Analysis and Recommendations for Developing Integrated Airport Information Systems (2008)

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SECTION 1 BACKGROUND The Industry Need Most airport information technology (IT) systems are nearly 20 years old and, in many cases, are not adequate to handle the complexities of current transactions. The lack of integration between systems requires staff to enter data multiple times, consuming staff time and compromising accuracy. Some of these older systems are extremely limited and inflexible and rely heavily on manual processing. Moreover, these systems often may not quickly and accurately provide the right information to management. Many airport systems operate independently, which limits their value. Information needed in one airport functional area often exists in another but, if the systems are independent and do not share information, it may not be readily available or may have to be entered manually. Today’s aviation industry is faced with fast changing requirements and regulations, increasing passenger volumes, and unstable financial conditions. In this environment, airport management needs to have real-time information to identify and solve problems quickly. Information technology can improve a manager’s ability to take these actions but the systems need to be orchestrated so they can work together. The Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) addressed this industry need in the Request for Proposal (RFP) for Project No. 01-03 (the project) titled “ANALYSIS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR DEVELOPING INTEGRATED AIRPORT INFORMATION SYSTEMS”. The project panel (the panel) defined this need as follows: “Accurate, properly formatted and timely reporting of airport activity and financial data is critical to effectively managing today’s airports. These data and the resultant business-critical information are necessary (and often legally required) to effectively meet operational needs, make informed business decisions, and forecast operational and financial trends. Integrating these data within existing and future electronic systems is also necessary to improve accuracy and productivity. “Currently, industry practices for identifying, gathering, processing data, and reporting this business- critical information vary significantly across airport categories or even among airports within the same category. A lack of consistent, accurate, and timely information results from a lack of applied technology and overall standardized industry practices to define and gather information. Fully integrating these data into other systems can result in increased productivity. In addition, although large, complex airports have a need for more sophisticated data, airports of all sizes have a demonstrated need for certain minimum data to manage their facilities effectively. Issues related to identifying, gathering, processing, and reporting data keep airports from achieving the full benefit of completely integrated information.” The Project Objectives In line with these needs, the panel described the objectives of the project in the RFP as follows: “The four objectives of this research are to (1) assess the current state of the industry related to managing appropriate data from business-related financial and operational activity, (2) develop guidelines and current best practices to fully integrate these data and the business-critical information that they indicate, (3) develop functional specifications for procuring open-architecture systems for integrating these data, and (4) describe a vision of an airport with fully integrated business, operational,

and financial information systems. “These objectives shall be incorporated into a handbook that provides useful information and resources for airports as they implement systems necessary to effectively meet operational needs, make informed business decisions, and forecast operational and financial trends.” The Target Audience As the project progressed, the primary target audience for the Handbook was defined as second, third and fourth level airport management. The Executive Summary of the Handbook is designed to quickly inform and capture the attention of top level airport management. The ATCI Team The Aero Tech Consulting, Inc. (ATCI) team (the team) was formed to address this specific industry need. Several team members have experienced the need for sound, timely management information as they faced major decisions during airport management careers. This motivated team members to build a resource that would help the industry. The team members are: Christine Stocking. Principal Investigator James DeLong. Co-Principal Investigator Airports Steve Loper of Amadeus Consulting, Inc. Co-Principal Investigator Integration Vicki Braunagel. Airport Financial and Business Tom Healy. Administrator