Technology Description
Airport operators continue to face challenges in implementing information technology (IT) projects. Many airports are seeing passenger numbers slowly rise to pre-COVID-19 levels, yet they are working with smaller project budgets than before the pandemic. In addition, global supply chains have not been able to keep up with current demand. According to an article in Forbes, no industry has been more affected than electronics manufacturing service companies.[1] As such, many needed resources are experiencing longer than normal lead times. “Through the first quarter of 2023, more than 70% of lead times are forecast to increase,” according to EP&T magazine.[2] Airport operators are looking for ways to stretch their budgets while still delivering the applications and systems that the business stakeholders, employees, and traveling public desire. One possible solution is to utilize cloud services for IT projects.
Cloud services are the range of services that are offered over the Internet by third-party service providers. They are designed to provide easy and affordable access to applications, software, and hardware resources. Cloud services have been around since 2006, but recently they have been gaining popularity as more use cases are being explored. These services allow users to experience benefits without the need for deep knowledge about or expertise in a specific technology, which helps to cut costs and allows users to focus on their core business instead of being impeded by IT obstacles.
There are three main categories of cloud services: software as a service, platform as a service, and infrastructure as a service.
Software as a service (SaaS) provides software to users over the Internet and is quickly replacing the traditional licensed software that is installed on-premises. Gartner states that “SaaS remains the largest public cloud services market segment, forecasted to reach $176.6 billion in end-user spending in 2022.”[3] In this model, service providers are responsible for the software application as well as the underlying infrastructure. End users can connect to the software application using an Internet-enabled mobile phone, tablet, or personal computer. SaaS offerings are typically billed as a subscription and are targeted at business end users.
Platform as a service (PaaS) provides development environments for users to develop, test, deliver, and manage software applications. These services are targeted at developers and can include middleware (software integrations), database management, or analytics. Service providers are responsible for the servers, storage, network, and databases, which enables organizations to focus on their Web or mobile app.
Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) provides Internet-based options for storage, networking, and computer virtualization. “IaaS can be provided in a subscription model or as a pay-as-you-go resource,” as described by service provider Virtasant.[4] This allows businesses to rent infrastructure resources instead of purchasing and managing on-site resources.
Figure 1 shows how the responsibility shifts from service provider to airport operator for each cloud services type.
Figure 1: Responsibilities of Service Providers and Airport Operators
This Publication identifies cloud services in the Intermediate Transformation Tier due to the disruptive nature of this technology. Recent business conditions have changed the way airports are operating and new business cases are being considered. Although this technology is not new, the increasing number of systems and operations now in the cloud is greatly changing the airport landscape.
Impacts
Airport operators are beginning to experience the impacts that cloud services deployments have on their airport environment. This article outlines many of the high-profile impacts that airport operators may expect from cloud services. Following the impact list, two notable impacts are detailed further.
Impacts
Management/Operations
- Enable new possibilities to streamline operational processes and provide new service offerings
- Allow users to access systems using any Internet-enabled device, regardless of location
Technical/Infrastructure Readiness
- Provide greater flexibility to add, expand, or reprovision technological infrastructure resources
- Allow the ability to support, update, and upgrade airport systems remotely
Process/Skill Set Changes
- Require fewer in-house information technology (IT) skills for implementation, monitoring patches, and performing upgrades
Passenger Experience/Passenger Process
- May provide passengers with new touchless ways to get through the airport
Security/Safety
- Improve ability to have multiple redundant sites, making disaster recovery or business continuity plans easier and less costly
- Can improve Internet security protocol offerings
Airport Design/Construction
- Reduce need for multiple or large technology storage rooms
Revenue/Business Model
- Cloud pricing models may be preferred over large up-front capital project and infrastructure costs
Featured Impacts
Enable new possibilities to streamline operational processes and provide new service offerings: The COVID-19 pandemic has changed many ways in which airports operate. Since many workers deemed non-essential had to work remotely for the first time, carriers had to downsize their operations, and airport operators had to continue working while adding safety and security protocol measures. Several airports used this as an opportunity to move toward modernizing their equipment and way of doing business. Some initiatives were already in progress, such as providing a seamless travel journey, while others were moving at a slower rate, such as using cloud services for advanced data analytics.
Allow the ability to support, update, and upgrade airport systems remotely: Having systems in the cloud allows service providers to remotely support, update, and upgrade systems. This reduces cost, time, and resource requirements from the vendor and for the airport.[5] Support teams do not need to travel on-site, which can be costly and may take time away from operational and IT support staff, to support the equipment. Airport operators also benefit from having the latest version of software or hardware available for use.
