Mexico airports
With technology solutions ranging from automated check-in to resource management, SITA works with airports across Mexico to help them compete for airline traffic, maximize efficiencies and improve customer service.
Mexico is the 11th most populous country in the world with an airport infrastructure to match. There are 35 major airports across the country and Mexico is a significant player in the international air transport industry (ATI). The country's Mexico City airport is the largest in Latin America and moves in excess of 24 million passengers every year.
SITA has played an important role in helping airports across Mexico attract airlines and make their operations more efficient, with solutions ranging from CUTE (Common Use Terminal Equipment) and CUSS (Common Use Self Service) shared check-in infrastructure to airport management solutions (AMS) to optimize airport resources and operations.
SITA has been working with Mexico's airports since 1993 and has successfully executed a number of high-profile projects in significant tourist destinations such as Cancun and Puerto Vallarta, and business travel locations such as Guadalajara and Mexico City.
Solutions deployed include an airport operational database (AODB) to automatically track movements for more accurate billing and reporting, a resource management system (RMS) to optimize the allocation of expensive airport resources, flight information display systems (FIDS) to improve customer service, and common-use check-in systems (ie, CUTE) to speed up passenger and baggage processing.
The success seen by SITA in Mexico has been driven by its proven results and presence on the ground, as Norbert Steiger, Sales VP, Latin America & Caribbean, SITA explains:
"We have a good track record in important locations such as Cancun, offer a good level of service, have dedicated people and proven capabilities," said Steiger.
"Delivery of our services is handled by SITA Global Services, which is evolving into a unified services team with a global helpdesk. We also have people on the ground to help with project implementation, such as technicians in all the large airports."
Industry picking up
After a challenging couple of years in the wake of the influenza epidemic and economic downturn, the Mexican ATI is picking up again, according to the latest figures. Over 24 million passengers travelled in Mexico domestically in 2010 and the country also had 22.4 million international visitors in the same year, served by both international and national carriers.
Aeropuertos del Sureste (ASUR)
Encompassing some of Mexico's major tourist destinations, Aeropuertos del Sureste (ASUR) is based in the southeast of the country and headquartered in Mexico City.
Since the government started privatizing its airports in 1999, ASUR has built its estate to encompass nine airports in total. In 2000, it also became the first airport operator to list on the New York Stock Exchange.
The largest airport in ASUR's portfolio is Cancun: in 2010, it carried 12.4 million of ASUR's passengers alone. In fact, Cancun is the second largest airport in Mexico and one of the most important in the entire continent.
To protect its key asset, ASUR is investing 2.4 billion pesos for the period 2009 through 2013 in Cancun Airport to improve infrastructure and services. The investment has bolstered customer satisfaction and Cancun has been voted by passengers as the best airport in Latin America and the Caribbean in the 2010 Airports Council International (ACI) survey.
Cancun Airport wants to speed this process up as much as possible, by providing passengers with self-service kiosks at the terminal and even possibly pushing this out to the resorts. This would allow tourists to check in even before they get to the airport and arrive with boarding passes.
- Norbert Steiger, Sales VP, Latin America & Caribbean, SITA
Long relationship
Improving the check-in infrastructure at Cancun Airport was a priority for ASUR, as SITA's Steiger explains:
"Cancun is very focused on the tourist market. This means that most passengers arrive off coaches in groups and everybody wants to check in at once, which puts massive pressure on the check-in infrastructure.
"Cancun Airport wants to speed this process up as much as possible, by providing passengers with self-service kiosks at the terminal and even possibly pushing this out to the resorts," he explains. "This would allow tourists to check in even before they get to the airport and arrive with boarding passes."
The first phase of the project was to deploy the shared CUTE check-in terminals that would allow all airlines to use the same equipment at the counters, instead of having them tied
to specific airlines with proprietary systems. SITA has deployed over 200 CUTE check-in desks at Cancun Airport, including 10 mobile positions.
"CUTE is used by all airlines in Cancun Airport and its function is to process passengers from documentation to boarding," says Héctor Gama, IT Director, ASUR. This will be extended to include self-service CUSS kiosks that enable passenger self-service.
