New Technologies in Apron Equipment Maintenance
On September 18, Aleksey Kovalev, Managing Director of Domodedovo Airport Handling, presented the cutting-edge experience of Domodedovo Airport at one of the largest industry events Ground Handling Russia & CIS. The technology of zoning in the organization of aircraft maintenance developed by the airport experts for ground handling resources optimization will make it possible to bring the quality of services to the fundamentally new level as well as to lower non-productive run of the equipment by 40%.
In order to implement the technology, the airport has created “integrated teams” which include all ground handling professionals: supervisors, container mechanization operators, loader drivers, ramp operators, aircraft mechanics, dock workers. Each integrated team is responsible for the maintenance of a specific aircraft. The production processes are coordinated and controlled by the Integrated Center of Production and Flight Operation (ICPFO), that combined all flight operation centers of Domodedovo Airport Handling and a number of other enterprises of Moscow Domodedovo Airport.
The final stage of the zoning technology implementation will include the creation of technological zones, i.e. relatively small visually inspected platforms where integrated team professionals and all necessary specialized equipment can be easily placed. The works on such platforms are characterized by production processes standardization: each zone handles similar flights – cargo, international or domestic.
Since the new technology reduces the number of non-productive runs of special equipment, it will allow Domodedovo to provide pron handling services for all types of aircrafts more quickly and efficiently and on a whole new level. Moreover, it will offer the airport the opportunity to optimize costs which, in its turn, will have a positive impact on airlines-partners and will let them build a competitive product for passengers.
Moscow Domodedovo Airport is the largest airport of Russia in terms of passenger traffic. In 2011, total passenger traffic of the airport amounted to 25,701,610 people which let Domodedovo to become the first Russian airport to join the category of the largest airports in Europe on the classification of the Airports Council International (ACI). Moscow Domodedovo Airport is the base airport in Russia for member airlines of two largest global airline alliances – oneworld and Star Alliance. Since 2009, Moscow Domodedovo Airport has been on top of the list of the best airports in Eastern Europe in terms of the service quality, according to the annual survey by the independent research company Skytrax Research (UK).