Attributes
To better understand cloud services, airport operators should gain a better understanding of the specific attributes of the technology. This section explores the operating factors and some usage characteristics of cloud services. Understanding these attributes will help airport operators determine applicable use cases and consider how their organization can support cloud services.
Reduced Cost
Using cloud services for infrastructure resources can reduce or eliminate capital expenses for hardware and software. Pay-as-you-go services or subscription models allow expenses to be managed through operational expenditures. Additional reductions include the cost of electricity for running one or more data centers on-site and the cost of labor for the information technology (IT) support staff that maintains the equipment. Multi-tenancy models allow groups of users to share costs of resources. Scalability costs are incremental and do not need to consider future capacity planning to accommodate moderate changes in resource demand.
Reduced Time to Market
Time to implement is reduced because cloud services do not require hardware purchase lead time, setup, or commissioning. Services can be provisioned quickly, including adding, expanding, or reprovisioning larger amounts of resources. Services are provided either on demand or in a self-service model, which can remove the need for airport operators to do capacity planning for resources. For software as a service, users do not need to wait for an application to be installed or updated on individual devices. In addition, data and files that are stored in the cloud are made available in near real time for other users to access.
Resource Scalability
Using cloud services for IT infrastructure provides agility for the organization, allowing the airport operator to deliver the right number of resources as they are needed. Airport operators can scale up or down depending on business conditions, which was brought to the forefront during the pandemic; airport operators and carriers do not need to run extra machines when demand is low. Most importantly, airport operators do not need to consider peak-load capacity increases when starting the project. Scaling up does not take as long as in the past because there is no need to obtain, set up, or commission new hardware when using cloud-based resources.
Resource Reliability
Performance is continually monitored by the service provider, which can mean less downtime from issues since there are trained personnel who can quickly identify and resolve problems. In addition, since service providers can provide multiple, redundant sites to ensure business continuity, disaster recovery is easier and less costly for the airport operator.
Increased Security
Providers can offer many different security controls to protect data, applications, and infrastructure from cybersecurity breaches. Security-trained experts are devoted to preventing and resolving security issues. Service providers can offer multiple levels of security protocols that are often too costly to run in an on-site model.
Use Cases/Business Effect
With every new or emerging technology, airport operators are sure to ask these two basic questions: “How can my airport use this?” and “How does this affect my business, even if my airport doesn’t wish to use it for our own benefit?” This section provides answers to both questions, addressing the airport use cases and business effect of cloud services technology.
Use Cases
The potential use cases of cloud services are continually being identified. The following are some examples of use cases that leverage the unique characteristics of the different types of cloud-based services.
Increased Data-Processing Capability
The Houston Airport System is using the cloud to create a “flexible, scalable infrastructure to process large amounts of data rapidly, maximize advance analytics, and access insights in real time,”[6] according to a white paper from Government Technology. The airport operator worked with a consultant firm to help move their data warehouse to the cloud, allowing them to increase their data-processing capabilities and more easily integrate data from different sources. They are now able to access real-time metrics for passenger statistics, on-time arrival, gate utilization, and passenger flow. Their ultimate goal is to use these data insights to improve the passenger experience.
Enhanced Gating Decisions
American Airlines recently selected Microsoft Azure as their preferred cloud platform. This move comes after previously partnering with another company to migrate their mobile app, airport kiosk application, and passenger-facing services on their website to a different cloud-based platform as a service technology. As Aviation Today describes, “American is already working with Microsoft to leverage Azure’s AI, machine learning, and data analytics for gating decisions at 136 different gates” operated at its Dallas–Fort Worth, Texas, airport hub (DFW).[7]
Predicting Irregular Operations
United Airlines has selected Amazon Web Services as their preferred cloud provider. United is using analytics, Internet of things, and machine learning to “predict irregular operations and uncover insights to optimize customer service, baggage routing, and flight scheduling,” according to a press release from Amazon. They are using digital technology to transform the passenger’s journey and have introduced new features in their mobile app. Most recently, United started offering passengers an integrated experience in the app and website in response to COVID-19 travel restrictions. Passengers can access testing and vaccine requirements, schedule a pre-travel test, or upload testing and vaccination records on the United app.[8]
Integrated Set of Business Processes
Heathrow Airport also felt the impacts of the pandemic and realized that they needed to find a better way to use data to make decisions and enable their employees to work remotely. They recently implemented Oracle Fusion Cloud Applications to “modernize and automate the Finance, HR, Revenue, Service, and Asset Management functions,” which previously ran on 20-year-old infrastructure. The switch to the cloud allowed all HR and Finance functions to operate using an integrated set of business processes. The cloud platform is helping with operational efficiencies and will provide flexibility and scalability to fulfill Heathrow’s future information technology needs.[9],[10]
Business Effect
Whether or not an airport chooses to employ cloud services for its own benefit, cloud services deployments that are not directly initiated/driven by the airport organization may influence aspects of the airport’s operations.
