Built on 4,000 acres at Devanhalli, the Bengaluru International Airport (BIAL)
is one of the first greenfield airports to be built on a public private
partnership (PPP). This PPP model also brought in a new trend in the way airport
projects started being rolled out in India. The need for a master SI was felt to
realize such a mammoth project.
Siemens IT Solutions and Services (SIS) was appointed as the master SI for
the BIAL project, and was entrusted with end-to-end project management of the
airport. SIS has equipped BIAL with complete electrical , IT and communications
systems, airfield lighting, passenger boarding passes, escalators and elevators,
baggage handling system, power supply equipment, building security and
automation system. With its airport domain knowledge, SIS has managed to cater
to the passenger forecast and projected cargo.
Airport Testbed
In 2005, SIS established an Airport Systems Laboratory (ASL) in Bengaluru
with an objective to showcase world-class airport systems. It offers a unique
integration system called Airport Integration Platform (AIP), while providing
single accountability for the wide variety of IT and non-IT systems found in any
modern airport. The ASL is also the test bed for many of SISs solutions
deployed at BIAL from biometric security systems like 3D face scanners or
fingerprint scanners, a complete baggage handling system to the Airport
Operation Center. It also serves as a virtual airport, and is connected to the
Siemens Airport Center in Germany.
Airport Control
One outstanding feature of the BIAL which is unique in India is the
completely integrated Airport Operations Control Center which brings together
the airport operators, security forces, customs, immigration, police, air
traffic control (ATC), ground handlers, fuel suppliers and in-flight catering,
all in one control room. By integrating all the stakeholders, the operations
have been effectively streamlined, improving safety, security and passenger
convenience. The AOCC is crucial to operations recovery in times of disruptions
or delays and results in improved punctuality, predictability, efficiency and
better decision making.
IT at BIAL
The AOCC also integrates some of the most hi-tech IT systems that have been
deployed at BIAL. The airport functions with the help of an Airport Integration
Platform (AIP), which seamlessly integrates all the airport processes thereby
improving operational efficiencies and ultimately reducing costs. "What makes
BIAL different from other airports in India is the level of integration of all
the systems and processes so that they can be controlled or supervised from a
single operation center. Other airports still have not reached the level of
integration like BIAL, and have to grapple with a certain degree of disparate
systems," says AS Viswanathan, global head, mobility, SIS.
Apart from AOCC and AIP, fifty-three common use terminal equipment (CUTE) as
well as eighteen common use self service (CUSS) check-in kiosks, flight
information management system (FIMS) and flight information display systems
(FIDS) have been deployed at the airport by SIS. This has enabled a high level
of operational efficiency. Another key system that is in place is the airport
operation database (AODB) that can be likened to the brain of the airport. It
holds and enables all information related to the airport operations. The data
from the AODB is updated on various other systems, including the ATC systems,
the SITA Text Network, the Aeronautical Fixed Telecommunication Network (AFTN),
the Visual Docking Guidance Systems (VDGS) and the CUTE and the CUSS systems. In
turn the AODB sends its data to various other downstream systems like the
aviation billing systems, the airport information portal and the baggage
handling systems.
After airport operations, come the flight management systems and tools. The
Flight Information Processing System (FIPS) at BIAL is a data collecting and
processing system designed to assist the management in comprehensive flight
data. It is a flight schedule management tool that calculates aircraft arrival
and departure the whole year round, and processes the dynamic changes that
happen in the course of a typical airport operational day.
Airport logistics is another area where BIAL has deployed IT solutions to
better integrate and coordinate all operations and multiple vendors. The
Location Management System (LMS) is a set of tools for planning and managing
airport specific resources like gates, aircraft stands, baggage belts and check
in counters. The system provides a graphical and intuitive representation of the
flight related resources assigned to specific flights, and helps in better
supervision of all the elements.
Baggage screening, tagging, tracking and reconciliation are some of the most
crucial logistical processes at any airport. Baggage at BIAL is handled with a
Siemens ultra-modern, five level in-line x-ray screening system which eliminates
the need for the extra, pre-check-in x-ray stage found at most Indian airports.
The baggage reconciliation system, built on a wireless network allows baggage
tags to be scanned and tracked. As a result, the entire check-in process is more
streamlined and faster than it was at the old HAL airport.
Bengaluru is also the first airport in the country to provide free Wi-Fi
service in the terminal building. The service is managed by BIALs ICT team with
Internet provided by Airtel and Tata Teleservices. The Wi-Fi is also used by the
airlines roving check-in agents, using hand-held devices which can even print
boarding passes on the spot. The automated parking management system that
overlooks the operations of the 2,000 vehicle car park right in front of the
terminal building is provided by SKIDATA.
Priya Kekre
priyak@cybermedia.co.in