As passenger numbers worldwide continue to grow, maximising the efficiency and safety of airports is key. ADB SAFEGATE offers state-of-the-art intelligent lighting and sustainable solutions designed to ensure safe operations and the flexibility to optimise capacity and throughput. Christian Onselaere, CEO ADB SAFEGATE, spoke to Marta Dimitrova.
In May, it was announced that İGA, a joint venture founded to construct and operate Istanbul New Airport, has chosen ADB SAFEGATE to conduct an airfield ground lighting (AGL) design review and install airfield solutions, including intelligent LED ground lighting and visual aids. These are designed to improve throughput and efficiency, enabling safer and more sustainable operations at the airport.
“The contract is, for our company, not only the biggest in our history, it’s also a key contract because of the focus,” explains Christian Onselaere, CEO ADB SAFEGATE. “For over ten years we have designed, developed, sold and produced more than 1.2 million LED lights, and we see that in the last five years there has been a sharp increase in the move to full intelligent airfields. More and more airports are moving to integrate intelligent airfields, meaning that they have full control of the airfield, understand the status of all lights, and can use the intelligence to fully control and monitor the lights and implement a ‘Follow the Greens’ scenario. This, in turn, is key to maximising the efficiency and safety of the airport, using it to shorten the turn-around time and guiding the aircraft through the shortest route to the gate or back to the runway. Istanbul New Airport is, in more than one sense, unique and now also becomes one of the most efficient airports in the world.”
Christian Onselaere, CEO ADB SAFEGATE: “More and more airports are moving to integrate intelligent airfields, meaning that they have full control of the airfield, understand the status of all lights, and can use the intelligence to fully control and monitor the lights and implement a ‘Follow the Greens’ scenario.”
ADB SAFEGATE is responsible for the complete visual guidance approach, starting with a comprehensive AGL design review to assess and implement a solution to best suit the airport’s needs. The company will equip the taxiway system with full switching ability and the addition of a single and double channel Individual Light Control and Monitoring System (ILCMS). With intelligence built into each light fixture, the ILCMS will control the lights individually or by defined segments, providing large gains in power savings and making maintenance easier and more cost-effective. The state-of-the-art intelligent lighting will also allow increased flexibility in guidance and routing. “Fully equipped, the taxiway system with our sustainable solutions will ensure safe operations in all visibility conditions, and the flexibility to optimise capacity and throughput,” says Onselaere.
With 35,000 intelligent LED lights, Istanbul New Airport will be the world’s biggest AGL implementation and such a large-scale project, naturally, has its challenges. “As every installed light needs to be individually addressable, it has to be linked with its location and programmed accordingly,” Onselaere adds. “The biggest challenge will be the installation itself, given the very short time frame by which all lights will be installed and programmed.”
Meanwhile, ADB SAFEGATE has several new developments in the pipeline. For instance, the company is launching an enhanced Safedock visual docking guidance system, which integrates docking, gate, and apron control, surveillance and monitoring systems to improve the efficiency and accuracy of aircraft gate arrival, turnaround and departure. The new Pushback Support Tool is designed to simplify ATC workloads; it enhances the aircraft pushback routine, monitors the pushback procedure, and warns ATC of potential conflicts with other aircraft or vehicles in the apron area. Also new is A-Lytics, a data analysis solution that provides airport managers with new insight into how well operations are running.
“Going forward we see our continued growth coming from the future expansion in our key domains – airfield, gate, tower and service – and, of course, our integration capabilities, and a further re-enforcement of our offering by a targeted mergers & acquisition strategy,” Onselaere concludes.
