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FOREWORDDear colleagues,While I believe that all airports care about providing good service, in today’s competitivetravel market it is not enough to care – we must deliver.ACI places airport service quality at the heart of successful operations. A pleasant customerexperience delivered with courtesy and efficiency by well-trained staff can definitely give acompetitive edge in building customer loyalty, while also encouraging the traveller to takeadvantage of commercial offerings within the terminal.Examining these benefits was at the core of this year’s customer service conference in AbuDhabi. Airport managers from around the world debated how and why ‘customer servicepays off – in terms of an airport’s reputation, market share and the revenues to be gainedfrom non-aeronautical services. During the conference the annual service excellenceawards, based on the input from over 100,000 customer surveys completed in 2005, werepresented to the top-ranking airports in 11 categories. Airports work hard to win customerappreciation, so it is indeed an honour to be able to say not only to customers, but also toinvestors and to their service-minded employees that these efforts have been rewarded.3At its last meeting, the ACI World Governing Board named ‘customer service’ as oneof six major industry-wide priorities. ACI is committed to helping its members meetthis challenge.In January 2006, ACI launched ASQ, the global airport customer satisfaction benchmarkingprogramme covering all continents and all size of airport operations. ACI Airport Wayfinderis a product that enables passengers to use on-line video streaming technology to plan inadvance and make best use of their airport stay. And most recently ACI initiated a newmembership survey on objective measures of airport service quality that will lay thegroundwork to define best practices and to develop global airport industry customerservice standards.Airport customer service affects every area of operations and requires broad and intensivemanagement attention. This publication will give you an excellent overview with interestinginsights from your peers into what it means to be a top quality service provider – for youand for your customers.Robert J AaronsonDirector GeneralThis is an ACI publication, produced by Insight Media.The opinions and views expressed in Airport Service Qualityare those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect anACI policy or position.Airports Council International HeadquartersPO box 16, 1215 Geneva 15 - AirportSwitzerlandTel: +41 (22) 717 8585Fax: +41 (22) 717 8888E-mail: aci@aci.aero

CONTENTSAirport Service Qualityxx1 24ACI - CUSTOMERSERVICE INITIATIVES3 ForewordRobert J. Aaronson4 Contents6 Satisfaction guaranteedFacilitation and technical/safetydirector, David Gamper, reflectson ACI initiatives to help raiseservice quality at airports.9 The real dealAndreas Schimm outlines thebenefits of ACI’s new Airport ServiceQuality (ASQ) customer servicebenchmarking programme.51 ACI eventsAETRA - WINNERS13 Win, win situationWho won what in the 2005AETRA awards.16 On top of the worldIncheon International Airport.18 That winning feelingHalifax International Airport.20 Nobody does it betterKuala Lumpur International Airport.22 Who cares winsDubai International Airport.24 It’s only just begunNagoya International Airport.26 The comeback kingBrussels Airport.28 Great DanesCopenhagen Airport.

CONTENTSwww.AirportServiceQuality.aero3TOP RANKING4EXPERTVIEWS30 Fly and buyHong Kong continues to dazzlepassengers with its innovation andcommitment to customer service, reportsJoe Bates.33 Everybody winsBoth passengers and staff are reapingthe rewards of Ottawa’s customer servicesuccess, reports Chris Kjelgaard.35 Double impactNew participant Denver claimed two topthree rankings in the 2005 AETRAawards. What makes it so special?Chris Kjelgaard reports.37 Virtual reality bytesThe addition of revenue streamopportunities has just taken virtualairport wayfinding to the next level,reports Jamie McIntyre.40 The Seoul experienceCurtis Worth Fentress of FentressBradburn Architects reflects on thedesign of the world’s best gateway,Incheon International Airport.42 Screen testIn today’s operating environment,continuing to raise the bar on securityscreening at airports is a necessity,not an option, reports Stefan Aust.44 Hurry up... and relaxThe bottom line for post-securitypassenger comfort is good seating,writes Carroll McCormick.48 Clean sweepJoanne Paternoster explains why‘clean’ airports score highly incustomer satisfaction surveys.5

ACI INITIATIVESSatisfaction guaranteedFacilitation and technical/safety director, David Gamper, reflects on ACI initiatives tohelp raise service quality at airports.6The aviation industry is recognised forits progressive attitude both on theground and in the air with airportoperators specifically aiming to run airportswhich are safe, secure, environmentallysustainable, good neighbours andprofitable while pleasing airline customersand passengers.That is a tall order, but it makes goodbusiness sense to look after your customerswell. They are likely to feel valued, spendmore and return. Nowhere is this truerthan in a place where passengers are oftenforced to spend large amounts of theirvaluable time.Leaving aside the newly launchedASQ programme, the benefits of whichare explained in the next article, ACIis working on a number of concreteinitiatives to support quality service atairports. The results of these initiativeswould eventually be measurable inincreased satisfaction ratings, after theyare implemented.These initiatives include:• Standards for passenger terminals –design, operation and maintenance• Passenger service automation• Additional services (for business andleisure travellers)In terms of standards for passengerterminals – design, operation andmaintenance, ACI recently initiated amembership survey asking about thestandards and targets that individualairport operators set for themselves. Thisshould enable us to review best practiceand develop global targets or benchmarks(not exactly standards) for such areasas processing times (e.g. check-in), queuingtimes (e.g. for security), delivery times(e.g. baggage), equipment availability(e.g. baggage trolleys), and serviceability(e.g. escalators).Inevitably, choosing the level of suchtargets will be a matter of judgment, since notwo airports have the same layouts,resources, operational challenges, etc. Asthey say, ‘when you’ve seen one airport,you’ve seen one airport’!We aim to complement this work bywriting a book around it – the ACIAirport Terminal Planning Manual. Thiswould contrast with existing manualsproduced by ICAO and IATA bybeing produced for the airport industry,by its own industry association. It willaim to be a neutral and authoritativesource which is relevant worldwide. It willprovide technical information andCheck-in with a smile at BrusselsAirport. Picture courtesy of BIAC.

ACI INITIATIVESHalifax International Airport’s ‘tartanarmy’ of volunteers meet and greet allnew arrivals at the gateway.guidance material for those who design,construct, operate and maintain airportterminals and associated facilities. It shouldthereby help optimise the efficiency andeconomics of the activities carried out inthose terminals.The context for the manual is that airportsneed more than ever before to focus on flexible,efficient building designs which are safe andsecure, meet the needs of airlines, governmentagencies, handling agents, service providersand retailers. The facility also has to deliverefficient services to the public, maximise retailopportunities (to keep airport charges low),create a seamless link between the aircraft andthe airside and landside, and be easy to modifyto meet demand and cope with different typesof aircraft.In terms of passenger service automation,ACI has been working for over ten years todefine and advance new initiatives such as:• Check-in using Common Use SelfService (CUSS) machines• Check-in remotely over the internet• Passenger departure/boarding controlusing different forms of automation,transitioning from the ‘old’ ATB to newbar-coded boarding passes• Baggage automation incorporatingsorting, in-line screening, reconciliationetc, transitioning from bar-coded tags toradio frequency identification (RFID)• Passenger Security Controls – new methods• Screening for staff• Immigration (border control) usinge-passports with biometric ID confirmationIn each of these fields, ACI has beenworking with industry partners to set standards,from ICAO (e-passports) to IATA (SimplifyingPassenger Travel, and Simplifying the Business– the IATA name for a range of airline initiativesto cut costs and improve efficiency, includinge-ticketing).A good example of working togethereffectively can be seen in the SimplifyingPassenger Travel (SPT) initiative, in whichan Interest Group, made up of airports, airlines,government authorities and vendors, hasworked on standards. It has recently produceda document entitled Ideal Process Flow,that takes full account of new technologiesand opportunities to streamline the entirepassenger journey. It aims at hassle-freeand expedited travel making use of newtechnologies and services, to deliverservice improvement, cost decreases and anincrease in the level of security.This fits in with ACI’s vision of simplifiedtravel, with airport processes simplified for thepassenger, involving equipment and servicesprovided centrally by the airport operator, andresulting in economies of scale. The example ofbaggage handling is the clearest one, where itmakes no economic sense for airlines tohave their own systems, but there are many othersystems where this is normally the case (CUSS,in-line screening of hold bags, etc). Thecommunications infrastructure that thesesystems will use should also be installed andmanaged as one system by (or on behalf of) theairport operator.In terms of additional services (for businessand leisure travellers), we are often asked whatadditional services airports provide, rangingfrom the conventional (e.g. children’s play areas,business facilities, transit/day hotel rooms interminals) to the very unusual – such as puttinggreens for golfers and art galleries. We are alsolooking into this subject in the survey that we arecarrying out. Imagination can make passengersmore than just satisfied – even delighted. That isan option that we should not forget, particularlywhere personal services can clearly becommercial while meeting a need.Overall, the range of customer satisfactioninitiatives described above should drive theaverage airport’s quality of service evenhigher over the years to come, through emulationof best practice. We believe this is an importanttask in which ACI can help its members.7

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ASQThe real dealAndreas Schimm outlines the benefits of ACI’s new Airport Service Quality (ASQ)customer service benchmarking programme.Do you know how your customersperceive your airport? Are they happywith the services you and yoursuppliers offer them? How do they feel aboutthe choice of airlines, flight times or theshopping and dining opportunities? Knowingand understanding your customers’ thoughts,wishes and expectations is the basis ofproviding the best possible service.Nowadays what identifies an airport inthe passenger’s mind is, more often than not,the overall airport experience. Customerservices can be as important as infrastructureand the two are often intrinsically interlinked.This is why it is more important thanever before to know one’s customers andtheir perceptions.ASQ gives answers and practicalassistance in understanding an airport’sperformance. ASQ is a customer satisfactionanalysis and benchmarking programme,but at the same time is much more thana survey. It is a hands-on businessmanagement tool that gives access toworldwide best practice in the industry andhelps optimise investment efforts andmonitor business performance.Focused on customer service.Picture courtesy of Swissport.A total of 72 airports across 40countries around the world are participatingin the ASQ programme. Those taking partrepresent a broad cross spectrum ofthe world’s airports from the mega-hub tothe very small with a variety of differentcharacteristics from which participants canchoose their own benchmarks.The survey, which succeeds the AETRAprogramme, is conducted at departure gatesaround the world. The fact that it iscompleted by passengers at the time of9EUROPEAmsterdam, Aberdeen, Athens, Bergen, Birmingham, Brussels, Budapest, Copenhagen, Dublin, Edinburgh, Faro, Glasgow, Hamburg, Helsinki,Keflavik, Lisbon, Gatwick, Heathrow, Stansted, Madrid, Malta, Manchester, Moscow, Munich, Naples, Oslo, Palma de Mallorca, Ponta Delgada,Porto, Rome, Sandefjord, Southampton, Stavanger, Stockholm, Trondheim, Venice, Vienna, ZurichAMERICASAustin, Bermuda, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit,Edmonton, Halifax, Houston G.Bush, HoustonHobby, Lima, Mexico City, Minneapolis, Montreal,Ottawa, Port Columbus, San Diego, San Francisco,San José, Santo Domingo, Toronto, VancouverAFRICAJohannesburg, Cape Town,DurbanMIDDLE EASTAbu Dhabi, Doha, DubaiASIAAdelaide, Beijing, Chennai, Christchurch,Delhi, Gold Coast, Guangzhou, HongKong, Seoul Incheon, Kolkata, KualaLumpur, Macau, Melbourne, Mumbai,Nagoya, Singapore, Sydney

ASQPicture courtesy of Swissport.10departure ensures that the process formeasuring opinions is consistent, reliableand up-to-date. The survey is conducted allyear round and is based on a singlequestionnaire covering 32 key service items,thus the base of comparison is the sameat all airports. In other words, apples arecompared to apples.Why have so many airports joined ASQ?There are many benefits. Participatingairports can get passenger opinions on aspecific item, and they can also get otherairports’ ratings plus an analysis ofimportance to the passenger. So, as abusiness tool, ASQ can help set objectivesfor competitive, short, medium and longterm planning.If, for example, passengers tell aparticular airport via ASQ that its duty freeofferings are unsatisfactory, they are alsotelling it that this issue is very important tothem. What is learned from this is that theduty free is detracting from the overall airportexperience and something needs to be done.Either (a) the concessionaire is not doing itsjob, (b) the service levels are set too low or(c) passengers cannot find what they want.So what can the airport do about it?Short-term improvement could involveupdating the service level agreements it haswith the concessionaire, medium term itmight improve the signage and placement ofthe duty free goods and long term it mayreview the overall retail concept.ASQ allows airports to monitorimprovement and even to see whichairports have overcome similar problems.Participants can find out which airports scorehighly on duty free and discuss it with them.This is directly facilitated through the ASQAirport Forums held in each region, whichare organised to assist sharing of informationand experience among airports.Since ASQ is fundamentally a benchmarktool, it allows airports and airportmanagement companies to see (and discuss)best practice in the areas they are interestedin. It also allows them to monitor howtheir airport rates in comparison to theindustry standard (or an ASQ index of theirkey comparator airports). This has become avital part of setting employee performancetargets for many airports.Traditional staff performance targets can bevery dry and it can be difficult to motivateemployees through abstract numbers alone.ASQ allows you to incentivise employees withtargets that can be easily related and achieved.ASQ is also used as a marketing tool.When attracting new airlines, statementscan be backed up with ASQ’s impartialfindings to prove the high quality of anairport. It can be used to attract non-aviationcompanies or luxury brands to your airport,thus increasing non-aviation revenues.The findings of ASQ are also sometimes usedto inform the public or the local governmentof how initiatives are being tracked and howthey are working.As an ACI initiative, ASQ can be reliedupon to be statistically reliable and stableover time giving important trend information.There is also the further assurance that ACI isconstantly striving to support and work onbehalf of the airport industry worldwide.To this end, information gathered by theprogramme is confidential to participants toensure that ASQ data is only ever used in thebest interests of each airport.Want to know more?For further information about ASQ, pleasecontact Mark Adamson (Tel: +41 22 3540750 / madamson@aci.aero)or Damien Kobel (Tel: + 41 22 354 0753 /dkobel@aci.aero).