Airport management
The other key recent project SITA carried out for ASUR in Cancun was an update of the airport management solution (AMS).
"This solution is essential to handle the administration, planning and decision-making for efficient airport resources usage," explains ASUR's Gama. "It also allows us to offer flight information displays to passengers in airline terminals."
AMS was an upgrade to ASUR's earlier airport management system, which SITA installed nearly a decade ago. The upgrade was required to meet the stringent requirements ASUR needed for the New York Stock Exchange, particularly around auditing, billing and reporting.
In addition to helping ASUR meet market compliance requirements, AMS also helps the airport operate more efficiently.
"AMS allows ASUR to plan the airline capacity much better, so that all flights can be accommodated," explains Danilo Dias, Solutions VP, Latin America & Caribbean, SITA.
"Previously at Cancun, for example, all the airlines wanted to arrive at the same peak hours. AMS allows Cancun to manage its capacity better to ensure that flight arrival loads are spread evenly throughout the day."
Both CUTE and AMS have been instrumental in helping ASUR improve its service to both passengers and the industry.
"We have been able to optimize our airport resources and improve our service levels to passengers in critical hours," says Gama. "They have also helped us to be more agile and coordinate our activities effectively with the whole airport community, including airlines, ground handlers, airport authorities and passenger service providers."
Key benefits
- Provide shared check-in infrastructure to airlines to optimize desk use
- Improve customer service through shorter check-in times and better information display
- Optimize airport resources through better planning with central operational database
- Improve relationship with airlines and other stakeholders in the airport
- Meet compliance requirements for data storage and audit
Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico (GAP)
Headquartered in the city of Guadalajara, Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico (GAP) has been operating 12 airports in Pacific Mexico since 1998. The airports handled 22.3 million passengers in 2009 and five of its airports are ranked in the top 10 busiest airports in Mexico; Guadalajara is the third busiest after Mexico City and Cancun.
Since taking over its airports from the government, GAP has undertaken some significant renovation and building work. This includes building new terminals and remodeling existing
terminals, improving runways and aprons, adding new international baggage claim areas and investing in machinery and equipment.
Shared infrastructure
An important part of GAP's airport terminal overhaul were the installation of common-use systems, particularly for passenger check-in. Common-use equipment is a growing trend in the airport industry. It also allows airport operators to centralize their infrastructure by having the servers in the main location and deploying terminals in smaller airports, which connect directly back to them.
"We wanted to rationalize and optimize space in our airport gates," said Juan Francisco Martínez Mira, IT Manager, GAP. "We saw common-use check-in technology as a key new technology for passenger services, which would also allow us to scale services effectively."
As a leader in common-use equipment for airports, SITA won the RFP and the contract to deploy CUTE and CUSS terminals throughout GAP's airport estate, and integrate them with the airport's existing information systems.
Fully operational
With the first deployments in a contract running until 2013, SITA's CUTE solution is now fully operational in nine GAP airports, representing a total of 300 agent positions.
"We have also installed CUSS kiosks at GAP's three main airports: Los Cabos, Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta. CUSS kiosks are ideal for large airports that need to support a busy check-in environment," adds SITA's Steiger.
The common-use equipment has been instrumental in helping GAP improve customer service by reducing check-in times by allowing airlines to use check-in positions more flexibly. It has also made GAP's airports more attractive to airlines as GAP's Martínez Mira explains:
"It has allowed us to improve our relationship with airlines because we can offer them common-use services for their use," says Martínez Mira. "In addition the systems are flexible enough to support any future changes and growth in demand, such as opening new routes to our airports."
It has been particularly useful for GAP's smaller airports with limited check-in positions, where previously airlines' proprietary equipment installed at the check-in desks had made it impossible to accommodate new airlines.
Key benefits
- Common-use equipment has made more check-in space available for airlines at busy airports
- System is scalable to meet demand for seasonal and new routes
- GAP is able to make its airports more attractive for airlines
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