Passenger Processing Changes
The pandemic has emphasized the need to streamline passenger processing activities. Several vendors have been able to deploy passenger processing platforms with software as a service capabilities, often in combination with biometrics, to provide passengers with a low-touch, seamless travel journey. This can allow airport operators to “deploy ‘shared common-use approaches’ reasonably while cutting down on space, maintenance, and infrastructure.”[11]
Tiered Approach
Airport operators interested in new or emerging technologies, such as cloud services, will differ in their levels of risk tolerance. Some organizations are comfortable at the forefront of technology and have the resources to support innovation. Other organizations are interested in simply exploring how they can use cloud services within their limited resources.
This article takes a tiered approach to cloud services, providing use cases that are separated by the following innovation tiers: Reactive, Strategic, and Innovative.
Reactive
Remote Business Collaboration
In response to the pandemic, many airport workers deemed non-essential worked from home. One thing that enabled this transition was organizations using one of the many available video conferencing tools that offer software as a service, such as Zoom, Teams, or GoToMeeting. Finances Online states that “58% of companies use video conferencing in their day-to-day operations.”[12] Research published in 2021 states that even after the pandemic, “Gartner predicts that only 25% of business meetings will take place in-person by 2024.”[13] Video conferencing tools have fostered team collaboration and allowed some airport operations to seamlessly continue during and after pandemic conditions.
Strategic
Data Intelligence
Harnessing data to make intelligent decisions has been a struggle for most airport operators. Cloud services will increase the amount of computing power available, but airport operators are still trying to gain meaningful insights into their data. According to Deloitte, going forward, organizations will be able to “focus on creating artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled, predictive business strategies with data security across a range of potential stakeholders.”[14]
Innovative
Digital Twin
Airports such as Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) have been deploying digital twins, which combine innovation and technology to help create a smart airport environment. IBM defines digital twin as “the virtual representation of a physical object or system across its life-cycle. It uses real-time data and other sources to enable learning, reasoning, and dynamically recalibrating for improved decision making.”[15] HKIA is using their digital twin visualizations to streamline new construction design reviews and to generate predictive analytics that provide maintenance alerts to staff.
To get to the next level of innovation, airport operators could collaborate with the surrounding city’s digital twin application to give an expanded view of airport performance. Cloud services will enable these digital twins to have access to data across an entire facility and provide greater flexibility with remote access to the twin and the accompanying data. According to an ACI Insights article, a “tremendous opportunity for collaboration exists to link the digital twin application with the airport city concept.”[16] This would encourage stakeholder engagement as part of the airport’s sustainability efforts.
Industry Status
Exploring cloud services deployments in both aviation and non-aviation industries can provide airport operators with a better understanding of the technology. This article outlines the current state of cloud services technology from both perspectives.
Aviation Industry
AI Understands Customer Behavior
Avalon Airport uses computer vision, biometrics, and cloud platforms and is considered the first airport in Australia to implement touchless, self-service technology. As described in a white paper in Government Technology, the airport worked with Elenium Automation, an Amazon Web Services (AWS) Advanced Technology Partner, to change their passenger journey and offer touchless interactions that rely on voice technology, head control, and eye movement detection. Elenium provided kiosks and bag drops that use AI models to understand customer behavior at the screens. This allows the technology to replace traditional activities like scanning boarding passes or entering passenger information on the screen. According to the white paper, Avalon was able to “put in our [Elenium’s] kiosks and [auto] bag drops without having to put any local infrastructure in place.” These new technologies are allowing for a quicker and more efficient check-in and bag drop process, as well as reducing congestion in the check-in area.[17]
Non-aviation Industry
Scalable Data Platform
As the world shut down during the pandemic in March 2020, Instacart was working to onboard half a million new customers in about six weeks. According to Confluent Cloud, this level of growth would normally be seen over 10 years, and they had mere weeks to onboard the new customers and provide inventory availability quickly. They deployed the Confluent Cloud to scale data systems and provide real-time availability of inventory. In addition to inventory availability models, they also added fraud detection systems. Using cloud services enabled them to quickly grow the e-commerce application without worrying about the infrastructure in the backend.[18]
Predictive Analytics Increasing Profits
Georgia-Pacific produces paper and tissue products on paper rolls and must convert them to consumer-ready bath and tissue products. According to an article by AWS, any converting lines that are not in good working condition can cause tears and breaks, which can cost millions of dollars each year per line. Previously, each plant relied on a small number of experts to diagnose the equipment and oversee the manufacturing process. Georgia-Pacific employees found it challenging to try to get data to analyze and make decisions using operational data. They were able to deploy an AWS data lake that stored structured and unstructured data from multiple disparate systems, which allowed them to close several data centers and analyze end-to-end process optimization and asset health—all in one place. They are now able to “predict equipment failure 60–90 days in advance,” which allows Georgia-Pacific to reduce unplanned downtime. This allows them to run their production lines in a more efficient and predictable way, reduce production line downtime, and increase profits.[19]
Technology Interaction
Technology solutions may enable or be supported by other types of technologies. In some cases, the advancement of one technology may be vital to the effective use of another. This article highlights some of the high-level ways that cloud services may leverage the functionality of other technologies or be used to enhance the functionality of another technology. As solution development continues, integrations with other technologies may become more evident.
