SITA Facilitates Seattle-Tacoma International Airport Expansion
The Port of Seattle has chosen SITA to provide
and install an advanced technology Flight Information Management System
(FIMS) as part of the major upgrade and expansion of the Seattle-Tacoma
International Airport (Sea-Tac). The last major expansion of the airport
took place in the late 1960s, and the result was an airport with an
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annual capacity of 25 million passengers. In 2003, Sea-Tac welcomed more
than 26 million passengers.
“The fundamental need for our expansion is to add capacity to serve a
growing region whose economy is increasingly intertwined with
international markets. Our goal is to provide a beautiful, convenient
and efficiently operated airport serving the needs of people all over
the world. To accomplish this we needed a strong, experienced technology
partner. Therefore, we selected SITA to help us in achieving our
vision,” said Michael Ehl, Director, Airport Operations.
FIMS consists of three interrelated applications that are integrated for
the seamless transfer of information among airlines, ground handlers and
airport authorities.
¤ The first application, AirportResource Manager, optimizes the
allocation of airport assets such as ticket counters, gates and baggage
carousels. This ensures that the correct resources are available at the
right time and in the right place at Sea-Tac.
¤ The second application, AirportVision, an airport and flight
information display system automatically collects and distributes live
information to display devices in terminals, check-in desks, gates,
baggage carousels and other applicable areas. AirportVision improves
coordination and efficiency by increasing the speed at which information
is displayed as well as its accuracy, resulting in an improved passenger
experience.
¤ The third application, AirportCentral, is a core database that
captures operations and management data from each of the systems running
in the airport. The database ensures that all applications run in sync,
so that live information is exchanged between systems affording fast and
easy access to key data throughout the airport.
In addition to FIMS, the Port elected to expand SITA’s existing
installation of Common Use Terminal Equipment (CUTE) to support the new
airport expansion. CUTE is a common software, hardware and network
airport solution that enables airlines and handling agents to access
their own applications from workstations and printers shared by all
users. SITA’s BagManager will also be seamlessly integrated with FIMS
and CUTE to provide the most advanced passenger baggage tracking and
reconciliation system available today.
“Sea-Tac represents the first ever, all-inclusive installation of SITA’s
Airport in a Box Solution, anywhere in the world,” commented Catherine
Mayer, Vice President, Airport Services, SITA INC. “SITA has long
understood that airports need to integrate and deploy the latest
technologies to improve their operations. Airport in a Box integrates
all critical airport applications, network, hardware, support, and
offers a range of cost and efficiency benefits for airports, airlines
and handling agents while simplifying the passenger journey.”
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport has now successfully reached a
major milestone in its multi-year renovation and expansion project with
the on-schedule opening of the new South Terminal Extension building.
The airport’s original and smaller Concourse A had become outdated and
was subsequently demolished in late 2000. In addition, construction of a
new Central Terminal began in summer 2002 and will be complete in early
2005.
Focusing on the total integration of all the technology systems at the
airport, SITA’s helps airports and their users to combat congestion,
maximize limited resources, improve operating efficiencies, reduce costs
and identify new streams of revenue.
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