We recently interviewed Wayne Napier, Associate Civil Engineering – Airports at Beca about how they successfully utilized AviPLAN at Auckland Airport when reconfiguring a stand design to accommodate larger aircraft. Having used AviPLAN for over several years, Napier also told us how AviPLAN’s airside infrastructure modeling and verification capabilities provide further advantages for airports and their stakeholders, which he discusses here.
AviPLAN’s data output can be used in real time to analyze and problem-solve during airport operations, such as checking airfield compliance for unscheduled/irregular arrivals or rapidly planning workarounds for unexpected pavement maintenance. Napier cites an example from a New Zealand airport, where pilots reported concern about the clearance between their aircraft wingtip and surrounding infrastructure. “We can, within about five or ten minutes, provide a sketch to prove the design is sound and clearances are adhered to,” he says.
Overall, AviPLAN “has made gate design so much more functional”, Napier points out. The airport infrastructure design process is iterative – changes can be applied on the fly with the click of a button. “It doesn’t take much to modify your design,” he notes. “The ability to quickly and efficiently change design to reflect stakeholders’ requirements really make AviPLAN the fantastic airside planning tool that it is.” The software’s data outputs and verifications, furthermore, “are often the basis for discussions between an airport operator and other stakeholders about upcoming infrastructure projects”. It facilitates seamless collaboration between stakeholders, and assists infrastructure maintainers with the meticulous planning required for upgrades. It helps operators balance demand and capacity for smooth operations and enables safety/regulatory standards to be met while maintaining efficiency.
From his experience working with stakeholders from operators to ground handlers, Napier says: “I’ve not had any negative comments from anyone using AviPLAN to do apron design or verification. There’s no doubt this solution is really providing an impact on operations and processes, and the quality of the service that’s provided.”
Evolution
AviPLAN is “continually evolving”, Napier notes, adding that Beca closely collaborates with Transoft to draw out further utility from the product. Bernard Goodworth, Senior Product Manager, from Transoft says: “We’re always looking at developing new functionalities.” Further opportunities include expanding the ability to work with groups of airplanes, adding support for Front-loader and T-Bridge passenger boarding bridges.
Our new web-based solution, AeroCENTRAL Stand Guide, can now integrate and share AviPLAN output with all operational stakeholders. Goodworth says: “Those are the new challenges facing airports and the likes of software developers like Transoft. It’s a very exciting, dynamic world and software platform we’re working with.”