TheSmarterCity is filled with cars, subways, buses, trains and ferries,
moving people and goods all over town.
Integrating these different modes of transportation
into a smart system is key to keeping the city moving.
But what about the movement between cities?
Virtually every tangible good – food, clothing, medicine, fuel, and electronics –
has been transported into your world from somewhere else.
It all involves getting up and going someplace.
Watch the videoFrom Orville and Wilber's 120 foot flight aboard the Wright Flyer
to the sub-orbital spacecraft that promise
to take us to the stars and back,
man has been on a quest to fly.
But every aircraft needs a place to land.
Over the last 100 years, airports have had to evolve
from landing strips to multi-faceted businesses
contending with a range of competitive pressures
from passengers, shippers, airlines, other airports
and even other modes of transportation.
The challenge has always been balancing the responsibility
of providing a public service
with the necessity of generating revenue
– all while driving growth in the surrounding community.
In the increasingly competitive airport business,
airports will have to get smarter to prosper.
The question is ... how?
Watch the videoEvery day, over 6 million people move through the world's airports.
They check in, get a boarding pass,
clear customs and immigration and get on a plane.
Most airports have a base plan in place
– a predetermined allocation plan for all their assets and personnel.
But most airports don't know who's coming on a given day.
Or how their passengers' plans are dependent on everything else
in the transportation system running smoothly.
Smarter airports are working with airlines to better predict
what the customer load is going to be.
And they're tracking this data
– like ticketing, weather patterns and schedules
– over time so they can better predict what's coming next and adjust
or reallocate operations to handle the unexpected in real-time.
Some airports are monitoring the presence of Bluetooth devices
and cell phones to get an up-to-the-minute picture
of how many people are at the airport.
With that kind of information,
airport managers can put the right staff in place to handle demand.
Airport managers use this data to help coordinate
maintenance crews, fuel crews, baggage handlers,
the tractors that tow the planes to the gate,
desk personnel and gate signage – automatically, in real time.
Airport managers can respond to irregular operations
and avoid domino effects.
Which means travelers can get on their way faster.
Watch the videoJack and Julia are flying abroad on business.
Julia avoided the morning congestion
with a new route from her GPS Locator,
while Jack dodged the traffic altogether by taking the train.
Both arrive right on time.
[Loudspeaker] Attention: Flight 1834 is now departing out of Gate A7.
Jack swipes their e-tickets at the kiosk,
while Julia attaches RFID tags to her luggage,
so the bags can be checked quickly and tracked along the way.
Long lines have built up at the Security check-point,
so the smarter airport adjusts lanes to prevent delay.
Jack and Julia head to their terminal.
On the way, they're informed that their flight has been canceled.
Jack and Julia are automatically booked seats on the next flight.
Itineraries and electronic boarding passes are sent to their PDAs,
along with a confirmation receipt for their luggage.
While they wait, Julia receives a message from the café
with an offer for half-off on a croissant
when she buys her favorite skim latte.
While Jack picks out an umbrella,
his PDA suggests the latest issue of a travel magazine
featuring a spread on restaurants near his hotel in the east end.
[Loudspeaker] Now Boarding All Passengers.
Jack and Julia zip through boarding with their e-boarding passes.
Cabin crew, prepare for take-off!
[Steward] We're now making our final descent. Please remain seated. With seatbelts fastened.
And they're back. Another successful business venture.
Jack and Julia head down to the Immigrations area.
Prescreened while they flew, they're approved on the spot.
Jack and Julia pick up their bags and are ready to head home.
Smarter airports are ensuring more efficient travel,
keeping passengers connected to their systems
in-touch with each other.
Watch the videoAn airport doesn't fly airplanes.
An airport is in the business of managing
facilities and equipment efficiently.
If you can get all the right resources at the right place at the right time
efficiency can go up and costs can go down.
Smarter airports save money and time
by knowing the location, status and availability
of equipment and assets at all times.
Energy use, carbon emissions and cost can be reduced
by monitoring vehicles in real time.
By shifting from scheduled to predictive maintenance,
airlines can help improve uptime and equipment life.
Crew planning tools can help you make personnel with the
necessary skills available when and where they are needed.
Cargo loading can be accelerated and the number of trips
required can be reduced using analytic tools.
The financial impact of different operational choices can be
modeled to optimize revenue and cost.
Finally, a smarter airport can improve safety and security
and reduce costs at the same time by using video analysis and sensors
to monitor the facility and condition of equipment in real-time.
Watch the videoTo build a smarter airport:
Collect data about the condition, location, status and purpose
of everything in the system.
Use analytics to make better decisions faster
about how to deploy those resources.
This can help you build airport systems that are safer,
more efficient, greener, traveler-focused, smarter.
Watch the video