AETRA WINNERS 2005Win, win situationJoe Bates reviews the highlights of the 2005 AETRA customer satisfaction survey.Category 1st 2nd 3rdBest Airport Worldwide Seoul Incheon Singapore/Hong Kong Kuala LumpurBy RegionAmericas Halifax Ottawa DenverEurope Brussels/Copenhagen Zurich HelsinkiAsia Seoul Incheon Singapore/Hong Kong Kuala LumpurMiddle East/Africa Dubai Cape Town DurbanBy Size25mppa plus Seoul Incheon Singapore/Hong Kong Denver15-25mppa Kuala Lumpur Dubai Brussels/Copenhagen5-15mppa Nagoya Christchurch Helsinki0-5mppa Halifax Ottawa MaltaSpecial featuresMost Improved Seoul Incheon Vancouver Singapore13Best Domestic Halifax Ottawa AthensAlthough Seoul Incheon and Halifaxwere the big winners of the 2005 AETRApassenger satisfaction survey, betweenthem scooping seven of the eleven top awardson offer, ACI believes that every airport takingpart in the programme was a winner.“The true winners are the airport customerswho are beneficiaries of the airports’ drive tomake sure that their facilities and servicesmeet the highest standards of excellence,” saysACI director general, Robert Aaronson.“Every airport joining ASQ is also a winneras the programme is designed to generatedetailed service analysis results that enablemanagement teams to target improvements andnew services. In our competitive air transportindustry, airports know that customersatisfaction builds customer loyalty and that thecustomer is at the heart of our future success.”South Korea’s Incheon International Airport– which celebrated its fifth anniversary in March– was ranked the Best Airport Worldwide in theACI/IATA backed customer satisfaction awardsand the top gateway in the Asia-Pacific region.All-conquering Incheon was also voted bestairport worldwide in the 25mppa plus and MostImproved airport categories.Incheon International Airport Corporation(IIAC) president and CEO, Jaehee Lee, claimsthat winning the accolade of the best airportin the world means that his gateway is ‘livingthe dream’.The airport – a consistent high performer inthe Best Airport Worldwide category havingpreviously finished fourth, sixth, fourth andrunner up – believes that the award isrecognition of its commitment to customerservice and the dedication of its staff.Says Lee: “Some airports can only dreamabout becoming world-class, but Incheon nowlives that dream. Being recognised as the bestairport in the world as we celebrate our fifthanniversary is a truly meaningful milestone. It isthe culmination of not just the efforts ofIIAC, but everyone involved in the everydayoperation of the airport that has given theirutmost to improve the level of service.“We are not complacent, however, and willnot allow the honour to lull us into a false senseof contentment. Our aim is to continue toimprove customer services to make lifeeasier and more convenient for passengers.We are currently looking at simplifyingimmigration processes to attain a level ofservice that befits our status as the world’sbest hub.”Halifax International Airport in Canada’sNova Scotia Province repeated lastyear’s success by being named favouritegateway in the Americas and the bestairport worldwide in the 0-5mppa and BestDomestic categories.Halifax International Airport Authoritypresident and CEO, Eleanor Humphries,admits that this year’s awards wereparticularly gratifying due to the increasedcompetition on offer from such world-renownedairports as London Heathrow, Sydney(Australia), Amsterdam Schiphol, Beijingand Denver as well as the Canadian airportsof Vancouver, Edmonton, Ottawa and Toronto.“We’d like to express our appreciation topassengers who ranked us and the airportemployees who made us number one,”enthuses Humphries. “This achievement is a

AETRA WINNERS 2005Incheon CEO, Jaehee Lee, receives the BestAirport Worldwide award from the chairman ofAbu Dhabi’s Department of Transport, HisExcellency, Khalfan Gaith Al Muhairbi.14tribute to the hard work, tremendous effort andexceptional service commitment by our ownemployees, volunteer hosts and the front-linestaff from our many partner organisations.”Brussels and Copenhagen share thehonour of Best Airport in Europe and DubaiInternational Airport was once again voted theBest Airport in the Middle East/Africa, whileKuala Lumpur International Airport andNagoya’s new Central Japan InternationalAirport led the way in the 15-25mppa and5-15mppa categories respectively.The joint second ranking of Hong KongInternational Airport and Singapore Changiand third place finish of Kuala LumpurInternational Airport in the Best Worldwidecategory capped a remarkable performanceby Asia-Pacific airports in the 2005 awards.Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA)eclipsed last year’s performance in theannual customer satisfaction survey by goingone better and claiming top spot in the15-25mppa category.Dato’ Seri Bashir Ahmad, managingdirector of operator, Malaysia AirportsHoldings Berhad, says: “The award reflectsour continuous efforts to further enhancethe services and facilities offered at KLIA.While this result is an endorsement ofour achievement, we take it as a challengeto maintain our good standings in theAETRA survey.“Certainly, we don’t intend to rest onour laurels and would continue to upgradeour services and facilities to meet the everincreasing demands of the discerning passengers.”The results, announced during a spectacularawards ceremony at the Airport ServiceQuality conference in Abu Dhabi, are basedon the findings of over 100,000 completedquestionnaires collected from passengersurveys carried out at 66 airports worldwideduring all four quarters of last year.The survey covers the entire airportexperience of international and domestictravellers who rate participating airports on 28service-related parameters.The honours are the last under theAETRA name as next year’s awards will bepart of ACI’s Airport Service Quality (ASQ)programme, launched in January 2006 to takethe annual airport benchmarking survey to thenext level.Abu Dhabi, Bergen, Mexico City andNaples are among a host of airports to jointhe ASQ programme since its launch earlierthis year, the new additions bringing thetotal number of participants to 76 airportsworldwide with ACI expecting the total to reach100 participants by the year’s end.Questionnaire feedback over the years hasalso consistently highlighted the importanceof staff courtesy, airport cleanliness, cleardirectional signage, ground transportation,Halifax International Airport’s president and CEO, EleanorHumphries, receives her award from Raymond Korban,Etihad’s regional general manager for the UAE and Oman.Dato’ Seri Bashir Ahmad, managing director of MalaysiaAirports Holdings Berhad, receives KLIA’s award fromADNOC’s Ibrahim Al Marzooqi.parking and a range of service offerings suchas shopping, dining, telecommunications andcomputer services.ACI is confident that by participatingyear-on-year, airport managers can measureprogress on the various parameters covered bythe survey as well as benchmark their servicesrelative to other airports.

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – INCHEONOn top of the worldIncheon International Airport is officially the most customer friendly airport on theplanet. What is the secret of its success? Joe Bates reports.16Seoul’s Incheon International Airport hascelebrated its fifth birthday by beingnamed as the best gateway in the world inACI’s annual customer satisfaction survey.The airport, which replaced Gimpo as theinternational gateway to South Korea in2001, was also ranked the top gateway in theAsia-Pacific region and the best airportworldwide in the 25mppa plus and MostImproved airport categories of the 2005AETRA passenger satisfaction awards.There is no denying that the airport’smodern new terminal and greenfield location– 52km away from heavily populateddowntown Seoul – have helped to give it akey advantage over many of its older, spaceconstrained rivals, but to attribute Incheon’ssuccess purely down to its state-of-the-artfacilities would be doing a major disserviceto the airport authority, which is100% committed to raising the bar oncustomer service.The aim of operator, Incheon InternationalAirport Corporation (IIAC), to be the mostcustomer friendly airport in the world isprimarily based on Korean culture andthe fact that it has an ever-growing list ofcustomers to satisfy.Over 26 million passengers and 2.1million tonnes of cargo passed through theairport in 2005 as 59 airlines operated 2,894weekly flights between Incheon and 128 citiesin 42 countries across the globe.And with numbers expected to grow to45mppa by 2010, it is aware that the morepeople are coming and more means that itwill need bigger facilities and even betterservices and customer care.In many ways the physical expansion ofthe airport is the easiest part of the equationcompared to giving customers what they wantin terms of customer service.An ongoing $4 billion second phaseexpansion programme will raise Incheon’scapacity to 44mppa and 4.5 million tonnes ofcargo by 2008 to ensure that the airportis equipped to handle future demand. Butwhat about customer satisfaction? Well,thanks to its innovative approach tocustomer service, it has been able to drawup a ‘customer satisfaction roadmap’that, together with the implementation of newIT systems, is designed to ensure thatcustomer service standards continue to risein the years ahead.“We aim to deliver the best facilities andservices but, in order to do this, we had firstto discover what our customers really wantedfrom us,” admits IIAC’s assistant managerservice management, Sang Kyoo Park. “Weconducted our own survey and the resultscould not have been more clear – 77% ofpassengers wanted a more friendly serviceand faster and more efficient processing atthe airport, whether they are buying anewspaper in a shop or queuing up atimmigration. Now we have to deliver whatthey want.”IIAC’s ‘customer service roadmap’ led toit moving toward a more customer orientedmanagement system last year. IIAC reshuffledits organisational structure to fit in with thenew philosophy and from the leadershipof president and CEO, Jaehee Lee, down, theairport authority’s management team hasbecome more customer focused.

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – INCHEONAll pictures courtesy of Fentress Bradburn Architects.Says Park: “There has been a paradigmshift in society over the last few years andthe speed of change in the last 30 yearshas been faster than that in the previous 100years. Today’s customers are very demanding.They know what they want and how to getit and, if they don’t get it from you, they willgo elsewhere.“Throughout 2006 we will continue to findout about customer needs and what we needto do to fulfill them. We will also continue toeducate employees about service delivery,raise service standards and develop andintroduce reward and compensationprogrammes to either reward staff deliveringgood customer service or compensatepassengers when service standards fail tomeet their expectations.”IIAC says that the AETRA passengersatisfaction survey and its Airport ServiceQuality (ASQ) successor – launched by ACIearlier this year to help take service levels tothe next level – along with studies focusedspecifically on airline and retail services, are‘fantastic’ tools for benchmarking its progressagainst other airports and “maintaining highlevels of customer satisfaction”.As a direct result of its customer serviceinitiatives, IIAC has formed a ServiceImprovement Committee comprising theairlines, government agencies and otherairport tenants to look at ways ofimproving services in the future. It claimsthat it is vital to hear their ‘voice’ as raisingcustomer service standards at Incheon isultimately the responsibility of all companiesand airport staff.New service performance targets set byIIAC for 2005 include the desire to process95% of all departing passengers (check-in,security screening and passport control)within 45 minutes and for 95% of allarriving passengers to have passed throughimmigration, baggage delivery and customsinspection within 40 minutes.On the cargo side, it wants 30 minute orunder wait times for 97% of trucks withexport shipments and for 95% of inboundconsignments of less than ten tonnes to bereleased in less than two hours.And South Korea’s leading gateway isconfident that future advancements inairport IT systems and the introductionof biometric technology will furtherreduce these times and improve passengerflow as well as enhance security andoffer a variety of exciting new businessand leisure possibilities for passengers.Says Park: “Passengers take an average of15 minutes to check-in today, around 12minutes to get through security and 14minutes to clear immigration. With newtechnology we expect to see these times cutby at least 50%.”Incheon won high praise for its ‘ambience’and ‘cleanliness’ in the 2005 AETRAsurvey, areas where IIAC has committeda lot of resources in terms of effort andmanpower. The airport authority has adedicated team of cleaners operating in theterminal throughout the day and customerservice staff are always on hand to assistpassengers with any queries or problems.IIAC president and CEO, Jaehee Lee,claims that winning the accolade of the bestairport in the world means that his gateway is‘living the dream’.The airport – a consistent high performerin the Best Airport Worldwide categoryhaving previously finished fourth, sixth, fourthand runner up – believes that the award isrecognition of its commitment to customerservice and the dedication of its staff.“Our aim is to continue to improvecustomer services to make life easierand more convenient for passengers.We are currently looking at simplifyingimmigration processes to attain a level ofservice that befits our status as theworld’s best hub,” says Lee.17

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – HALIFAXThat winning feelingA big winner in the 2005 customer satisfaction awards, Halifax strives to get evenbetter, reports Chris Kjelgaard.18Canada’s Halifax International Airport has atruly impressive record in the industry’sannual customer satisfaction survey.Its 2005 AETRA award for the best airportin the 0-5mppa category was the third yearin a row that the Nova Scotia gateway has wonthe accolade.In addition, Halifax was ranked the world’sbest domestic gateway and best airport in theAmericas for the second year running. It rankedhighly in many of the 31 separate elements ofpassenger airport experience covered in theAETRA customer satisfaction survey, comingthird among the 66 airports worldwide thatparticipated in the 2005 survey in terms of itsease for making flight connections.Halifax also rated particularly highly for thefeeling of safety and security it engendered, itsshort security wait times and the courtesyshown by the airport’s security staff. Like allother Canadian airports, Halifax’s securityscreening is managed by the Canadian AirTransportation Security Authority (CATSA),which selects a security screening contractor foreach airport from a small number of approvedcompanies. Shanahan Security is the contractorthat performs security screening for Halifax.The airport has contracted the Nova ScotiaCorps of Commissionaires, a non-profitsecurity organisation that primarily employsformer military personnel and their spouses,to carry out unarmed security patrolling. Italso has contracted the Royal CanadianMounted Police – the world famous Mounties –to perform armed patrolling and alarm responsefunctions at its passenger screening andsecurity-sensitive areas. Additional policing isprovided by the Canadian federal government.“All of our security agencies work veryclosely together,” says Peter Clarke, HIAA’svice president of operations. “A hallmarkof HIAA is working closely with the agenciesand with Transport Canada, the regulator.We have a bit of a reputation for workingclosely with them.”Despite the airport’s strong showing in theAETRA survey throughout the last threeyears, its operator Halifax InternationalAirport Authority (HIAA) isn’t taking anythingfor granted. “Even though we were first inACI North America in 2004, we actuallyimproved our raw scores in 2005,” Clarkeconfides. “We needed to, to maintain ourranking. It’s a great programme.”In HIAA’s opinion, as more airports joinAETRA’s successor ASQ – by early 2006 thenumber of participants worldwide was 76, upfrom 66 taking part in the 2005 survey –the programme becomes a better means ofbenchmarking customer service performance.“The more [airports joining] the merrier, asfar as we’re concerned,” says Clarke. HIAAwas particularly pleased to see Ottawa comingsecond in the Americas behind Halifax in theASQ awards in 2005, its first full year ofmembership. “If there’s a rivalry, it’s a veryfriendly one,” says Clarke.HIAA’s clutch of 2005 AETRA awards areremarkable considering that throughout theyear the airport terminal was under majorconstruction. When this is completed inmid-2007 the airport should be even morecustomer-friendly than today. Its 65,250sqmterminal is being redesigned so that its northernpart will exclusively handle internationalflights, the mid-terminal area will handleonly long-haul domestic traffic and itssouthern end will cater purely to short-haulregional services.“Once construction is complete, I think wewill go back and look at an overall view of ourClean and tidy Halifax International Airport is one of theworld’s most customer friendly airports.

