Airports: Onboard the Challenges and Solutions for a Mini-City

The challenges for an owner-operator of one of the world's busiest airports are tremendous, involving multiple disciplines, sectors, and business functions. This class looks at the solutions, products, and workflows delivered in key areas—including aircraft tracking, stands management, a works approval interface, asset management integration, and supply chain model management—during a recent engagement at Heathrow Airport, London. We demonstrate how the solution, which was designed for mobile devices including Apple® iPads®, allows Heathrow access to Building Information Modeling (BIM) and other key business data in the field. It also links the aircraft and stands status to infrastructure and asset information from IBM® Maximo® and a works approval solution. From incident handling and airline management to regulatory reports and business workflows, we show how the complexities of managing airport systems can be as demanding as a running a mini-city.