National Academies Press: OpenBook

Common Use Facilities and Equipment at Airports (2008)

Chapter: Chapter Nine - Summary of Findings and Suggestions for Further Research

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Suggested Citation:"Chapter Nine - Summary of Findings and Suggestions for Further Research." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Common Use Facilities and Equipment at Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14164.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter Nine - Summary of Findings and Suggestions for Further Research." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Common Use Facilities and Equipment at Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14164.
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Page 44
Suggested Citation:"Chapter Nine - Summary of Findings and Suggestions for Further Research." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2008. Common Use Facilities and Equipment at Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14164.
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Page 44

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The common use continuum continues to develop and the benefits continue to increase. From its beginnings in 1984, the common use movement and the growth of the continuum have benefited the industry. As airport operators continue to struggle with the best use of their constrained space, vendors, airlines, airports, and other interested parties continue to push the limits of the common use continuum. The following conclusions are based on this continued change and the re- sults of the literature and knowledge search contained in this synthesis. • Industry-Wide Importance and Benefits of the Common Use Continuum Common use is of growing interest to airports and airlines. Although the literature and available recorded knowledge is limited, it is an important field and has a great impact on the airport and airline community. Both airport operators and airlines stand to benefit from the implementation of common use. Airport operators gain by greater efficiency and more flexibility in using their space, expanded airport capacity, op- portunities for increased competition, and an environment that is easier to maintain. Airlines gain more flexibility in changing schedules, opportunities to lower costs, and a potentially lower cost of entry into a new market. The converse is also true, in that if a common use implementation is poorly planned and implemented, airport operators and airlines stand to lose. Passengers also recognize the benefits of common use when an airport operator moves along the common use con- tinuum. Common use enables airport operators and airlines to move the check-in process farther from the airport, thus allowing passengers to perform at least part of the process remotely. In some cases, the passenger can complete the check-in process, including baggage check, before ever entering the airport. This allows passengers to travel lighter. It also affords passengers a more leisurely trip to the airport, allowing them to enjoy their vacation a little longer, and with less stress. Passengers arriving at an airport that has imple- mented common use have more time to spend getting to their gate and may not feel as rushed and frustrated by the travel- ling experience. A positive experience translates into a positive image for both the airport and the airline. Such an experience can lead to recognition and awards for the airlines and the airport operators. • Lack of Information Resources 42 Throughout this process, it has become evident that the lack of formal, documented studies; educational resources; and published materials about common use systems and strate- gies compels anyone interested in learning about common use to do so through trial and error, acquiring knowledge through first-hand experience. There is considerable “tribal” knowledge in the focused portion of the industry, but it has not been formally gathered. Much of the documented information available is pro- vided by vendors in the form of marketing material. Although information can be gleaned from these documents, they do not present a balanced picture of the common use continuum to assist stakeholders in learning about common use. Unlike some topics, there was no central location to go to learn about the topic of common use. Information avail- able from industry organizations, such as the International Air Transport Association (IATA), is provided at a very high level or is not freely available. • The Need for Careful Planning and Open Communi- cations It is important that any movement along the common use continuum be carefully considered to address the benefits and concerns of all parties. Airport operators must consider whether or not common use would be appropriate at their air- port. If the airport has one or two dominant carriers, it may not make sense to move too far along the common use con- tinuum. Airports and airlines must work closely during the design of the common use strategy to ensure that the passen- gers receive the benefit of the effort. It is the airline that brings the customer to the airport, but it is the airport that allows the airline to operate in a given market. Both airlines and airport operators must communicate openly and honestly when introducing common use. If air- port operators include airlines in the design process, then all interested parties are able to affect the outcome of the strat- egy for the better. Airport operators could make the extra effort to ensure that airline participation is facilitated. Sched- uling both remote meetings and face-to-face meetings is one way to put in the effort needed to include airline staff. Air- lines, likewise, need to make a commitment to participate in the process. When an airport operator moves along the com- mon use continuum, it is in the best interest of the airline to participate in the design. CHAPTER NINE SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH

43 • Understanding the Airline’s Resistance to the Common Use Continuum Airlines generally have a somewhat negative view of com- mon use initiatives, for several reasons. As has been shown in this report, when a non-U.S. airport operator views com- mon use as a profit center, the airlines are not in favor of the initiative. Also, when airport operators move along the com- mon use continuum without the input of the airlines currently serving that airport there can be distrust in the motivation and a concern that the airport’s strategy will not support the air- line business processes put in place to support its passengers. The converse can also be true, in that airport operators that engage the airlines in the process generally succeed in their common use initiatives. This review of the common use continuum highlights six areas for continued study. A discussion of these areas follows. 1. Complete a Full Common Use Continuum Analysis— This synthesis generally defines the common use continuum and gives it a high-level overview. It is rec- ommended that a full analysis of the common use con- tinuum be performed. Such an analysis would examine each of the elements of common use, from technology to facilities, and from physical modifications to per- sonnel requirements. The analysis of the common use continuum would identify which elements need to be addressed to move along the common use continuum. Additionally, this analysis could identify other areas where common use solutions need to be developed for future migration along the common use continuum. The results of this analysis itself could help the indus- try better understand the benefits, impacts, and con- cerns of common use initiatives. Also, the results of such an analysis could have direct input to the follow- ing recommendations. This analysis could consider space planning review to ensure that growth on the common use continuum does not exceed the inherent limitations of the airport space or operations. Two such examples include: • Common use ticket counter design—It is possible to design too much counter utilization, such that the baggage conveyor systems are rendered inadequate to accommodate the full implementation of the com- mon use counters. • Gate utilization and off-gate parking models—As an airport moves along the common use continuum, gate utilization becomes much more granular and off-gate parking becomes much more important. Air- ports need to have a model that can assist them in cal- culating efficient gate utilization. The model also needs to identify the ratio of off-gate parking to the number of airlines operating at an airport. The ratio of off-gate parking also needs to be compared with the number of gates and the number of aircraft turns per gate. This model could add value to the analysis process of determining whether a common use strat- egy should be implemented. Furthermore, this model could help airports account for needed off-gate park- ing to facilitate further growth of the passenger activity at the airport. This analysis could also consider certification and de- ployment models for common use applications that have been identified as an area of concern within the industry. Current certification and deployment models are looked on today with varying degrees of success. A valuable area of research might be to identify other industries with similar certification and deployment needs, and determine how their models of certification and deployment would be applied to the airline indus- try. Opportunity exists for improving the certification and deployment process and ensuring that the time that it takes to release a certified application is reduced to the shortest time possible. As a final element of the analysis, a cost-recovery model should be developed. Common use strategies have implementation costs. Some airlines argue that the common use strategies should be implemented by air- port operators without cost to the airlines. Many airport operators are unable to give goods or services for free owing to municipal, state, or federal government laws. Airport operators may need to charge airlines on a cost- recovery basis. This information, along with the cost/benefit analysis, could provide airports with the ability to properly charge for a common use strategy, al- lowing airlines and airports to receive benefit from the implementation of the common use strategy. 2. Prepare a Cost/Benefit Analysis Template—Creation of a cost/benefit analysis template could enable both airport operators and airlines to review the benefits of a common use strategy. The identified benefits of this strategy have not been clearly tied to costs that could be incurred when making a move along the common use continuum. Each airport installation will be different; however, there are some common costs and benefits that could be analyzed and made available to the indus- try. It could also be beneficial to conduct a review of the costs associated with proprietary airline systems and develop a comparative cost model where implementa- tion of a common use strategy could be compared with the airline expenses for installing and maintaining dedicated systems. This would be a general assessment that would include quantitative and qualitative system factors. Although individual airlines deploy differing systems with differential investments, a generalized comparative assessment could be a demonstration of cost compatibility. Preparation of the cost/benefit analysis template could be conducted in coordination with the preparation of the design guidelines. 3. Establish a Common Use Knowledge Base and Users Group—The amount of information available to edu- cate and share on common use is limited. Tools and

forums exist today for people to share information about topics of mutual interest. A common use knowl- edge base would allow airports and airlines the ability to research industry knowledge that is currently avail- able, but not well documented. A user group for the common use continuum would allow airports and air- lines to share experience, answer questions, and gain knowledge about common use strategies and how to implement them successfully. The knowledge base could consist of its own website, electronic library, and on-line user group. A global or- ganization could solicit endorsement/sponsorship from the existing professional organizations such that user group sessions could be held in coordination with an- nual conferences. The documentation resources identi- fied in this synthesis can be a starting point, along with the results of the full analysis. Continuing feedback from this knowledge base and user group would benefit all stakeholders in preparation of design guidelines as recommended here. 4. Prepare a Common Use Design and Implementation Guide—IATA has created a Common Use Self-Service (CUSS) implementation guide that can be of assistance to airports wanting to implement CUSS. Similarly, IATA has introduced intelligence tools such as Air- portIS, which help airport operators understand market dynamics and peer-to-peer comparisons. Through such tools, the end user can conduct various analyses to identify and evaluate new ideas, benchmark one airport against another, and improve design-related tech- niques. It is recommended that the preparation of these guidelines take the same approach, so that an airport operator could have one document at its disposal to begin a common use strategy and design process. A common use design and implementation guide would 44 provide the tools necessary for the airport operators to determine what elements of a common use strategy to implement and the benefit of those implementations. The design and implementation guide could provide best practices, answer common questions, and assist in the initial design and implementation of a common use strategy. It could also give airport operators some guid- ance about the order in which to implement common use strategies to make the most effective use of capital expenditures. The guide could also be timed with the release of the IATA/ATA/ACI recommended practice for the Common Use Passenger Processing System (CUPPS) so as to take into account the implementation requirements of CUPPS. 5. Establish Best Practices in Support and Maintenance— Support and maintenance of common use strategies and solutions are important to their success and require best practices research. Such research could examine ac- count processes, such as ITIL and ISO, as well as review support and maintenance practices in other in- dustries. The best practices could then be gathered and presented to the industry so that support and mainte- nance would be at levels that exceed the expectations of the industry. 6. Develop a Funding Model—Airport operators need to identify sources of funding common use initiatives. Along with identifying potential sources of funding, they also need to develop a model that will aid them in determining the feasibility of implementing common use. This model would allow airport operators to de- termine appropriate funding sources, as well as deter- mine the business model, costing, etc., of a common use system. Based on the variables defined in the model, the airport operator would be able to determine the potential benefits of implementing common use.

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TRB’s Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) Synthesis 8: Common Use Facilities and Equipment at Airports explores common use technology that enables an airport operator to take space that has previously been exclusive to a single airline and make it available for use by multiple airlines and their passengers.

View information about the February 9, 2010 TRB Webinar, which featured this report.

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