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – HALIFAXwayfinding to make sure all the elements in thedifferent parts of the airport work togethercohesively,” says Clarke.HIAA’s four-year construction programmeincludes improving wayfinding systems, addingnew flight information display and publicaddress systems, and improving the terminal’sgeneral ambience, which passengers alreadyregard as pleasant.Such thoughtfulness comes naturally to anairport operator that since its privatisation in2000 has regarded customer satisfaction as atop priority. “One of the things that quicklybecame clear was that the board, the CEO andsenior management were very interested indeveloping customer relations and service,”says Clarke. “People focus on the ranking, butthat’s not what we got into [AETRA/ASQ] for. Wewanted to be able to measure how well we weredoing in customer service and that was ourinitial interest in the AETRA programme. Itoffered a scientific, broad range of questions inmany areas and had an independent quality.”HIAA has already come to regard theAETRA/ASQ programme as a hugely importanttool for planning the airport’s customer serviceand infrastructure development. Feedbackshowing customers were giving HIAA poormarks for the airport’s parking facilities – it hadno covered parking – persuaded the authorityto sanction development of parking facilitiesoffering three different levels of service.One is a cheap, off-airport, long-stay facilityoffering shuttle-bus service to the terminal.The second level is a medium-priced lotwithin walking distance of the terminal. The thirdwill be a covered short-stay car park attached toit. Construction of the covered parking garagewill begin in 2007.HIAA’s management team gave the job ofadministering the 2005 AETRA survey work tocustomer relations manager Kelly Martin.“Kelly started up a volunteer programmeand broadened the scope of the organisationtremendously,” says Clarke. Even though Martinheads a full-time staff of just two people whomanage HIAA’s customer service activities, shehas helped create for the airport a reputation outof all proportion to its resources by establishingHIAA’s ‘Tartan Team’ of 100 volunteer greeters.Mostly senior citizens in the 55-80 age rangebut also including off-duty airport workers, thesevolunteers – easily identifiable in theirwaistcoats of Nova Scotia tartan – meet everyarriving aircraft to provide passengerswith directions, special needs help andother assistance.When the airport is closed down bysnowstorms or major storms and passengersare unable to fly, the volunteers give outcare packages under a customer careprogramme run by Martin’s customer serviceteam – another example of the thoughtfulnesstowards the airport’s customers that has madeHalifax a big passenger favourite.In caring for the airport’s customers, Martinand Clarke strongly believe that Halifax’s biggestasset is the warm nature of its residents. “Wereally do start with a natural advantage in theAtlantic Provinces,” says Clarke. “The peoplewho live here are very natural, down to earth andcaring and they know how to treat people in afriendly, polite manner.”To bolster this advantage HIAA set up anAirport Customer Service Council, engagingthe airlines serving Halifax, the airport’s retailtenants and service contractors and theairport’s own staff to create what Clarke calls “ashared vision” of customer service excellence towhich all the airport’s stakeholders subscribe.“The airport itself has developed a reallystrong customer service culture which haspenetrated into all our frontline employees,whether they be staff members of the airport, theairlines, the retail tenants, the customs andimmigration services, the security agencies orthe service companies,” says Martin. “Webenefit from the fact that the employees enjoyworking here. It makes a difference in theirOne of the airport’s ‘tartan team’ provides a special welcome for one family.attitudes to customers. They take pride in theairport and what we’ve achieved.”A much-valued employee recognitionprogramme reinforces the airport workers’feeling of solidarity in showing a human faceto Halifax’s customers. So too does theairport’s participation in the ‘Super Host’training programme, recognised widelyinternationally for the excellence of its customerservice training.Run for HIAA by the Tourism IndustryAssociation of Nova Scotia (TIANS), andbolstered by the airport’s own trainingcurriculum, the Super Host programme putsthe airport’s own staff and the employees of itsretail and service tenants through a day-longcourse that shows them the importance ofcustomer service excellence and techniquesthey can follow to try to ensure it.To achieve and maintain Super Host status,HIAA had to ensure that in any given year at least70% of its own employees and 60% of itstenants’ staff had been given Super Hosttraining. Halifax became Canada’s first SuperHost-recognised airport in 2003 – the year itjoined the programme – and has been able tomaintain its status ever since.Clarke’s closing words show howseriously HIAA takes the ASQ programmeand give credit where it is due. “The reality ofthis is that it is a programme that’s veryimportant to HIAA’s board and seniormanagement. But it comes from the frontlinestaff, whether they are airport employees orwork for the tenants. This award is anachievement by these people. They are the oneswho deserve the credit.”19

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – KUALA LUMPURNobody does it betterJoe Bates reports on the success of Kuala Lumpur International Airport, the world’s topgateway handling between 15-25 million passengers annually.20Kuala Lumpur International Airport’ssuccess in the 2005 AETRA customersatisfaction survey should come as nosurprise to anyone as the gateway has positivelyracked up awards since its 1998 opening.Its impressive facilities – recently added towith the opening of Asia’s first dedicatedterminal for low-cost airlines – include a fastand convenient express train service to adowntown terminal where passengers cancheck-in and pick up luggage, have long foundfavour with travellers from around the world.But without doubt the real secret of itssuccess is Malaysia Airports HoldingsBerhad’s (MAHB) commitment to customerservice based on the philosophy ofcontinually looking to make improvementsand listening to passengers with the aim ofdelivering the type facilities and services thatthey actually want.Nowhere has this philosophy been moreevident that at KLIA’s assortment of shops andrestaurants which, despite being about to befurther upgraded, came in for high praise frompassengers in the 2005 AETRA survey for theirrange and value-for-money.Many of the duty free and retail outlets atKLIA today are either managed by 100% ownedMAHB subsidiary, Eraman Malaysia, or theretail division of KLIA management company,Malaysia Airports (Sepang), with all otherfacilities being operated by concessionaires.The airport currently boasts 89 shops(including duty free) and 26 F&B outlets, andKLIA’s retail offering is about to get even betterwith the completion of a Retail OptimisationPlan for the satellite building.The plan quite simply aims to create amore ‘attractive environment’ that willencourage traditionally big spendinginternational passengers to make some lastminute purchases before boarding their flights.Umar Bustamam, general manager of bothcommercial services at MAHB and theretail division of Malaysia Airports (Sepang)as well as acting head of Erman Malaysia,says: “We are addressing not only thetype of retail offering we want in thesatellite building and the look we wantto achieve but also the location of each outletas it is very important that we put the rightstore in the right place or we will all miss out.If a passenger cannot locate a particularshop or see what they might be interestedin buying they will not make a purchase,and if they’re not spending their moneyhere they are spending it elsewhere. I don’t likethat scenario.”Eraman Malaysia – otherwise known asMalaysia Airports (Niaga) Sdn Bhd – expectsthe enhancement of the satellite building’sretail outlets to be completed by August 2007,when KLIA will have at least 120 shops.It may have more, for such has beenthe popularity of KLIA’s newly openedLow-Cost Terminal that the airport is alreadythinking about adding more retail and F&Boutlets to meet demand. The complex, hometo AirAsia and its regional subsidiaries,currently has seven shops and five food andbeverage outlets.Duty free outlets make up the bulk of theshops operated by Eraman Malaysiaand Malaysia Airports (Sepang) at KLIAtoday, with concessionaires on five-yearcontracts (initial three-year deals haveoptional two-year extension clauses built in tothem) and as master concessionaire overseeingall F&B services.In order to better manage KLIA’s food andbeverage operation, Eraman has deliberatelyrecruited a team of 12 staff with F&B experiencefrom outside the aviation industry to ensure a‘fresh’ and more ‘objective’ approach to thegateway’s selection of restaurants and fastfood eateries. As a result, KLIA’s offering interms of outlets, quality and price is regularly

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – KUALA LUMPURassessed and compared against other airports inthe region. All premises also regularly undergohygiene inspections carried out by governmentagencies and are subject to independentlaboratory analysis.In addition, the performance of shop andrestaurant staff is also monitored, as the airportauthority is only too aware that poor service canundermine even the best facilities in the world.As well as on-going in-house training toimprove frontline customer service skills,the airport authority has set up specialtraining courses with a local university that arespecifically designed to improve their retail andF&B knowledge.Bustamam says: “I think having a dedicatedteam purely focused on F&B and how to achievebest practice in this area of the business hasproved instrumental to our success.”He insists that eight years of ‘listening’ topassengers’ views about the types of facility thatthey would like to see at KLIA has led to today’smix of F&B outlets. The combination of differentcuisines and settings, ranging from ‘casualdining’ in food courts to upmarket restaurantswith waiter service, is designed to cater to alltastes, palates and wallets.A Harrods outlet (gifts, fashion and foodhall) is among the newest of the gateway’s26 F&B outlets that between them offer ‘theright balance’ of local, Malaysian, oriental andwestern cuisine.Broken down into categories, Bustamamenthuses that KLIA now offers seven restaurantsfor ‘casual dining’, seven different typesof café, three bars that include a Cheersfranchise and three fast food outlets –McDonalds, Burger King and KFC.Around 75% of KLIA’s eateries and shops arelocated airside, the majority of landside F&Boutlets tending to comprise fast food facilitiesprimarily catering to the needs of meetersand greeters. They include Edan@KLInternational Airport, which serves a selection offresh seafood and Cantonese-Szechuan dishesadapted to local palates.Its retail and F&B success also owes a lotto its pricing policy which has earned thegateway a reputation for being one of the bestvalue-for-money airports in the world.Indeed all concessionaires now have tosign a contract stating that their prices at KLIAmust at least be on a par or comparablewith what is on offer downtown, and if they arefound to be more expensive by a customer theymust refund them double the difference.And concessionaires consistentlyfailing to honour the agreement orunderperforming in other areas facefinancial penalties and ultimately risk havingtheir contracts terminated.Admits Bustamam: “We actively aim tokeep our prices down as Malaysians arevery demanding on costs, wanting downtownprices or cheaper, so this is what we givethem. Compared to other airports around theworld our prices are very cheap, but ourmarket dictates that a careful pricing policybased on the provision of value-for-moneyservices is the best way forward.”It is also looking at ways in which it canpossibly hold on to its best frontline staff forlonger, as many of the shop assistants andrestaurant workers tend to be students orteenagers who only tend to stay around for sixmonths to a year before getting another job orgoing to university.Adds Bustamam: “Holding on to ourbest young staff is a challenge we face butwe are not alone in this, of course, asthe retail industry is not the best paid in theworld. This is something we shall definitely belooking at in the future.”In addition to winning the 15–25mppacategory, KLIA also bagged third place forboth Best Airport Worldwide and Best Airportin Asia/Pacific categories in the 2005AETRA awards.MAHB managing director, Dato’ Seri BashirAhmad, enthuses: “The award reflects ourcontinuous efforts to further enhancethe services and facilities offered at KLIA.While this result is an endorsementof our achievement, we take it as a challengeto maintain our good standings in theAETRA survey.“Certainly, we don’t intend to rest onour laurels and would continue toupgrade our services and facilities to meetthe ever increasing demands of thediscerning passengers.“This is not only an award for us at MalaysiaAirports, but must be shared by all governmentagencies and business partners of KLIA fortheir undivided support and contributions.”21

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – DUBAIWho cares winsA comprehensive customer care programme helped Dubai once again claim top spotfor Middle East/Africa in the 2005 AETRA survey, writes Mark Chivers.22Dubai International Airport (DBX), nowfirmly established as one of the world’spremier air gateways, shows no sign ofslowing in its progress as it records year-on-yeartraffic growth across all sectors of the market.In 2005, 24.7 million passengers passedthrough the airport, an increase of 14% over2004 figures. Cargo and aircraft movementsalso showed double-digit growth and in 2006,forecasts predict throughput will be boosted yetagain, reaching around 28 million passengersand 1.5 million tonnes of freight.With 110 airlines serving Dubai and morethan 160 cities on the destinations board –not to mention a host of ultra-modern facilitiesthat are the envy of airports around the world –it could be argued that there is little more thatairport operator, the Department of CivilAviation (DCA), can do to satisfy its growingranks of visitors.However, such is the ethos at DBX thatachieving the seemingly impossible hasbecome second-nature. Less than a decade agoit began a relentless drive towards world-classhub status with the launch of a $540 millionexpansion programme, culminating in the2000 opening of the award-winningSheikh Rashid Terminal. A host of accoladesunderscored its new ranking as Dubai wascatapulted onto the world stage.Remarkably the Middle Eastern hubdidn’t stop there and it is on target tocomplete yet another round of airportimprovements. The focus of the latest$4.1 billion Phase Two expansion programmewill be a raft of new passenger facilities–Terminal 3, Concourse 2 and Concourse 3,all dedicated to Emirates – as well as anextensive Mega Cargo Terminal.The new terminal is being designed byAéroports de Paris International (ADPi) and willmeasure some 300 metres by 350 metres.Featuring 180 check-in counters, restaurants,two levels of parking with a commercial centre,and first-class lounges, it is sure to be aninstant hit with all travellers. Advancedpassenger check-in systems and relatedtechnologies will further enhance the offering.As the terminal is primarily located belowground, wayfinding is an important issue. The newterminal is designed to improve both inbound andoutbound passenger flow through the use of aglazed façade at one end and an atrium at theother. This is designed to capture natural light andso facilitate passenger orientation.On completion in 2007, Dubai InternationalAirport will have the capacity to handle close to70mppa, up from the current 22 million. Withforecasts projecting 60 million passengers usingDBX by 2010, the extra space will be vital tomaintaining smooth operations.Top managementThe expansion is also designed to keep DBXahead of the curve in terms of customer service.It will enable the gateway to deliver an ever moreuser-friendly and efficient airport experienceand maintain its award-winning position at thetop of the tree.