Blockchain
Blockchain can be described as a shared database that stores information across a distributed network of computer systems. This makes it difficult or impossible to breach the system to get the information stored within. Combining blockchain with cloud services can make the data more secure and tamperproof due to the decentralization of information. If data are deleted from one computer, this will not erase the data stored on any other device in the blockchain network. In addition, “blockchains are governed by codes, eliminating the need for third-party rules, making them a more secure alternative,” according to independent crypto journalist Tanvir Zafar.[20]
Internet of Things
The Internet of things (IoT) describes the collection of physical devices embedded with sensors or software that are connected to the Internet or other devices. These devices can collect or send large amounts of data, which can be used to make decisions on how the devices operate, report status, or control the environment. Pairing IoT devices with cloud services is a major enabler in storing, processing, and accessing large amounts of data. These two technologies are tightly coupled and can provide reliability of data, scalability as the amount of data fluctuates, and advanced security through authentication and encryption protocols.[21]
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) is the ability for machines to make decisions or perform tasks that are usually done by humans. In the past, it was not easy for the public to access AI for their use; however, with new tools available from cloud services providers, organizations are able to leverage the advanced learning capabilities of AI. Deploying AI as part of cloud services facilitates a way to automate repetitive or complex tasks, provides deeper insights into data by identifying patterns and trends, and can provide increased security as AI evaluates and tracks network traffic.[22]
Technology Barriers
As with other technologies noted in this Publication, there are market forces or obstacles in development that present barriers to the deployment and widespread adoption of cloud services technology. Keeping abreast of these barriers helps airport operators know when to expect to see wider use of this technology and when they should look to reassess it for their own use.
Cost
Depending on the situation, a pay-as-you-go or subscription model can be more costly over time than using an on-premises solution. Each project should be evaluated based on upfront costs, such as equipment and licensing, as well as longer-term costs, such as software upgrades, labor staff, and electricity or building space. In addition, there may be a large cost in migrating in-house systems to the cloud due to the complexity of systems or data, lack of technical resources, or necessary updates to business processes.
Security Concerns
Concerns about data security and privacy are the most common barriers to implementation. To mitigate security concerns, there are three different ways an organization can deploy cloud services: on a public cloud, on a private cloud, or through a hybrid cloud. The most common solution is the public cloud, in which resources are shared with other organizations. A private cloud is one in which the resources are dedicated to one organization. A hybrid cloud combines a public cloud with a private cloud, which may include an on-premises data center. Hybrid cloud deployments allow organizations to keep sensitive information stored locally, while other information can be stored in the public cloud.
Some airport operators or states may have specific regulations dictating where data can be physically located or how they are stored. Options for service providers may be limited if they cannot provide resources (such as data centers) in the right geographic area or in a single-tenant/private cloud.
Comply with Data Privacy Regulations
“Security experts are predicting that cyber criminals will continue to focus attacks on the airports and aviation industry with the goal of accessing data,” according to Shany Seawright of Connected Aviation Today.[23] While moving resources to the cloud, airport operators must be sure to comply with data privacy regulations. Specifically in the airport space, according to business and technology writer Alan R. Earls, there are three main security compliance items:
- Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, which aims to protect credit card information;
- California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018, which gives consumers more control over information that is collected by businesses; and
- General Data Protection Regulation, the set of rules in the European Union that governs how companies manage personal data.[24]