Singapore, Mumbai, March 30, 2017: India’s leading IT services company Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has collaborated with SATS Ltd., one of Asia’s leading provider of airport ground handling and food solutions services, to develop a smart watch solution that is believed to be the world’s first mobile solution for airport ‘Technical Ramp’ operations.
The Technical Ramp Smart Watch solution, said a press statement by TCS, was now supporting SATS’ operations at Singapore’s Changi Airport, a leading global hub of travel, technology adoption and efficiency.
The smart watch solution was designed to increase operational efficiency by streamlining on-ground processes and enhancing communication, productivity, and safety, through technology. It assists SATS by providing tech ramp workers with real time job and task notifications on-the-go, and ensuring staff are kept updated remotely, while reducing reliance on older technology like walkie-talkies.
“In an industry that is becoming ever more competitive, constant innovation and productivity gains are essential,” said Alex Hungate, SATS President and Chief Executive Officer. “In deploying smart watches and leveraging the Internet of Things, we not only drive greater efficiency but also reimagine the role of the tech ramp technician.”
Prior to the implementation of the solution, SATS tech ramp agents would need to physically visit the control center to check rosters and receive updates regarding ad-hoc changes. Communication around operational changes was also conducted manually, either by reprinting updates or via walkie-talkies which, given the noise pollution at airports, can be difficult.
“Digitization and mobility are creating exciting new opportunities and solutions that are transforming user experience, streamlining operations, and creating new efficiencies in airport services,” said Girish Ramachandran, President, TCS Asia Pacific.
With real-time GPS to monitor movement of tech ramp agents from a central location via their smart watches, the latest information, such as updated schedules and instructions are now pushed instantaneously out across all devices from the Tech Ramp Control Centre, without having to rely on a walkie-talkie relay or on reprinted updates.
Key elements of the solution are:
- Real time job/task notifications to ramp agents – Improving operational efficiency by saving the ramp agents time to visit control centre each time to know their roster/updates.
- Precision Tracking – Control centre application with real time GPS plot to monitor movement of ramp agents.
- Notifications – Relaying of ad-hoc messages/instructions from control centre to ramp agents with less dependency on walkie-talkie
- Info capture for Analytics – Recording of reporting time at bay, start & completion of jobs for ramp agent’s performance insights.
Image Credit: TCS