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – DUBAIThe Emirate is currently acclaimed as theprime aviation and business hub of the region.In the 2005 AETRA survey, Dubai carried off tophonours in the Best Airport in Middle East/Africasection, coming in a close second in the globalBest Airport with 15-25mppa category, behindKuala Lumpur.Achieving such accolades is welcomerecognition of the Department of CivilAviation’s long commitment to deliveringthe very best to its users. DBX was oneof the first airports to launch a customercare programme. Dubbed ‘Dubai AirportCares’, the programme was launched in1998 by H.H. Sheikh Mohammed binRashid Al-Maktoum, Vice President andPrime Minister of the United Arab Emirates andRuler of Dubai.“Dubai Airport Cares is a uniquecross-organisational team that consists ofdecision-makers representing all organisationsworking at DBX,” informs DCA’s commercialdirector, Huraiz Al-Mur bin Huraiz.The team includes the DCA, Dubai DutyFree, Emirates Airline, ground handlingoperator DNATA, immigration, customs andairport police. It meets on a weekly basis todiscuss all possible improvements in customerservice at DBX.“Since the team has decision-makersand the support of the top management,including H.H. Sheikh Ahmed Bin SaeedAl-Maktoum, president of the DCA andchairman of the Emirates Group, it has alwaysbeen easy to implement new initiatives andimprovements at DBX,” says Huraiz.An illustration of this is the work done by theDubai Airport Cares Training Team, one of themany groups within the overall umbrella ofDubai Airport Cares. This team has developedcustomer service training for all DIA staff startingwith the ‘One Customer, One Airport’ programmein 2002.Since then, almost 5,000 employees havesuccessfully completed the stringent trainingcourse. As a result, customer service levelsthroughout DIA operations have been unified,creating an efficient and professional ambiencefor the travelling public.To keep pushing the boundary of servicestandards, in-house benchmarking plays a keyrole in the delivery of customer care. Theteam has a set of Key Performance Indicators(KPIs) to follow with monitoring carried out onan ongoing basis.Mindful of the fact that it is important to keeptrack of world best practices in all facets ofoperations, Huraiz reveals that Dubai takes awide ranging view of the market competition.“We went on our own benchmarking trips toother airports which have a good reputation forcustomer service,” he notes.“The team also evaluates the IATA surveysconducted with all passengers every quarter,”Huraiz adds. “In addition, we get feedbackthrough our website and the electronicfeedback kiosks we have installed within theterminal. So far, we have received goodcomments from passengers and we always takequick corrective action with any complaints.Moreover, we organise focus group meetingsfor both passengers and airlines in order to gettheir feedback.”Huraiz is keen to emphasise thatteamwork is paramount when it comesto customer service development and alsopoints out it requires “good systems to getthings moving.”The DBX philosophy is always to have itsstaff meet, and consistently exceed, customerexpectations. “We at Dubai Airport Careshave trained staff to carry out that roleeffectively and we continuously develop ourtraining programme to ensure our customersget the same level of service wherever they goat DBX,” says Huraiz.Understanding that recognition of qualityworks at all levels, the gateway has alsodeveloped a staff motivation programme knownas the Dubai Airport Cares Champions League.Under the scheme, staff who distinguishthemselves in customer service receive anaward on a monthly basis.23

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – NAGOYAIt’s only just begunNagoya’s new Centrair gateway is the best airport in the world handling between 5-15million passengers per year, writes Joe Bates.24They say that the best things in life areworth waiting for and this certainlyappears to be the case for Nagoya’snew Central Japan International Airport,which has earned the accolade of the bestairport of its size in the world in its first yearof operations.The new $7 billion gateway, located on aman-made island in Ise Bay 35 kilometresfrom downtown Nagoya, has not lookedback since replacing the city’s old,capacity constrained airport in February2005, attributing its success to itspassenger friendly state-of-the-art design.Known locally as Centrair, the basicprinciple behind the design of its huge220,000sqm terminal building was that it hadto be ‘easy to understand and easy to foreveryone to use’, and judging by the airport’ssuccess in ACI/IATA’s 2005 AETRA customersatisfaction survey where it won high praisefor its ambience and comfortable waitingareas, it has succeeded in its quest.The glass and metal façade of theterminal – designed by an architecturalteam comprising Nikken Sekkei, Azusa,Arup, Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum(HoK) and Arup – is specificallydesigned to create a feeling of openness,allowing natural light into the complexand allowing users on its west side clearviews of Ise Bay.The user-friendly design of the terminalmeans that despite its huge size – it is builton four levels and boasts 22 gates – mostpassengers face a maximum 300m walk fromcheck-in to aircraft and Arrivals andDepartures are on separate, self-containedlevels. The airport also has its own railwaystation and marine terminal offering rapid railand ferry connections.But passengers taking part in the AETRAsurvey also noticed the smaller designfeatures such as wider and more easilyaccessible toilets, good signage and theextensive use of carpeting at boarding gatesand airside waiting areas. The airport’s clean,polished and waxed floors also found favourwith customers.Centrair’s chief manager for customerservice development and planning, HirohikoUeno, says: “We are particularly proud ofour airport and the favourable impressionit has made on passengers. People tell usthat our airport is beautiful, simple to useand clean, which is exactly what we wantedthem to say.

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – NAGOYA“You won’t find any litter on our floors andhopefully you won’t get lost as the design,decoration and layout of the terminal buildingwere designed with ease of wayfinding inmind. We believe that we have created animpressive fresh new feel for an airport.”The operator, Central Japan InternationalAirport Corporation (CJIAC), believes that thesize and convenience of the airport’s toiletshave also played a part in the gateway’sundoubted popularity.Adds Ueno: “We have deliberately madeour toilet cubicles twice the size ofnormal ones to give passengers the option oftaking their baggage inside with them ifthey wish. This innovation is a direct resultof customer feedback and surveys andmarket research carried out at the oldairport. The use of folding cubicle doorsmeans less wastage of valuable space insidethe restrooms. A top priority is also to ensurethat the toilets remain spotlessly cleanaround-the-clock.”Whilst understandably basking in thesuccess of 2005 AETRA results, the airportauthority is only too aware that now ithas won the award it has to go about thetask of trying to retain the accolade nextyear and do even better in the future to avoidthe possibility of being a one-year wonder.Ueno, for one, is in no doubt that this isjust the beginning of great things for Nagoya’snew gateway to the world.“This year’s accolade recognises thework of the airport designers and theclose co-operation that exists betweenall parties involved in ensuring thesmooth running of everyday operationsat the airport,” he says. “This meanseveryone from public offices and groundtransportation providers to the airlinesand other service providing companiescommitted to improving customer satisfactionand taking service quality to a higher level. Weare young, however, and still have much tolearn so will continue to strive to achieve ourgoal of one day being ranked the BestAirport Worldwide.”25

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – BRUSSELSThe comeback kingMark Chivers reports on the remarkable turnaround in the fortunes of Brussels Airport.26Brussels Airport has possibly stagedone of the comebacks of all time by beingnamed the Best Airport in Europe – anhonour it shares with Copenhagen – fiveyears after passenger traffic through thegateway was devastated by the loss of Belgiannational flag carrier, Sabena.It also ranked third best worldwide amongthe airports in the 15-25 million passengers peryear section, behind the multi-award-winninggateways of Kuala Lumpur and Dubai.And the fact that the ranking is decidedby its passengers, who recognise the hugecustomer service strides it has made over thelast few years, makes the award even moremeaningful for operator, Brussels InternationalAirport Company (BIAC).The turnaround in the airport’s fortunes isremarkable considering that the demise ofSabena, responsible for more than 50% ofits traffic, came within a few weeks of thehorror event of 9-11 and subsequent globaldownturn in traffic.Indeed, so bad was the impact of the‘double whammy’ on traffic throughput that itwould have been easy for the airport’s servicequality to suffer too, but instead of lettingthis happen BIAC used the ‘downtime’ to raisecustomer service standards to new levels.And now with traffic on the rise again – over16 million passengers passed through Brusselsin 2005 – and a major new shareholder onboard in the shape of Macquarie Airports(Map), the airport is at last beginning to witnessthe benefit of all its efforts.BIAC’s quality assurance manager,Emmanuel Bondroit, has no doubt that theairport’s unavoidable misfortune has actuallyproved the catalyst for change and engenderedtremendous progress – the downturn enablingthe available staff to better focus on qualityissues and customer satisfaction.“We took the opportunity to set up ourairport-wide service quality improvementprogramme,” he says. “The programme’ssuccess depends on the commitment of themanagement of all the companies involved.The introduction of an airport-wideprogramme is an ideal means to enable thecommitment to develop and achieveattainable common objectives and create teamspirit among parties.”BIAC not only set up an internal servicequality improvement programme but alsoinvolved its partners within the airportcommunity. A steering committee oversees thedevelopment and implementation of the project.“In co-ordination with the differentdepartments of BIAC, several workinggroups were created consisting of BIACrepresentatives, external organisations, airlines,concessionaires and public authorities,”explains Bondroit.The results of a benchmarking reportwere analysed from a customer focus point ofview and all parties were encouraged tobring forward and develop solutions for servicequality improvement.Notable developments occurred incommunication and information sharingbetween the business partners at the airport.The programme also brought about improvedoperational co-ordination between the staff ofthe different companies and organisationsworking at the airport, creating a more pleasantand relaxed atmosphere in the terminal.All pictures courtesy of BIAC.

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – BRUSSELSOther projects included re-working theterminal interior to best meet passengerneeds, a review of signage and dynamicinformation displays, a focus on cleanlinessand well-maintained facilities, an appraisalof procedures between the different businesspartners and conclusion of new servicelevel agreements.“The airport-wide approach created acommon goal for all partners – providinghigh-quality services to the passenger,”Bondroit emphasises.BenchmarkingBondroit believes that benchmarking is the keyto the success of the improvement programme– just one of the reasons why independentquality awards are held in such regard atthe airport.Although some elements of the airportpassenger process – such as trolleyavailability, check-in lines and security waittimes – should be within BIAC's control, manyothers are not. As such, they are readilyquantifiable and can be regularly assessed.“Measuring service quality andbenchmarking are the conclusive means todetermine the strengths and weaknesses of theservices provided to the passengers,” Bondroitinforms. “Measuring the relative positionsof the participating airports provides objectivereference material to persuade the BIACdepartments and external partners of thenecessity of service quality improvements.”Such is the belief in measuring therelative merits of its services, BIAC undertakesa number of in-house benchmarking andsurveying exercises. General surveys carriedout for Airport Service Quality aresupplemented by specific passenger polls.All findings – both positive and negative –are checked against the results of a moreelaborate internal passenger survey and athorough complaint/remarks analysis. Onlythen is the way forward decided upon.Bondroit suggests that the findings indicateBrussels Airport’s success is not due to asingle factor but is rather a combination ofelements, all efficiently executed at theappropriate time and in the correct manner.“It is certainly a combination of factors,”he reveals. “With each factor being dependenton the others. Technology doesn’t functionproperly without adequate staff training;and staff depend on good teamwork inorder to provide an efficient, smooth andcustomer-friendly service.“Good customer service depends on a wellthought-out framework of customer-focusedairport infrastructure design and co-ordinatedworking methods at the airport,” he adds.There is no denying the advantages heldby Brussels in both regards. The Belgiangateway’s recent success is no doubt aided bythe fact that its facilities are relatively new. Theoldest part of the terminal is around 12 yearsold and the newest just four. And each of the20,000 airport staff have played their part –teamwork being the umbrella under which allservice improvements have occurred.Next stepsDespite the recent accolades, Brussels Airportwill not be resting on its laurels and has aplethora of customer-service improvementsunder development. Bondroit is alreadyconsidering the next steps forward toensure the gateway retains its Best Airport inEurope crown.Two specific areas have caught hisattention; the differing service requirementsof the various passenger markets and theconstant struggle between maintaininghigh-level security and delivering an enjoyable,hassle-free travel experience.“Business and leisure passengers havevery distinct needs,” he notes. “We arecurrently examining how we can furthercustomise services at the airport to better meetthe needs of different passenger categories.“In addition, the imposed securitymeasures considerably affect the travelexperience,” he concludes. “We are workinghard to reduce passenger queuing timesand speed up the screening operations withoutcompromising their quality.”27

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – COPENHAGENGreat DanesThe travelling public has ranked Copenhagen as Europe’s No.1 airport for a fifth successiveyear in the 2005 AETRA survey. What makes it so special? Teresa Andrews investigates.28What is it about Copenhagen Airport(CPH) which wins the hearts and mindsof so many of the 100,000 passengersinterviewed in the AETRA customer satisfactionsurvey on which the awards are based?And what are the management andmarketing strategies that lie behindits success?“We give major policy emphasis tocustomer service and satisfaction atCopenhagen Airport,” states director ofpassenger relations, Susanne Frank. “Our aimis to make everyone’s journey through theairport a good experience. We know thatbehind every seamless transit and relaxedpassenger there are a host of companiesworking extremely hard to provide the supportservices each passenger needs and we placegreat value on that provision.”In short, CPH employs the mostfundamental form of direct marketing – positivepersonal reinforcement. At CPH it works in fourspecific ways: Copenhagen Airport A/Sworks closely with airlines and airport serviceproviders to make travelling through CPH ahighly pleasant experience; it focuses onambience within the airport buildings tomake passengers feel relaxed and secure;it provides information so travellers canmake choices and feel in control and last, butnot least, it motivates employees to provide areassuring, helpful interface.This strategy allows Copenhagen tocollect, as Frank puts it, “happy passengers”,that are likely to choose to fly throughCPH again because their lasting impressionis positive.“Training is a keystone of our strategy,”stresses Frank. “We invest in people’sskills, encouraging them to take pride in theairport and enjoy working here and that loveof the airport atmosphere does get transmittedto travellers.”Copenhagen Airport specifically trains allits staff who work in contact with the generalpublic. It also has an innovative programmeto train non-airport authority staff. Particularlyaimed at personnel joining one of thecommercial retail shops or restaurants at theairport, the scheme began operating fouryears ago and, according to Frank, “is abig success.”She says: “We want these employees tohave the big picture view of how their shop orrestaurant fits into the overall activity atCopenhagen Airport and how their job canmake a huge difference to people’s attitudesto our airport.“We also want those employees to becomfortable and confident with handlingpassengers. I would say that someone workingin an airport needs to know much more abouttheir surroundings than someone workingdowntown. Customers downtown generallyjust buy goods, they are unlikely to engagein any kind of extended conversation but atthe airport they ask a whole raft of questionswhile buying candy, coffee or shoes.”Frank also cites a motivational benefit to thetraining programme: “Employees feel thatCopenhagen Airport cares enough about themto involve them in its training programme andkeep them informed about happenings aroundthe airport. That level of friendliness andinformation gets passed on to passengers.

