’s long-time partner, The Houston 8 Team, LLC. The new dining locations are scheduled to open by early 2016.

Across the border in Canada, HMSHost has been awarded contracts for 19 dining locations at Montréal– Trudeau, with new outlets set to include Québécois, Montréal Cuisine de Rue, La Cage Aux Sports and a dedicated airport version of the oldest inn in continuous use in North America – the 327-year old L’Auberge St Gabriel.

In other news the Port of Seattle Commission has awarded HMSHost its fifth Annual Green Gateway Environmental Excellence Award for its accomplishments in waste reduction and energy conservation at SeattleTacoma International Airport.

Its successes included reducing solid waste by 15,000 pounds, annual energy savings of over 34,350 watts, and leading all participants in Sea-Tac’s food bank donation programme by donating 20,106lbs of food, which translates into approximately 309 meals weekly.

“We’re proud to honour business partners, such as HMSHost, who continually set the standard of environmental leadership through their innovative approach to addressing sustainability,” says Bill Bryant, Port of Seattle Commissioner, who notes that it is the fifth time Sea-Tac has recognised the company’s environmental efforts.

Location: Brussels, Belgium Contact: Kiran Desai, Partner Email: kdesai@mayerbrown.com Website: wwww.mayerbrown.com Mayer Brown is a global legal services provider advising clients across the Americas, Asia and Europe. It provides legal services in areas such as banking and finance; corporate and securities; litigation and dispute resolution; antitrust and competition; US Supreme Court and appellate matters; employment and benefits; environmental; financial services regulatory & enforcement; government and global trade; intellectual property; real estate; tax; restructuring, bankruptcy and insolvency; and wealth management.

Kibag Airfield Construction AG Location: Bassersdorf, Switzerland Contact: Philipp Althaus, CEO Email: p.althaus@kibag.ch Website: www.kibag.ch Kibag Airfield Construction is a construction company specialising in the construction of Engineered Material Arresting System (EMAS) beds and their maintenance. In addition it offers maintenance for runways and airfields in connection with quick concrete and mortar and can expand the concrete surfaces of airfields and runways with its slipform paver.

To70 BV Location: The Hague, Netherlands Contact: Ruud Ummels, managing director Email: ruud.ummels@to70.nl Website: www.to70.nl To70 delivers high-quality consulting and research services to the global aviation community. It provides independent advice, identify and analyse problems, recommend solutions and assist with subsequent implementation in the field of air traffic management, aviation safety, policy and environment, airport operations and strategic planning.

AIRPORT WORLD/JUNE-JULY 2015

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HUMAN RESOURCES

PEOPLE

matters Building bridges Dr Richard Plenty and Terri Morrissey discuss the importance of co-operation, collaboration and partnerships.

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quotation widely attributed to Sir Isaac Newton, “Men build too many walls and not enough bridges” greets visitors to the lobby of the Aéroports de Paris (ADP) Customer Service Academy.

The words may be around 300 years old, yet the sentiment remains valid today.

Effective co-operation and partnerships are the keys to creating value, optimising efficiency and minimising risk in large complex systems.

For example, Jeff Poole director general of CANSO has spoken of the need for cross border collaboration across the air traffic system.

Most people would accept that working together not only provides the opportunity for improved organisational performance, but also reduces conflict and stress. Why then can collaboration be so difficult?

The reasons are not hard to determine.

Airport systems involve many different organisations, which have to work together to achieve their shared goal of transporting people safely. Each has their own set of goals and objectives and often just don’t have the time, the capability or will to focus on issues other than operational ‘business as usual’.

Furthermore, a longer term perspective – and a degree of patience – is necessary to allow people to invest their time in building trust, developing relationships and ensuring the quality of communication and information sharing necessary for effective cooperation.

Efforts to bring multiple stakeholders together on key issues – for example in Airport Collaborative Decision Making (ACDM) – have tended to focus on technological and infrastructural solutions. Huge investment has

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gone into designing systems to “talk to each other” and organisations such as IATA, CANSO and EUROCONTROL have issued a mandate for European airports to comply with a collaborative approach. Despite this, gains have sometimes been difficult to achieve.

It is on the ‘people’ side where most work remains to be done. An interesting initiative, the EU FP7 PROSPERO project (16 organisations across eight countries led by Trinity College Dublin), analyses risk from a whole systems perspective. The research has shown that effective collaboration requires: • A whole system approach: taking into account the ‘socio-technical’ system and understanding the risks associated with new technology and change • Sharing information and knowledge: ensuring that relevant information is available to the right people in a timely, understandable format at key process and decision points • Building social cohesion: ensuring efforts are made to build trust, encourage interdependent working, and ensure mutual respect and accountability The quality of communication and dialogue is key to success, and this can require establishing platforms and linkages to facilitate the exchange of ideas between organisations and departments.

Our own practical experience demonstrates the importance of getting people together in the same location to work through issues as early as possible, establishing common structures and processes, building a shared vision and common goal, and developing conversation skills. Build bridges, not walls!

CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF AIRPORT WORLD

The Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners (BOAC) has unanimously approved the nomination of Oakland International Airport director, Deborah Ale Flint, as the next executive director of Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA).

BOAC president Sean Burton said: “Deborah Ale Flint is the absolute right person to build on what has been accomplished by LAWA and to lead this organisation to the next level of world-class airports with sustained excellence.

“She is a rising star in the airport sector and has direct and relevant experience that will serve her well at LAWA.” Ale Flint’s appointment is subject to confirmation by the Los Angeles City Council. If confirmed, she will succeed Gina Marie Lindsey, who will retire on July 1 after a 39-year career, 33 working in the aviation industry, including eight years at LAWA. Elsewhere, UK airport operator, MAG, has appointed Rosemarie Andolino to the newly created role of CEO and president of MAG US. The former Commissioner of the Chicago Department of Aviation will oversee the development of MAG’s airport services business in North America where it aims to work with airports to develop and operate terminal and retail solutions, passenger lounges and car parking facilities.

In other news, Heathrow’s new CFO is Michael Uzielli; Gisela Shanahan is the new CFO/executive vice president of finance at Denver International Airport; and David Au Ho-cheung is the new executive director of property development at Airport Authority Hong Kong.

About the authors Dr Richard Plenty and Terri Morrissey are organisers of ACI’s annual ‘Leadership and Change’ Summit, which this year will be held at Airport Exchange in Istanbul, December, 8-10.

They can be contacted at info@thisis.eu

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