Jonathan, thanks for sharing your perspective on your special systems role on NDIA. Challenging but ultimately gratifying project to work on for many of us together.
Hi Jonathan, what specific aspects of the feasibility and concept stages in airport capital projects would you suggest could be enhanced by adding more digital input?
Hi Kevin, thanks for the question! This makes me think of a question that I think should be asked at the beginning of every project, which is "what can technology do for me today?" The goal of the question is really to identify the current and emerging technologies that can introduce new operational efficiencies and better experiences for airport customers, in a way that will be reliable for the airport/project when it opens. We can further break this down into the component parts following the passenger and staff journeys. For example, ghost kitchens and mobile ordering are technologies that exist today, in a reliable way, that can fundamentally change a concessions/F&B program for an airport. Rather than space planning for a one-off concessions space with its own space/lease line constraints, technology today could enable an entire concourse to be served by a single concessionaire, which can drive increased revenue or space efficiency, or both. Another example is this airport of the future concept which I helped design, which builds on the same thinking -- what can technology do for us today? In this case, we found an emerging technology that was not reliable in the public realm today (autonomous cars), but which could be made reliable in a secured airport environment. Such thinking can dramatically impact the feasibility and concept stages of an airport.
Thanks Jonathan for taking the time to respond, I’ve only just read your response. I think we should also ask ourselves why the industry is slow to adopt to technology change.
Sometimes the most obvious and beneficial changes for a client are sometimes ignored or dismissed at the feasibility stage. I see this more in existing airport situations rather than new greenfield airports. It requires experienced people with the right technology skills to be in attendance at feasibility to communicate simply the financial, environmental and passenger/staff experience benefits of incorporating currently available technologies. The technology expertise and drive to see this through needs to be available both in the client and building design team but also the cost planning team. By experience I also mean having a grasp of how viable it is to change a traditional supply chain model of technology integration companies and how they make money through licensing. Big changes are hard to do.
I have seen progressive thinking on some recent airport projects such at The Red Sea. It will be interesting to see how much of what existed at the feasibility stage makes it through to Day 1 operations.
Jonathan, thanks for sharing your perspective on your special systems role on NDIA. Challenging but ultimately gratifying project to work on for many of us together.
Looking forward to more insights Jonathan in 2024. Have a great New Year
Hi Jonathan, what specific aspects of the feasibility and concept stages in airport capital projects would you suggest could be enhanced by adding more digital input?
Hi Kevin, thanks for the question! This makes me think of a question that I think should be asked at the beginning of every project, which is "what can technology do for me today?" The goal of the question is really to identify the current and emerging technologies that can introduce new operational efficiencies and better experiences for airport customers, in a way that will be reliable for the airport/project when it opens. We can further break this down into the component parts following the passenger and staff journeys. For example, ghost kitchens and mobile ordering are technologies that exist today, in a reliable way, that can fundamentally change a concessions/F&B program for an airport. Rather than space planning for a one-off concessions space with its own space/lease line constraints, technology today could enable an entire concourse to be served by a single concessionaire, which can drive increased revenue or space efficiency, or both. Another example is this airport of the future concept which I helped design, which builds on the same thinking -- what can technology do for us today? In this case, we found an emerging technology that was not reliable in the public realm today (autonomous cars), but which could be made reliable in a secured airport environment. Such thinking can dramatically impact the feasibility and concept stages of an airport.
https://www.fastcompany.com/90822103/airports-future-design
Thanks Jonathan for taking the time to respond, I’ve only just read your response. I think we should also ask ourselves why the industry is slow to adopt to technology change.
Sometimes the most obvious and beneficial changes for a client are sometimes ignored or dismissed at the feasibility stage. I see this more in existing airport situations rather than new greenfield airports. It requires experienced people with the right technology skills to be in attendance at feasibility to communicate simply the financial, environmental and passenger/staff experience benefits of incorporating currently available technologies. The technology expertise and drive to see this through needs to be available both in the client and building design team but also the cost planning team. By experience I also mean having a grasp of how viable it is to change a traditional supply chain model of technology integration companies and how they make money through licensing. Big changes are hard to do.
I have seen progressive thinking on some recent airport projects such at The Red Sea. It will be interesting to see how much of what existed at the feasibility stage makes it through to Day 1 operations.