AETRA WINNERS 2005 – COPENHAGENSo it isn’t just airport authority staff whoare friendly and helpful, it is most everyonetravellers come in contact with.”Copenhagen Airport also scored highly onthe AETRA survey for airport ambience. Frankbelieves reducing passengers’ stress levels atthe airport is key to the high rating. “We invest inhigh quality surroundings so the airportis a nice place to look at and be in. We trywhere possible to have natural light,particularly in the transit and check-in areawhere passengers may wait and our architectureis modern and spacious. In the terminalswe have bright wooden floors, many pieces ofwonderful art to look at and comfortableergonomic furniture to relax in.“But actually one of the main things whichcauses stress for passengers is difficultyfinding their way. In the passenger performancecheck surveys we undertake at CPH, theimportance of good signage always comesnear the top of the priority list. If passengersknow where they are going they feel lessstressed and they can relax over a coffee or sitand work without worrying. We concentrate ongood clear signage here.”Frank is also a strong believer in keepingtravellers informed about operational issuesat the airport which can affect them. In 2004,CPH started a programme to tell passengerswhat to expect from the airport authority.“The interesting thing is that customersatisfaction went up, even if actual performancelevel dropped,” asserts Frank.“For example, in the baggage hall we havemonitors which tell passengers that luggagefrom their flight will arrive in X number ofminutes and counts down to the deliverytime. Even at peak periods when baggagearrival may be slower, customers aresatisfied with our service because it meetstheir expectations. They are kept informed, theymake choices about how they want tospend the time before their luggage arrives andthey know what to expect.”CPH uses these performance indicatorboards at many points throughout the airportand Frank feels it returns some control topassengers, which they appreciate.“Here at CPH we have three securitypoints in our terminals and the buildings are alleasily accessible to each other. At the securitygates there are monitors displaying howmany minutes passengers can expect towait before they are through security. At busytimes it may be that Terminal 2, for example,has an eight minute wait time, while Terminal 3has a one minute wait. Showing thesefigures means passengers can choose to walk tothe Terminal 3 security gate to pass throughmore quickly or, if they opt to wait in line, havemade an informed choice based upon theirexpectation. Either way we end up with largepercentages of satisfied passengers.”The 2005 AETRA survey compared 66airports worldwide across eight differentcategories and results were based on interviewstaken throughout the year with 100,000passengers. CPH won high ratings in questionsrelating to ambience, helpfulness andcourtesy of airport staff, cleanliness andground transportation.“Our performance in the AETRA surveyyear-on-year is extremely important to us and wevalue it particularly as the number of airportstaking part grows substantially each time,”comments Frank. “This year we won theEuropean top slot against 29 other airports.”ACI’s decision to replace the AETRA surveywith its own Airport Service Quality (ASQ)customer satisfaction programme meansthat the competition for the top spots in 2006will be fiercer than ever before. A total of 77airports have already signed up to theprogramme and over 100 airports are expectedto participate in the 2007 awards.Without doubt Copenhagen Airportwill retain its place as the largest airportin Scandinavia this year and another certaintyis that it will be use all its considerablecustomer satisfaction strategies to try andkeep its crown as Europe’s best airport for a sixthconsecutive year.29

TOP RANKING – HONG KONGFly and buyHong Kong continues to dazzle passengers with its innovation and commitment to customerservice, reports Joe Bates.30Although failing to pick up a major award inthis year’s AETRA survey, Hong Kongremains a firm favourite with passengers, asits second place ranking in three categories,including Best Airport Worldwide, demonstrates.Despite its ever increasing throughput – arecord 40.7 million passengers (+9.7%) and 3.4million tonnes of cargo (+10%) passed throughits facilities in 2005 – there is without doubtmuch to admire about Hong Kong InternationalAirport (HKIA) from a traveller’s perspective.It is arguably the most easily accessibleairport on the planet – its inter-modal linksinclude a new cross-border ferry terminal(Skypier) for services to mainland China – and itsrapidly growing list of facilities will shortlyinclude the opening of SkyPlaza, a key element ofits SkyCity project.Described as a multi-modal business andleisure centre, SkyPlaza will have its own airlinecheck-in counters and 38,000sqm of retail andentertainment facilities, including an IMAX 3Dcinema, on top of an air-conditioned coachstation. It will later be joined by two office blocks,the first of which will house the new headquartersof the Airport Authority of Hong Kong (AAHK).The authority hopes that its colossal57-hectare SkyCity development project willcapture business from Hong Kong’s 12million visitors a year by becoming anattraction in its own right. Other first-phaseSkyCity developments include the SkyPier,AsiaWorld-Expo (an international exhibitioncentre), a four-star hotel and a 9-hole golf course.However, it is the airport’s shopping and retailfacilities that won high praise in the 2005 AETRAsurvey, where HKIA also ranked second in theAsia-Pacific and 25 million passengers perannum plus sections.So what is AAHK’s philosophy towards retaildevelopment and what makes the airport’s shopsstand out from the rest?Eva Tsang, AAHK’s general manager forretail and advertising, says: “We want to givea unique and memorable experience to everypassenger passing through Hong KongInternational Airport, and our retail offer is a keypart of this experience.“Our retail objective is to know ourcustomers and please them for what retailstrategy could be more effective than providingexactly what your customers want? We alsobelieve that a happy customer is morelikely and willing to spend money at theairport. We conduct consumer research onan ongoing basis to ensure that we reallyknow our passengers. We want to knowtheir demographics and psychographics, spendhabits and preferences.”“Such information is regularly analysedand this allows us to review our retail strategybased on all market dynamics. We enjoy adiverse mix of passengers and this diversity hasto be reflected in our retail offer if we are toplease everyone.”Knowing what its passengers want, saysTsang, allows the airport authority to ‘dig deep’into different segments of the retail marketand develop specific products and productlines for different customers.The airport authority favours a multi-operatorapproach to provide its retail offering. “Dueto the diversity of different shops requiredtoday, and the level of professionalismrequired to run the different outlets, it isunavoidable that we have to depart from the onemain concessionaire approach adopted by a lot ofairports,” says Tsang.All pictures courtesy of Airport Authority Hong Kong.

TOP RANKING – HONG KONG“We will further pursue this approach to ourretail market with the aim of inducing moreinnovation and vibrancy in our retail offer. Wealways design our leasing approach in such away as to encourage participation by differenttypes of operators and brands.”The authority’s commitment to providingthe retail offering that visitors to Hong Kongwant ensures that many of the world’s topbrand names can be found at the gateway.However, it has certainly not forgotten the appealof Hong Kong and China with its offering alsoincluding many ‘sense of place’ facilities.“Due to the highly sophisticated tastes of ourpassengers, we have to provide the mostprestigious international luxury brands in ourairport, but at the same time, we want todifferentiate Hong Kong by the presence of localtouches,” admits Tsang. “In our customersurveys, our passengers tell us that theywant to see local brands and offers as well. Thisis why we have the luxury of having boththe most prestigious international brandstogether with a lot of very popular localbrands under the same roof.”The investment required in establishing asuccessful retail facility at the airport means thatAAHK’s policy is to opt for minimum five-yearconcessionaire contracts. Tsang claims thatanything less that five years might not makethe contract viable or meaningful for eitherthe airport authority or the concessionaireinvolved. Contracts requiring greater initialinvestment from the concessionaire areusually a little longer than five years, butalways contain a clause giving AAHK theoption of reviewing the performance of theretailer to avoid it getting tied in to anyunsuccessful long-term deals.AAHK’s strong emphasis on customerservice is certainly at the very top of itspriority list when aiming to meet the needs ofairport shoppers.Adds Tsang: “Customer service is extremelyimportant to us. Apart from monitoring theservice standard through passengers’ feedback,we regularly contract independent consultantsto conduct mystery shopper visits to all ourstores. Based on the result, we can reviewthe findings with the operators. We alsoregularly monitor prices through an in-houseprogramme and independent surveys.”In addition the airport authority hasestablished a Customer Excellence ServiceProgramme for every segment of the airportbusiness to encourage high levels of service.It promises to be a big year for the airport,which recently announced a HK$4.5 billion($590m) development programme, it is on targetto open SkyPlaza in September and continues tostrengthen its commercial and strategic linkswith mainland China airports.Under the umbrella of its latest ‘enhancementprogramme’, AAHK has earmarked nearlyHK$1.5 billion ($200m) for improvements to theexisting passenger terminal and set aside HK$3billion ($390m) to upgrade the airfield by 2010.Top of the agenda are a new satelliteconcourse, more air-bridges, additionaltaxiways, repaved runways and widenedtaxiway shoulders to accommodate the newA380 super jumbo.The installation of an ‘ambience enhancing’full height-length glass cladding façade and thewidening of corridors by removing existingoffices are the key projects of a planned HK$200million facelift to today’s Arrivals CentralConcourse. As well as making the entirecomplex lighter and more appealing, the newfaçade will also give passengers clear views ofthe surrounding airfield.Another HK$600 million will be spent onmerging the two arrivals halls into a singlefacility to create more space for an increase inthe number of transfer, immigration and securitydesks. An additional HK$700 million is to beinvested on enhancing the baggage-handlingsystem with more advanced X-ray scanners.The bulk of the spend, however, will go on anew satellite concourse and revamping theairfield to increase operational efficiency andensure that HKIA is equipped to handle theA380 – it already has five gates capable ofaccommodating the super jumbo – and nextgeneration of new large aircraft (NLA).Around HK$1 billion has been allocated forthe construction of the new two-storey satelliteconcourse, which will be equipped with tenbridges for small aircraft and 11 parking standswhen it opens 2009.Up to HK$1.7 billion will go on wideningtaxiway shoulders and runway holding points forthe A380, the addition of three new taxiways(including two new rapid exit taxiways) and thephased resurfacing of runways and taxiwaypavements over the next five years.It is certainly going to need the new facilitiesfor with the latest traffic forecasts predicting atleast a 5% a rise in annual traffic for the next 20years, there appears no end in sight to the HongKong success story.31

TOP RANKING – OTTAWAEverybody winsBoth passengers and staff are reaping the rewards of Ottawa’s customer servicesuccess, reports Chris Kjelgaard.Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier InternationalAirport finished runner up in threecategories in the 2005 AETRA customersatisfaction survey, its first full year of participationin the programme.The airport was ranked as the second bestairport in the Americas and runner up in both theBest Domestic and 0-5mppa categories, aremarkable achievement that seems even moreimpressive when you consider that Ottawa getsup to six months of bad winter weather.“I am extremely proud of what Ottawa Airporthas been able to achieve in a short period of timewhen you consider that in 1997 Ottawa had anold, antiquated facility that was not befitting thecapital of Canada, nor did it meet the needs of ourcommunity,” says Paul Benoit, president andCEO of the Ottawa International Airport Authority.“In eight short years, we have delivered abeautiful, functional terminal and we havereceived a vote of confidence from ourcustomers as reflected in the AETRA survey. Theentire airport campus is to be commended forthis achievement.”Ottawa’s fine showing in the 2005 surveytogether with sister Canadian airport Halifax isn’tcoincidental. Both have substantially renovatedand similar sized terminal buildings – Ottawaactually building a completely new terminalthat opened in October 2003 – and they handlesimilar numbers of passengers. Ottawa handled3.7 million passengers in 2005 and Halifax 3.2million. Both terminals are also known for theirairy ambience.In the quarterly AETRA surveys conductedthroughout 2005, top marks from domesticbusiness passengers, domestic leisure travellersand total domestic passengers traded back andforth between the two airports. The reason theydid so well may well be the dedication eachshows to customer service.Ottawa joined AETRA/ASQ in mid-2004because it had been performing its own customersatisfaction studies but wanted to be able tobenchmark its performance against othergateways, claims John Spinks, the airportauthority’s vice president of marketing andbusiness development.Not only could it see the AETRA questionnairewas very similar to its own, but the authority alsofelt membership of the programme would instila desire in its own staff and in contractors’employees to excel in customer servicecompared with other airports worldwide. “Wethink it has worked very well,” says Spinks.One reason Ottawa’s customer servicestandards have become pre-eminent so quicklyis that its “corporate goals incorporate theresults we get on this study,” says Spinks. “Oursenior management bonuses are based on howwell we do, so there’s certainly an incentivefor us to optimise customer service throughoutthe airport.”Management’s focus on customer service isreflected in the helpful attitudes staff membersand contractor employees show the airport’scustomers, offering personal touches such asstopping to help people who are lost or pickingup litter when they see it on the terminal floor.The authority stresses the importance it placeson customer service by putting each staffmember and contractor employee through theOttawa Customer Care Programme it launchedwhen the new terminal opened.A key reason behind Ottawa’s second placeranking among domestic airports in 2005 was theambience of its new terminal. It was also highlyregarded for its wayfinding. Spinks credits theterminal’s “very open” design. “We designed itwith the customer in mind. It’s functional but verycustomer-friendly,” he says. “People can seewhere to go without an over-abundance of signs.They can see it’s not a long walk to the aircraft. Asthey check in they can see the security lines andthey can see the aircraft.”It rated highly in many of the service elementscovered by the questionnaire, both in thedomestic airport category (in which 34airports participated) and overall among all66 participants. Indeed, Ottawa came secondamong all domestic airports for the cleanliness ofits terminal and second for the cleanliness of itswashrooms. Spinks says contractor, BeeClean, did a very good job but the airportauthority also negotiated a strong, performancerelatedcleaning contract to make sure thecontractor performed well.Ottawa ranked third for both the efficiencyshown by check-in staff – employed by airlinesor contractors – and for the courtesythey showed. “The airline staff stepped upto the plate,” says Spinks. “We share our resultswith them.”Another area where Ottawa performed well inthe eyes of its passengers was safety and security,principally the short wait-times at securitycheck-points and in the feelings of safety andsecurity the screening process engendered. It wasalso praised for the thoroughness of its securityinspections, but lost a little ground on its half-year2004 showing in terms of the courtesy andhelpfulness shown by screening staff.33

TOP RANKING – DENVERDouble impactNew participant Denver claimed two top three rankings in the 2005 AETRA awards. Whatmakes it so special? Chris Kjelgaard reports.Denver International Airport (DEN) hasburst on to the scene by claiming thirdspot in the Best Airport in the Americascategory in its first full year of participating in theannual airport customer satisfaction survey.A top three ranking in the category forgateways handling more than 25 millionpassengers yearly – only finishing behind SeoulIncheon and joint-runners up SingaporeChangi and Hong Kong – meant that the airporthad double cause to celebrate.Although DEN is 11 times Ottawa’s size interms of terminal area and passengershandled – 6.5 million square feet versus600,000 square feet and 43.3 millionpassengers in 2005 versus 3.7 million – the twoairports share an important advantage.Both are substantially new, DEN being just 11years old and Ottawa having opened itsnew terminal building in 2003.“One of the reasons Denver does so well [inpassenger surveys] is because it’s the newestmajor airport in North America and was designedwith the traveller in mind,” says Kristi Torrey,DEN’s director of customer service.Its all-weather operational systems andlayout, featuring six long, widelyseparated runways pointing to all four majorpoints of the compass and providingexpansion room for six more within the airport’s53 square-mile land area, made it the top USmajor airport for on-time arrivals in 2004 –always a big plus with passengers.DEN won praise in the 2005 AETRA survey forits ambience and cleanliness. Torrey credits thedesign of the airport’s main terminal – thetent-like roof of which allows 27% of the light thathits it to pass through to the building’s interior –and its highly windowed midfield concoursesfor DEN’s attractive look. “It still looks like a brandnew facility,” she says.Denver shares a passion for customerservice excellence with Halifax and Ottawa,the other top airports in the Americas in 2005.“I know our employees and our maintenancecrews are very proud of this airport, justifiablyso,” says Torrey.“They view it as their personal responsibilitythat ‘If I see a piece of paper lying on the terminalfloor, I pick it up’. We also have an excellentjanitorial crew and we have an excellentrelationship with our TSA (TransportationSecurity Administration) staff. They are verycustomer service-driven.”The positive attitude the TSA screenerstry to project has extended to theirestablishing a special security-screening linefor children and awarding every child a dinosaursticker once they have passed through thescreening process.Customer feedback is very important toDEN. “We use that information to driveimprovements,” says Torrey. “The AETRA surveyand its ASQ successor marries very well withour other work. We track our comment cards,e-mails, etc for trends.”Such feedback inspired DEN to open a newUnited Services Organization (USO) lounge lastyear for military personnel. “It was one of themost-asked-for facilities from our commentcards – already, in the last 60 days, 7,000soldiers have used it,” she reveals.DEN was highly commended in 2005 for itsflight information display systems (FIDS),yet it still plans a FIDS upgrade to allow forthe installation of news screens capable ofproviding more information to its customers. Italso wants FIDS boards displaying flight arrivalsand departures information throughout the airportand not just in the main terminal as today.“We’re keeping up with the technology to uselighter, more compact screens to display moreinformation in all the concourses too,” saysTorrey. “So even though we’re getting goodgrades in customer satisfaction surveys, we’realways looking to take it to the next level. But it’snot just the technology – it’s customer service.Management believes in taking technology andputting a human face on it.”That next level will also involve expansion ofDEN’s concourses to increase the number ofaircraft gates it provides. DEN now has 80 gates,enough to handle 50 million passengersannually. But because Southwest Airlines beganserving DEN last year and is rapidly building up itsservices from the airport’s Concourse C, Torrey saysapproval could come soon for the next phase ofDEN’s expansion towards its 110 million-passengerplanned medium-term maximum.35

EXPERT VIEW – WAYFINDINGVirtual reality bytesThe addition of revenue stream opportunities has just taken virtual airport wayfinding to thenext level, reports Jamie McIntyre.Based on its successful Airport Wayfinderonline model, where travellers can seethe entire plan of their destination airportand its services, Air Travel Video Technologies(ATV), in concert with partner ACI, is nowcreating a new revenue generator opportunity forits airport clients.The new ‘Shops and Dining’ online areaof airportwayfinder.com will allow airportretailers and other advertisers to be featuredusing streaming video and audio internettechnologies and enjoy the opportunity toadvertise through links and connect directly totheir potential audience.This interactive traveller connectivitypromotes the shops and restaurants, andpotentially brings advertising revenue to thehost airport at the same time.Nancy Grimes, ATV’s president, developedthe concept based on her background ofmarketing expertise first initiated in the AirportWayfinder model. “The initial success ofthe Wayfinder concept can now provide a newplatform for advertising to airports, airportconcessions, and to airport advertisers, givinggreater visibility to the goods and servicesoffered to the world traveller. Without adoubt, this is an excellent way to promoteairport concessions and services and generaterevenue for the airport,” she enthuses.“Airports recognise the need to offer bettergoods and services to the air traveller.Passengers will appreciate this newconvenience and customer service.”How it works is simplicity itself. Thepassenger goes online to obtain aworking knowledge of the airport terminalto which he or she is travelling. To start,website visitors can ‘see’ the terminal froma 3-D animated overview of the airport andthen parking, airline check-in areas,international arrivals and departures, passportcontrol and procedures, baggage claim,customs, ground transportation and nowplaces to shop and dine.“It really helps travellers understand whatthey can expect to see and do when they arriveat a particular airport. “Grimes adds.Shops and restaurants in the host airportare presented using streaming video andaudio media to let travellers get a real feel forthe airport facility, thereby helping them tomake informed choices upon arrival, departureor when connecting to another flight.Grimes believes the pre-planning ofpassengers time is a real plus. People canarrange to meet family members for a meal at aspecific restaurant or lounge. They are thenconditioned to make plans – and even get tothe airport earlier – in order to buy everythingfrom books to perfume, jewellery to umbrellasand electronic entertainment. And possiblymost important of all, to relax and dine.Recently, Grimes launched the latest in theonline benefits available to subscriber airports.Bonus features for web advertisers includeprint-at-home, trackable discount coupons forthe host airport’s establishment concessions,boutiques, bars and restaurants. This allowssolid data to prove the online hits and thedemand for the individual concessions.“We are seeing a whole different attitudeand personality at airports today,” Grimessays. “Much like an upscale shopping plazadowntown, airport terminals are becoming avital and vibrant attraction on their own. Before,the airport was a dull and cold place fromwhich to leave as soon as possible, whetherarriving or departing. Nowadays, it is a brightand lively attraction in itself. It makes thejourney much more pleasant, and thattranslates to greater sales along the rows ofboutiques, shops, bars and restaurants.”Airports, like the airlines they serve,compete strongly for market share. Stylishand aggressive marketing is a major factor inattracting airlines to an airport. Travellershave numerous choices when they book aflight. They can get to their final destinationthrough several hubs, or in the case ofpoint-to-point choices, will avoid those withpoor ‘kerb appeal’.An important factor in growing this aspectof the terminal has been the reduction orremoval altogether of food service on mostflights, as a way for airlines to reduce weight37

EXPERT VIEW – WAYFINDING38on board, as well as to save millions ofdollars per year by downloading the ‘problem’to the airport facility. With the advent oflow-cost, no-frills air carriers, the legacycarriers began following the no-frills policyas best they could, and the first casualty ofprovision has been the food service.“The market for on-site restaurants andbars exploded almost overnight,” Grimessays. “When food was free and available onboard, you couldn’t find a meaningfulchoice of places to eat, but today it’s acompetition for high quality and fine servicethroughout the departures level. In fact, thetrend is moving more and more to meetingyour arriving party and dining on thearrivals level. People actually find theairport experience more like a ‘downtown’experience. It’s a whole new dynamic thathas established the proliferation of up-scaleboutiques and travel-related shops atairports around the world.”It is with those factors in mind that ATV ismarketing its ‘Shops & Dining’ feature to newand existing Airport Wayfinder clients.Grimes says, “The programming we canprovide allows a restaurant, for example, todraw customers through advertising ‘spots’and printable discount coupons for meals.This way, the restaurant, the travellerand the airport management all becomepart of a demand-driven and trackableservice provision. A traveller will print a‘Good for X days’ coupon from theonline advertisement, while the restaurateurand the airport management count thehits. This also assists in verifyingand justifying the costs of theadvertisements sold.”Concessions, services and local areaadvertisers will be able to purchase 15, 30 or60-second commercials.The online, streaming video processalso works for downtown shops,hotels, entertainment, events andattractions. “Once the traveller is onlinewith airportwayfinder.com, the availableadvertising revenue from retailers at theairport and in the city is almost limitless,”Grimes says.Airport Wayfinder subscriber airportsoffer travellers a complete ‘before you fly’interactive 3D-web tour to make theirexperience the best it can be. Using thelatest Internet streaming technologies, itwelcomes and orients passengers betterthan any map or other so-called ‘virtual tour’can offer.At the same time, airlines themselvescan offer en-route access to the AirportWayfinder destination airport, by presentingit on the personal video screens at theirseats. Several of the world’s leadingairlines are already featuring the AirportWayfinder onboard.In fact, as airlines and the airports theyserve become more and more competitive, thevalue of Airport Wayfinder increases as well. Itconnects the traveller-customers andeverything available to them at the destinationairport, city and surrounding region.Airport Wayfinder works through anexclusive licence agreement with AirportsCouncil International, which representsmore than 1,500 airports worldwide.Since 1994, ATV has delivered AirportWayfinder services to more than 50airports, serving an international clientele.The list of airlines and airports it servescontinues to grow, as the service offeringsexpand to benefit the travellers worldwide.Airportwayfinder.com has become thedefinitive source for passengers to obtainairport information.

EXPERT VIEW – AIRPORT DESIGNThe Seoul ExperienceCurtis Worth Fentress of Fentress Bradburn Architects reflects on the design of theworld’s best gateway, Incheon International Airport.40Incheon International Airport hasconsistently ranked as one of the world’s topgateways since opening for business inMarch 2001.Gimpo International Airport, IIA’spredecessor and what has become thedomestic airport of Seoul, struggled tohandle Seoul’s growing air trafficduring the late 1980s and throughout the1990s. With international passenger andcargo numbers rising beyond the capacity ofGimpo, operators and political officialssought to create a new, mindfully masterplanned airport that would showcase thedepth and breadth of Korean culture and thecountry’s role as a leader in East Asia.An international design jury assembled todetermine a pool of architectural competitorsand to select the winning team. FentressBradburn Architect – in association with aconsortium of four Korean architectural firmscalled KACI – won this competition with adesign the jury felt “fully understandsthis new world-class hub airport will be thegateway to Korea of the new age. Its efforts todraw harmony between Korean imagesPicture courtesy of Nick Merrick/Fentress Bradburn Architects.and global design trends and technologiesare outstanding.”Today, the design is a reality. IIA combinestectonics with cultural warmth and symbolism –a mix at home in modern South Korea. Thecurved form of the terminal embracespassengers. Kerbside canopies reach outbeyond the canted curtain-wall to offer shelterfrom the elements, while steel grids swoopoverhead with high-tech exuberance.Inside, a soaring Ticketing Hall greetsdeparting passengers and gives them a momentof repose before continuing along on theirjourney. The vaulted, column-free roof sits onlong-spanning tubular steel compressiontrusses. These vertically straight andhorizontally curving elements recall earlyKorean Palaces and reflect the area’s marinecontext. In addition to its aesthetic aspects,the unique roof structure capitalises on localmaterials, in this case, steel. South Korea’s steelindustry remains one of the largest and mosttechnically sophisticated in the world.Carved into the core of this symmetricalTicketing Hall is the Great Courtyard, whichserves to organise the facility. Glass elevatorsconnect and activate all five levels of the airport,including transportation facilities, concessionsand airport handling operations. Interiorlandmarks help people orient themselves andeasily find their way through the terminal. Eachelement of the Courtyard was meticulouslyplanned and engineered.Likewise, ample consideration was given toIncheon’s sustainable design features. Inaddition to state-of-the-art dredging methods,drainage systems, recycling programmes andwaste management systems, this self-sufficientairport features over 40,000 native and600,000 flowering trees. Additionally,scattered throughout the airport is an abundantnumber of 20-metre-tall Korean Pines.Giving life to the Korean Pines andother landscaping features are skylights,curtain-walls, and clerestories, which not onlysave energy by introducing natural light intothe space, but also reinforce the building’salready intuitive passenger flows. In the

EXPERT VIEW – AIRPORT DESIGNPicture courtesy of Fentress Bradburn Architects.41Ticketing Hall, skylights start at each curbsideentry portal and continue above thecirculation path between ticket islands to thesecurity checkpoints. Capturing even morelight are the two 1,125sqm curtain-walls thatflank this space.Bathed by all this natural light are modularticket islands that house over 250 counterssurrounded by numerable e-ticketing kiosks.Once passengers navigate this very fluid layout,they are directed to enter one of 28 securitycheckpoint stations or the passport control andcustoms declaration area.Wood panelling, native to the area, andsoothing colours line the walls of the securityand customs areas, while another local material,Korean granite, wraps three sides of thesecurity area. These materials not only serve tolower stress levels, they also enclose sensitivespaces and symbolically reference thetraditional stone gates of the city of Seoul.After passing through security, departingpassengers emerge into the bright expanse ofthe concourse itself. Because the curvedconcourse is one unified circulation space fromend to end, it allows an even greater abilityto park large aircraft than traditionallydesigned, linear concourses. A system ofmoving walkways minimises walking distancesto less than 400 feet from kerbside to gate.Departing and transferring passengers with timeon their hands can make use of a convenientand fully equipped business centre. For evenlonger stays, there is a small city of services andrestaurants on the mezzanine level.From the boarding lounges, departingpassengers enter permanent glass bridges thattake them out to glass jetways and ontoawaiting aircraft. This moment of visualconnection with parked and taxiing jets is asharp contrast to the ubiquitous dark tunnel toand from the aircraft portals at other airports.Arriving aircraft, including the new A380,land on either of two runways, which are spacedto accommodate simultaneous takeoffs. Once onthe ground, international arrival passengersunload onto the same glass-lined passengerbridges through which departing passengerstraverse. Expediting the arrivals process are120 immigration and 50 customs counters thatcomprise the inspection facilities.After navigating the inspection counters,passengers enter a translucent mezzanine fromwhich they descend to baggage claim. This is atall, bright, open space, clearly visible fromseveral vantage points.Meeters and greeters waiting in theinternational arrivals hall don’t have to waitlong to meet arriving passengers with checkedbaggage, thanks to the high-speed baggagehandling system. This system transmits radarinformation from arriving aircraft to baggagehandling facilities, gate management systemsand public address displays. Now employed atseveral airports around the world, thistechnology was first employed at IIA. Aredundant system stands ready to operate inthe event that any or all of the functions need tobe operated manually.Incheon’s baggage system handles each bagwithin five minutes from input into the systemand can process up to 32,000 items hourly.Eight slope-plate baggage claim carouselsdisperse luggage to awaiting passengers.Its status as an exceptional internationalairport, based on its foundation of good location,great leadership and a truly human-experiencedrivendesign will undoubtedly be sustainedas it continues to exceed the expectations ofcontemporary travellers and raise the bar for itscounterparts internationally.

EXPERT VIEW – PASSENGER SCREENINGScreen testIn today’s operating environment, continuing to raise the bar on security screening at airports is anecessity, not an option, reports Stefan Aust, director product marketing, Smiths Detection EMEA.42Headline stories such as “Bomb MaterialGot Past TSA Screeners at 21 Airports” and“Airport Insecurity” – that logs 100reported breaches of airport checkpoints – dolittle to instil confidence in airport security.A common theme of these stories is thedanger presented by people-borne threat items.In terms of both guaranteeing a secure aviationenvironment and reassuring public perceptionof flight safety, we need to continually raise thestandard at the airport checkpoint. As a bottomline, the need to address known deficienciesthrough procedures, processes and technicalinnovation is as pressing as ever.The traditional emphasis on verifying thesafety status of passenger baggage has resultedin a technically sophisticated array of X-rayscreening equipment that is equipped toautomatically detect a variety of threatpossibilities. The extension of this automateddetection capability to carry-on baggage at thepassenger checkpoint will further close offthe possibility of threat materials enteringthe secure area.A parallel benefit of this cumulativeexperience is an operator base that is welltrained and experienced in analysing baggageX-ray images for suspect items. However, in thearea of passenger screening, the procedure hasnot evolved beyond a check for metals only anda pat-down search where the metal detectorraises an alarm. The conclusion that can bedrawn from a review of recent incidents inaviation and transportation security it is thatsimilar attention must now be paid to assessingthe threat represented by people as hastraditionally been paid to the contents of theirluggage and belongings.And in addition to extending the scopeof the ‘search area’, the range and sophisticationof potential threats is also growing. Thispresents security operators with an increasedand more complex workload against abackground of ever increasing passengernumbers. Clearly any assistance thattechnology can offer will be welcome in solvingthe demands for better security.Smiths Detection is addressing the needto provide comprehensive people screeningcapability through its development of bothtrace detection and millimetre-wave imagingtechnologies. These approaches provideadditional capability to detect potential threatsthat may be carried on a person goingthrough security. The objective is to providea comprehensive and efficient means ofscreening a passenger within the framework ofthe present security channel set-up.The first of these new approaches to reachthe market is trace detection. The broad concepthere is to identify minute quantities ofdangerous substances from residues that areleft on the person’s clothing or skin afterhandling or packing of the materials.The typical scenario could be an explosivecharge that is carried on the body. This willreadily pass through a standard metal detectorwithout an alarm. However, if there are anytraces of the explosive available directly fromthe bulk material or from the person’s clothing,hands etc. these will be identified and alarmedas a potential source of threat.The detection of these material traces can bedone ‘off-line’ by examining traces collected ona swab of fabric that is rubbed over a person’sclothing or luggage. These desk-top tracemachines are now a familiar sight in manyairport security lanes.However, to achieve a more certainconclusion on a person’s status, a wholebody assessment for suspect materials isrequired. This is where a trace detectionportal such as the Sentinel II from SmithsDetection comes into play. The walk throughunit is a self contained inspection system thatcan process up to seven passengers perminute. Passengers enter the machine’s archwayportal where they receive a head to toe airshower delivered as short puffs from a seriesof nozzles positioned around the portal.These air jets dislodge particulate samples ofany materials that the passenger has been incontact with.The heart of the Sentinel is the ion mobilityspectroscopy (IMS) analysis that it carries outon the air sample taken from the passenger.Here a ‘time of flight’ measurement is taken forthe molecular contents of the air sample andcharacteristics associated with potentiallythreatening materials such as explosives areidentified. The system can be used to identify awide range of substances including themany explosive types, narcotics andhazardous chemicals.Instead of detecting chemical traces tohighlight the presence of possible threatmaterials, it is also possible to imageconcealed threats directly. The use ofmillimetre-wave imaging technology to

EXPERT VIEW – PASSENGER SCREENINGscreen a person for hidden threat objects andcontraband has significant benefits in terms ofsafety, speed and detection capability.Real-time, whole body imaging will identifyobjects that are concealed beneathclothing – be they metal, ceramic, plastic orexplosive – and provide instant feedbackto an operator as to the shape and location ofthe item on the person.The millimetre-wave part of the spectrum liesbetween radio waves and infra-red. In thisregion, lightweight materials such as clothingappear as transparent – in the same waythat glass is transparent to visible light.Millimetre-wave imagers use this property tolocate potential threat objects that are concealedunderneath clothing.Real-time people screening usingmillimetre-waves has many benefits:• Instant detection of threat objects:When a person is imaged using a real-timemillimetre-wave camera, the operator receivesinstantaneous feedback on the presence of anypotential threat items that may be concealed bythe person’s clothes. Concealed objectsappear as a lighter/darker contrast against thebody background. Because the information isprovided as an image, the operator canpinpoint the location of the suspect item andfollow up with a directed search procedure toinvestigate the object in question.• Safety: Millimetre-wave imaging uses a lowenergy, non-ionising region of the spectrumto gather information on concealed threatobjects. It is harmless in terms of human safety– there is no health implication for either subjector operator.• Identification of multiple material types: Inaddition to providing location information onpossible threat items, millimetre-wave imagingcan also detect a wide range of material types.This is a significant advance on present-daycheckpoints that only screen people for metal.Dangerous weapons and materials such asceramic knives and explosives that would passundetected through a magnetometer will beidentified using a millimetre-wave imager.• Rapid throughput: The screening procedureusing a real-time millimetre-wave imagertypically takes between five and ten seconds.Smiths Detection has developed a real-timemillimetre-wave imager aimed at providingenhanced checkpoint security. The Tadar systemoperates as a ‘walk-by’ operation – thepassenger approaches the machine, turns andwalks on. The image is presented directly to theoperator on an integrated display monitor.The technology that makes Tadar possibleis based on a patent protected scanningtechnique that works by efficiently focussingthe millimetre wave energy from the sceneand thereby minimising the number ofsensors needed in the system. These sensorsare the cost drivers for the camera and reducingthis requirement leads to a cost-effectivesystem implementation.This scanning technique can also be used toimage in other areas of the electro-magneticspectrum. Moving further up towards theinfrared region brings us into the terahertzregion. Here it is also possible to image forconcealed objects and there is the addedpossibility of conducting a spectroscopicanalysis of any objects that are identified. Thisopens up the prospect of a very powerfuldetection capability as commercial terahertzsources and detectors become available.Now that digital imaging technologiesare becoming available for both apassenger’s hand-carried luggage, and aswell as for their bodies, the potential existsto develop an automated people-screeningcheckpoint, where operator intervention isonly required in cases where the passenger isnot automatically cleared.Looking forward to the functionality of thenext generation, people screening checkpoint,a number of clear objectives are beingpursued by Smiths Detection.The primary objectives of cost reduction,automation and sensor fusion are the drivingforces in developing equipment for futurepeople screening. An aggressive programmeof cost reduction is under way in order tobring down the cost of screening an airportpassenger. This is being addressed fromboth the equipment cost aspects and alsothe operational requirements to reduce theneed for operator attendance.The goal is to produce a low-costautomatic detection system for passengerscreening. The use of in-built intelligence inscreening systems is an essential partof achieving a fast throughput checkpoint.The development of automatic detection forpeople screening will be based on existingexperience and IP in the area of baggagescreening to produce fast-transit, securepassenger checkpoints.Looking towards the area of sensorfusion, several approaches to screening andmonitoring passengers are currently beingproposed. These typically use diversetechnologies and are often complementary inhow and what they detect. A singlestation passenger screen that combines avariety of checks such as metal andtrace detection, imaging, biometrics andpassenger ID tracking is an objective forSmiths Detection as the technologies matureand become ost effective.43

EXPERT VIEW – AIRPORT SEATINGHurry up … and relaxThe bottom line for post-security passenger comfort is good seating, writes Carroll McCormick.44Security-conscious airports demand a lotfrom travellers, but once on the airside,passengers, in their turn, have their ownhigh expectations. Whether it is the need forwireless connectivity, television, food, plug-ins forlaptops, play areas for children, quiet spaces orsimply a modern, clean ambience, the onecommon denominator is high-quality seating.Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport(DFW) in Texas went straight to its passengersfor seating advice. “In 2002, our marketingteam picked approximately eight samples frommanufacturers and we put them in the TerminalB,” says Kevin Smith, the airport’s assistant vicepresident, customer service.Then 350 connecting passengers andemployees tested them for comfort, appearanceand quality and ranked their favourite seat. OneFlyaway clusters at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airportlook tidy and reduce maintenance costs.contender came from the Arconas Corporation,a seating designer and manufacturer inMississauga, Canada. “They overwhelminglychose the Arconas Flyaway model,” says Smith.Arconas manufactures a distinctive line ofairport hold room, business lounge andrestaurant seating, as well as a variety of deskchairs and tables for commercial andhospitality applications. Its seats range from thetop-tier Flyaway series with its sculpted castaluminium, to the versatile and durable Torocommuter seating – well-suited for small andcommuter airports. It offers turnkey solutionsand its clients can be found in places such asthe United Arab Emirates, Greenland, Russia,Canada, the US and the Caribbean.By 2005, DFW had placed preliminaryorders for seats for Terminal B and purchasedover 5,000 Flyaway seats in a mix of four-seatlinear units and six-seat clusters for itssignature Terminal D, which opened in July2005. The mix of traditional beam seating andthe clusters, in which three pairs of seats arearranged back to back around a three-sidedtable, give passengers a sense of control,especially over the level of intimacy they desire.“I am an advocate of mixed seating,” saysSmith. “At the 28 gates in Terminal D theFlyaway clusters sit in the middle of the holdrooms and the linear seats are arranged in tworows, back to back, by the windows and theconcourse. People can turn toward each otherin an intimate setting. Groups, for example, usethe clusters as meeting places.“We put a lot of thought and effort into thedesign and purchase of these seats. We chose agranite top for the clusters tables that matchthe ticket counters and gate podiumcountertops at the gates.”The Massachusetts Port Authority(Massport) has purchased more than 6,000Arconas Flyaway linear and cluster unitsfor Boston’s Logan International Airport.“The clusters have been an unbelievablesuccess,” says Massport’s director of aviationadministration and development, HoussamSleiman. “We started with JetBlue, and thenexpanded the clusters to other hold rooms.Utilisation is maximised with the clusters, muchmore than with the linear. We don’t have theproblem with unused seats betweenpassengers. The clusters provide individualseating, if you will.”Ambience“When we are looking at customer-focusedwaiting areas, all of the airport designs start withcreating a sense of place and community,”explains Janice Hicks, an interior designerand associate with Stantec Architecture inVancouver, Canada. “Create quiet zones, andprovide a variety of seat types to accommodateevery passenger type – from the solo businesstraveller to families.”Ottawa has received excellent feedback fromits passengers for the seating it chose for its new

EXPERT VIEW – AIRPORT SEATINGArconas Flyaway seats and a dramatic view of the Boston skyline.terminal. It earned three second-place rankings inthe 2005 AETRA passenger satisfaction survey forbest domestic airport, best airport by region andbest airport by traffic volume.“Good seating is an important factor inachieving passenger satisfaction,” admits DavidCaulfeild, the airport authority’s project director.Ottawa chose Flyaway seats and an Arconassofa called Curio. Unheard of in the days whenair travellers could only look forward totheatre-style seating arrangements, Curio sofaslend the hold rooms a lounge-like ambiance andoffer a comfortable view of the activity on theapron through the glass curtain wall. Theirgreen faux leather complements the carpetingand their round legs tie in with tubulararchitectural detail in the airy terminal.“The choice of soft seating such as Curioreflects a growing trend,” says Corinne Drobot,design director with Arconas. “Internationally weare seeing a lot more soft seating showing up inthe plans for gate areas.”In Ottawa’s arrivals area, adds Caulfeild,“there are quiet areas where we have installedthe sofas and carpeting and lower lighting for themeeters and greeters.” Customer focus alsomeans customer control. “You’ll see a familyheading out on vacation. They will take the sofasand turn them to make a corral to provide aplay space for children,” observes Caulfeild.In addition to the ‘home away from home’convenience of child-safe areas is the need forthe most basic office amenity: power. Arconashas responded to this demand by offering poweraccess on their Flyaway cluster units. “Airportplanners want to offer passengers easy access topower connections,” Drobot says.Another form of convenience is offered withFlyaway benches, such as those found inOttawa’s arrivals hall and near the departurecheck. Not only are they perfect restingspots in the baggage claim areas andkerbside, where dwell times are short, theirbackless design is convenient for people withdisabilities, according to Caulfeild; suchthoughtfulness reflects the priority that airportssuch as Ottawa are giving to passengers withspecial physical needs.At Boston Logan, roughly 15% of the seatswere ordered without arms. “People can stretchout without pulling seats around and puttingtheir legs across. Usually laying out does nothappen when the hold room is crowded. Wehaven’t had any problems,” says Sleiman.Taking the comfort model even further,Logan decided to extend the popularity of itsrocking chairs with a recent Arconas innovation:Flyaway seats with footrests. “If people likerocking chairs, how about we give them afootrest? People arrive one to three hoursearly at the international terminal for theirflights,” explains Sleiman. “We do not have longwaits at security, so we want to give peoplesomething comfortable so they can put their feetup and relax. We put several in the hold roomwhere you can look out. The seats are alwaysoccupied. Everyone loves putting their feet upand looking out at the flights.”TimelessWell-designed seats spruce up existingterminals and complete the overall look of newconstruction. “When we look at the furniture ithas to fit in, be part of the package,” says Hicks.“Design professionals look for classic designsthat are timeless. The seats are not disposable.We don’t want trendy, or ‘plasticky’.”To achieve a consistent presentation,Massport replaced all of the seats in Logan’sinternational terminal, hold rooms and publicwaiting areas, except for airline-leased holdrooms; its long-term policy is to have all theairport seats replaced by Arconas seats.“The old seats were smaller than Flyawayand less comfortable for long waits. They werealso of several colours from terminal to terminaland even within one hold room,” notes Sleiman.Massport selected a long-lasting black fauxleather for its Flyaway seats that ages well andgoes with all the airline colours. “It is a bigdifference when you replace the old seatswith Arconas seats. Our customers, tenants andairlines are pleased. It makes the terminal lookmuch more modern,” says Sleiman. “And thearm rest has a good curve that fits the terminal’sarchitecture. The old seats were more square.”Kentucky’s Blue Grass Airport installed thefirst of 1,100 Arconas Bernù ® seats thisMarch in a staggered delivery that is paced withterminal upgrades and the construction of sixnew gates and hold rooms. “We are replacing allof the seats in the terminal building,” saysMichael Gobb, the airport’s executive director.45

EXPERT VIEW – AIRPORT SEATINGSweet solitude: Curio sofas overlook the Ottawa International Airport apron.46“The seats are all the same so they can bemoved from place to place.“The seating is so prominent, wewanted to make sure the seat design fit thearchitectural space. We visited eachmanufacturer to see their products. Eachmanufacturer sent us a sample we could sit inover a period of time. The Bernù® product bestfit the architecture, comfort – all the criteria.For example, the perforated metal backmatches some of our architectural featuresalong the concourse.”Comfort and a positive passengerexperience were top considerations at BlueGrass. “There is a lot of competition forpassengers in central Kentucky. Passengercomfort is very important to us and wewant the impression of high quality. If youfeel good about a space, if it is well-designedand built with good materials, clearly youare more likely to go to other spaces andmake purchases. Anything we can doto improve the passenger experience here willhelp them choose Blue Grass,” Gobb explains.Sleiman echoes Gobb’s concern withmaking the best impression possible on itspassengers: “We are very competitive.People can choose to fly from other airportsand spend their money elsewhere. We wantto have the best facilities and services. In theend, passengers are going to rate you. Ifthere is a bad element between parking andgate, it will affect the whole experience.”Life cycleAlmost nothing is more off-putting toa foot-weary traveller than soiled,poorly-maintained seats. Every airport thattest-drove Arconas seats asked theircleaning staff to rate them on ease ofcleaning, maintenance and durability.“We spent a lot of time with our owncustodial team looking at how they willmaintain and clean the unit. It is importantto have smooth surfaces that crumbs falloff of, or that the custodial team can quicklywipe away,” says Gobb.Arconas seats have no buttons, seams orcrevasses that can pop, rip or catch crumbs.“It is a critical part of our design guidelinesto allow crumbs and dirt to fall off,”explains Drobot. “We purposefully do notdesign crevasses into our seats.”The bulk of seat costs are in the frame andstructure. Arconas seats have replaceableslipcovers over the high-density foamthat is moulded around the internal seat pan.Blue Grass, for one, wants to keep itsseats for 20 years, and the slipcovers makeit easy to manage tears and punctures,or update colors or fabrics.Although the purchase price of seats isimportant, airports do not put it ahead ofcomfort or life-cycle cost. “If you buy ahigh-end hold room seat, you can expect alower life-cycle cost,” Caulfeild notes. Gobbadds, “Life cycle cost is a major issue for us.”Thirty Flyaway clusters are arrangedin the north and south concession villagesin Dallas-Fort Worth’s Terminal D. Althoughcomfort was the number one reason forbuying them, Smith observes anunexpected benefit of these sturdy units:“By the time you get a nice table and fourchairs, the six-seat cluster only costs a bitmore, but you will save in the long run in themanpower saved not having to straighten uptables and chairs. They always look neat andwell-kept.”Providing tables also cuts custodialcosts. “You absolutely have to havetables. Without them, people will put coffeeand food on the seats beside them.You get spills. You invite trouble. Atthe end of the day it is better for theairport to provide these amenities,” explainsSleiman. For space constricted areas,Arconas offers a drink holder on its Landingseating system.Whether from the point of view ofmaintenance, life-cycle cost or the needs oftoday’s holdroom passengers, Arconasseating is recognised industry-wide. As theMassport executive says, “With longerwait times, concessions and seatingbecome very important in the holdrooms. We want every part of theexperience to be positive. Passengercomfort and service is the key to anyairport’s success.”

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EXPERT VIEW – AIRPORT CLEANLINESSClean sweepJoanne Paternoster explains why ‘clean’ airports score highly in customer satisfaction surveys.48Hair in the sink, fingerprints on themirror, tissues on the floor, wastecontainers overflowing with hygieneitems, broken lavatories, unidentified liquidon the floor, tacky floors – do these examplesportray a vivid mental picture?What emotional response did theseimages conjure up? What ‘ambience’do these images create? Would you feel safein this place?These features are obviously characteristicsof a dirty restroom. And while the visualisationmay offend your sensitivities, it might be thebest way to identify with the emotionalintensity your customers experience in anunclean environment.Such a visual enables you to appreciate,at least in part, the impact of cleanliness oncustomer satisfaction at your airport.Negative customer behaviour is furtherintensified when unclean or poorlymaintained conditions are visible elsewherein the airport.Why is customersatisfaction important?Aviation is a service industry, and like allservice industries, your customers havechoices. And today, their choice of airports isexpanding. Still, even if their airportchoices are limited, they will choose howthey’ll spend their time and whether they’llspend their money while at yourairport. Customers are also compelled,especially when dissatisfied, to tell otherpeople about their experiences. Theseindividuals may have even more choice aboutwhich airports to use.Customer choices will impact yourairport’s bottom line. And the choices you makein terms of serving your customers will impacton your costs and your revenues. There is arelationship between customer satisfaction andnet revenues. That’s why customer satisfactionis so critical. If you can maximise theconvergence between the choices you havemade with those that your customers willmake, you are positioned to maximise yournet revenues.Your airport must be customer-centric andresults-driven to do so successfully. If it isn’t,you’ll never know if you’re getting the most fromyour investments and service programmes.Who is your customer?This question may appear to be gratuitousbecause there isn’t a single answer, noris there a right or wrong answer. The importanceof this question is knowing the right answerfor your airport and being confident thedefinition of ‘customer’ is shared with yourbusiness partners and employees.Are passengers your only customers?How about the meeters and greeters andthe other airport employees? What is therelationship between airports and airlines?Between airports and concessions? Are airlinesand concessionaires your business partners oryour customers? Are all customers equal?Will you serve each in the same way?Super clean Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport. Image courtesy of Vito Palmisano.

EXPERT VIEW – AIRPORT CLEANLINESSDescribing your customer’s characteristics,understanding the needs of your customers,airport partners and employees, anddetermining customer priorities are essential indefining your brand.Every customer deserves and expects goodservice and each airport should establishservice standards that ensure all customers’expectations are met. Some customers haveunique needs. Some are willing to payfor a higher level of service. These arelegitimate considerations when deciding tooffer service that, in certain instances, exceedsyour standard.You can make smarter service investmentsby understanding your customers and thoseaspects of their experience that most directlyimpact attitudes, intentions, and ultimatelybehaviour.What is your airport’s brand?Is your airport friendly and helpful? Isit modern and efficient? Is it crowded,intimidating and confusing? What brandcomes to mind when you think about yourvarious experiences in airports? Theestablishment of service and designstandards as well as the implementation ofbrand messaging programmes are essential toassuring consistently excellent servicewhile differentiating your airport in the eyes ofthe customer.If you do not consciously work to define andcommunicate your brand, it will be definedfor you. Your customers already have aperception of your airport and the collectiveservice that is being delivered by theairport operator and its business partners.Hopefully, it is the brand you have establishedfor your airport and not an ad hoc orserendipitous one.What are yourcustomers’ top priorities?Your customers’ top priorities are thoseessential few items that must be addressed.Your customers have identified them as areasthat are important and where performance can beimproved. Subsequently, they drive theirsatisfaction. In effect, they are the, ‘big bang forthe buck’ items and initially are the ‘lowhanging fruit’. As a result, each airport willhave certain top priorities that are unique toits environment, but more often than not,there are certain universal priorities thatshow up consistently for many airports incustomer satisfaction surveys.It is important to acknowledge thatthe safety and security of your customers is yournumber one priority. ‘On-time’ departure andarrival, accurate baggage handling, choice ofdestinations and schedules and ticket price areall drivers of customer satisfaction. But whetherthey would appear on your customers’ toppriorities list depends on how well your airportperforms in these areas.Cleanliness, especially in restrooms, oftenappears on most airports’ top priority list. Asdoes the courtesy of personnel, the qualityand variety of concessions and the securityscreening and check-in processes at airportsacross the globe, with customer focus on thelatter two procedures increasing dramaticallysince the horror events of 9-11.Reliable customer feedback systems are amust. They enable you to know your customers’top priorities and manage for results that mattermost. In addition, they allow you to know whencustomer priorities change.If cleanliness is a top priority, howclean is clean?That depends. How clean is your airport todayand what’s the condition of your facilities?How satisfied are your customers with yourperformance in these areas? The answers tothese questions will tell you howCustomer-centric andresults-driven approachmuch cleanliness drives satisfaction at yourairport today.Customers often interpret poor or wornconditions as unclean even if they have beenscrubbed clean. They may also incorrectlyassume poor conditions such as rippedseats to be evidence of vandalism and feelunsafe as a result.A formula for success is: customersatisfaction = performance – customerexpectations. You can be certain customersatisfaction will improve if you manageyour performance and address yourcustomers’ expectations. Recognise that otherairports are also working to improvecustomer satisfaction and as they achievebreakthrough results, your customer’sexpectations rise. Depending on yourperspective, this can be a managementopportunity or a management nightmare.Are there lessons to be learned fromother service industries?Cleanliness is a basic expectation in today’smodern civilised world. A recent studyconducted by Maritz Research in conjunction witha large international hotel chain found that‘cleanliness deficiencies’ surrounding thebathroom toilet and bed coverings were mostlikely to cause guest defections.Such findings guide management as theymake investment and operational decisions.Studies such as this also demonstrate thatyou can manage customer satisfaction bydefining your brand and setting brand standards,49

EXPERT VIEW – AIRPORT CLEANLINESSLastly, whether or not you haveidentified airport employees as customers, thepower of this invaluable resource is quitesignificant. By educating, engaging andenergising your employees you put a positiveface on your airport’s brand. The power ofmany focused on the essential few can beimmeasurable, or as a popular US commercialtotes, ‘priceless’.50determine current performance, customersatisfaction levels and costs and establish themas baseline measures, setting realistic targetsfor each, which in unison with your businesspartners implementing action plans, can achievedesired results.This approach has a successful trackrecord. Airports, using this approach,achieve consistent improvements in customersatisfaction and financial performance. It can beestablished airport-wide and be introducedwithin a business function such as concessionsor parking. It is also an iterative self-correctingapproach that will allow you to determine the pointof diminishing returns and the correspondingimpact of management investment decisions oncustomer satisfaction and the bottom-line.Several airports have emphasisedcleanliness to a point of diminishing returns.For instance, customers started to complainthat the restroom floors were often wet andnegative connotations were assumed asto the cause. Reliable feedback systemswhen appropriately used can forewarn theapproach of the point of diminishing returnsand corrective action can be taken.Can older facilitiescompete with new airports?New terminals sometimes receive poorcustomer satisfaction scores due to inadequateand poorly located concessions. While olderfacilities might receive outstanding scoresbecause they performed well on customerpriorities and exceeded customer expectations.Customer service is more than bricks and mortar.When done well, it’s an attitude. It’s aphilosophy. It’s a way of business life. Brandnew facilities designed with the customer inmind go a long way to assure high levelsof satisfaction, but in and of themselves they arenot a guarantee.Other benefits of establishing acustomer-centric and results drivenairport environmentThere are several identifiable benefits. Anairport can burnish its image in the eyes of itscustomers, employees, business partners, Boardand other important constituencies. Customersand other members of the airport communitydo not know and often do not appreciate whatyou do for them and why you do it. This iswhy it is so important to inform them. If you donot manage your airport’s image, others willmanage it or mismanage it for you. If you aremanaging a positive airport image you may bespending a lot of time accepting awards. If yourairport’s image is negative, you will be spendinga lot of time managing complaints and othertroublesome ‘noise’.A customer-centric, results-driven airportapproach also provides the knowledge andthe plan of action you and your airportpartners need to establish a two-wayconversation with your customers, especiallyyour most valuable customers. It helps managecustomer expectations while informing themabout your brand.It allows you to establish customerrelationships and to utilise those relationshipsto identify new services that will further increasecustomer satisfaction and revenue. By assuringthe involvement and buy-in of the entire airportcommunity every step of the way, you areassuring the probability of successfully achievingthe results that you have identified as critical toyour airport’s success.Does the CEO have toestablish the vision?The ideal way for successful companies in allindustries is to start customer serviceimprovement programmes at the top. Butsometimes you cannot wait for an enlightenedvisionary to take the helm. Everyone has a sphereof influence and everyone can identify at least onecustomer even if it’s their boss. Set the standard,manage for results, and burnish your businessunit’s image. Management will notice.Sometimes seeds need to be planted that, overtime, take on momentum. Often, the fruits ofthese efforts are embraced by higher levelswithin the organisation. Change engines arecatalysts that can benefit the organisation nomatter where they reside.Managing airport performanceor managing customerexpectations?Customer satisfaction = airportperformance – customer expectations.Both are equally important to success. Yourcustomers have greater access to informationthan ever before, and they know how to use it.Improving customer service and customersatisfaction require understanding theimpact of customer expectations on theirperception of your airport operation. This ismade more complex by the fact thatcustomers judge an airport’s performancebased on the collective performance ofvarious airport partners that make up yourservice chain.Airports that are customer-centric andresults-driven generate delighted customers,positive word of mouth, increased employeemotivation, a desirable airport image, and apositive impact on the bottom line.

Volume 11 Issue 2April - May 2006ACI EVENTSACI eventsDates EVENT Location2006May 7-11 ACI Pacific Regional Assembly & Conference Hong KongMay 15-19 Global Training Hub User Charges course Zurich, Switzerland(ICAO/ACI Training Course)May 29 - June 2 Global Training Hub Aerodrome Operations course Zurich, SwitzerlandJune 14-16 ACI Europe Annual Congress, Assembly & Exhibition Athens, GreeceJune 28-30 ICAO/ACI Global Air Transport Outlook Conference Montreal, CanadaAugust 31- Airport Development 2006 (CAPA) SingaporeSeptember 1September 10-13 ACI Pacific Airport Cities Conference & Exhibition Hong Kong(Insight Media)September 25-28 ACI North America Regional Annual Conference Reno, USA& ExhibitionSeptember TBC Global Training Hub Airport Executive Montréal, CanadaLeadership Programme51October 2-5 ACI-LAC Regional Assembly Conference & Exhibition Santo Domingo,Dominican RepublicOctober 9-11 ACI Europe Airport Exchange Conference & Exhibition Madrid, SpainOctober 17-19 ACI /IATA AVSEC World Sydney, AustraliaNovember 7-10 ACI World Annual General Assembly & Exhibition Cape Town, S Africa& ACI Africa Regional Conference & AssemblyNovember 16-18 ACI Pacific Small Airports Seminar & Workshop Gold Coast, AustraliaTBC ACI Welcoming the A380 Conference & Exhibition New York, USA(Insight Media)For more information please contact Nathalie Zulauf: +41 22 717 8758/nzulauf@aci.aeroAirport World is the official magazine for:Aviation & EnvironmentSummit and Exhibition2006 – Event GuideIn the spotlight:Hong Kong, San Francisco & VancouverEnvironment:How green is the aviation industry?IT Focus:Airport IT trendsEquipping Heathrow’s Terminal 5Winners:AETRA resultsSecurity:The future of surveillanceGlobal screening initiativesPlus:Handling passengers with reduced mobility andHow clean is your airport?ACI World Annual General Assembly & ExhibitionACI Pacific Regional Assembly, Conference & ExhibitionACI-Africa Regional Assembly & ConferenceFor more information, call Jonathan Lee,Tel: +44 (0) 20 8831 7563 Fax: +44 (0) 20 8891 0123E-mail: jonathan@airport-world.com Website: http://www.airport-world.com