Esteem the pilots he helps to help, Cut Woods consistently has one gape on the horizon. Nonetheless as CIO for Manchester Airports Group (MAG), Woods is shopping for data-led technologies that would possibly per chance well lend a hand his exchange procure a competitive edge in operational actions and customer experiences.
“Our mission is to be the sphere’s most incandescent airports,” he says of the neighborhood, which is the very best probably UK airport operator and runs Manchester, London Stansted and East Midlands airports.
“We’re closely investing in data, synthetic intelligence and machine finding out. We’re investing in attending to know our possibilities better and predicting when airplane are turning up and flying out.”
Woods says this focal point on intelligence is a expansive atomize from the feeble design realized in critical airports. His crew at MAG is inflamed by growing a a lot extra proactive technique to data about flights, flows and services.
“Powerful of that work lately relies on ground handlers telling an airport that an incoming airplane has left its position dumb,” he says. “Our work is all about making improvements to at predicting flights, passenger flows, and staffing our services properly. We’re starting to ship some basically next-generation capabilities in our airports.”
Creating a brand fresh technique
Woods joined MAG in 2016 after a substantial IT management career. Having spent 12 years in telecoms facing project administration and provide, Woods moved to Accenture in 2011 and labored in consulting for 5 years. Whereas he loved the role, he had a younger family at home and desired to spend less time travelling across the globe.
Fortune modified into once on Woods’ facet. A terminate exchange contact suggested him the then CIO of MAG modified into once shopping for any individual to ebook the technology express underlying the reach of a brand fresh airport terminal in Manchester. Woods correct now saw the skill of the role.
“We’re closely investing in data, synthetic intelligence and machine finding out. We’re investing in attending to know our possibilities better and predicting when airplane are turning up and flying out”
Cut Woods, Manchester Airports Group
“It modified into once a £1bn programme,” he says. “I didn’t lead your complete procure and constructing of the terminal however it completely modified into once a task the put you’d lead the leisure connected to technology in that fresh terminal. That position sounded attention-grabbing. The chance to reach help and form the subsequent-generation terminal modified into once appealing and a large opportunity.”
Woods left Accenture and joined MAG as a programme director. He spent the first year making sure the organisation reached some extent the put it would possibly per chance well perchance procure the terminal and know what methods and services would possibly per chance well perchance be incorporated from a technology standpoint. As section of that route of, Woods realized that the neighborhood’s underlying technology technique wanted some work.
“There earn been quit-of-existence applications, networks, infrastructures and datacentres,” he says. “I went help to the manager crew and acknowledged, ‘You’re constructing this billion-pound fresh terminal, however the technology foundations aren’t indubitably match for that next generation. You’ve got some dangers right here that you just’re going to earn to take into memoir.’”
The manager crew modified into once impressed. They asked Woods to scope out a probably technique as chief technology officer, a task he assumed in mid-2017. He spent the subsequent year researching the opportunities to make stronger IT platforms and procure a future route for transformation.
“That work modified into once largely about inserting the fires out and growing a solid foundation we would possibly per chance well perchance procure on,” he says. “I took that technique to the board and they acknowledged, ‘We admire that, it’s a real thought. Why don’t you reach and take the CIO role and ship that technique for us?’”
Enacting digital transformation
Yet again, Woods jumped on the chance and modified into once promoted to CIO in September 2018: “I by no method expected to affix the firm as programme director and became CIO correct over two years later.” Rapidly-forward six years and Woods says his technology understanding has been enacted.
“The total technique modified into once to chase from a utility service supplier that is lagging the exchange – the exchange goes and buys stuff and tells technology to streak it in and procure it work – to how raise out we, as an IT crew, became a normal strategic partner for the endeavor, driving the exchange technique and the long urge rate of the organisation?”
Woods’ technique keen replatforming present applications and infrastructures to cloud environments. The transformation hasn’t keen a wholesale jog to the cloud – MAG restful runs some methods on-premise. He says the operational calls for of managing planes, passengers and baggage method it’s crucial to spread the threat. Nonetheless, the general route of chase for the length of the neighborhood’s digital transformation has been to the cloud.
Equally crucial decisions had been made when it comes to software constructing. In space of relying totally on external service provision, Woods space up an interior instrument engineering skill. “We supersized what we had been doing in the data position and delivered fresh data platforms working out of Amazon Web Companies and products [AWS],” he says.
It’s been a successful transformation, however Woods recognises there earn been bumps alongside the vogue, including critical elements associated with the coronavirus pandemic – Covid-19 had a huge impact on the chase exchange. Nonetheless, a cease in operations gave Woods and his crew time beyond regulation than fashioned to help in tips how technology is implemented and old vogue.
“Whereas you’ve no longer got many passengers and planes, all of a surprising you procure a a lot bigger alternate window,” he says. “Usually I indubitably earn between 11 o’clock [at night] and one o’clock in the morning to procure advanced adjustments sooner than test-in opens again at two o’clock. Terminal Three at Manchester modified into once closed for two years, so we would possibly per chance well perchance chase in and lift out all the pieces we wanted in a good tidy atmosphere.”
Bringing data together
Woods joined the manager crew in 2022, having beforehand reported to the manager of workers. After introducing his technology technique, Woods modified into once asked to address a neighborhood-huge transformation role, bringing together folks, processes and technology to force rate. This work makes a speciality of how the exchange operates in the put up-pandemic age.
“Whereas you rep that we took a range of value out and gotten smaller the exchange down as a lot as we presumably would possibly per chance well perchance for the length of Covid, how raise out we then chase and reimagine the airport when it comes to how we proceed and the design in which passengers flip up and poke thru the airport?” he says.
“The programme also makes a speciality of how airplane flip up and cruise out. We’ve seemed at your complete help-place of work facets – endeavor useful resource planning, folks methods and asset administration methods – you’d like, as a neighborhood of airports, so that you just can facilitate all of that task. And for the past two years, we’ve been concentrated on polishing off that work to make the sphere’s most incandescent airports.”
Woods compares working a licensed airport to managing a Formulation One (F1) trip. “Within the beginning, you’ve got a determined understanding – these airplane are going to come right this moment, they’re going to recede from these gates and take off right this moment,” he says. “Nonetheless as soon as you procure to the first nook of the F1 trip, all individuals’s in a various position and or no longer it is a have to to re-understanding continuously and figure out what’s going down. That’s what occurs in airports, too.”
He explains how airports earn traditionally labored in a siloed method – there’s small interaction between a range of parties, such as ground handlers, airlines, airports and immigration consultants, allowing for operational actions. Senior managers earn a real thought of what number of passengers will likely be on flights, however finer minute print have a tendency to be sketchy and insights are restricted. Woods desires to force alternate in the exchange.
“The work we’re doing is bringing your complete data on flights together,” he says. “We’re growing a single airport operational understanding. Knowledge goes into a single space that begins 360 days out however is continuously as a lot as this point. Our work is all about growing better data.”
Taking a proactive design
Woods paints a image of how the perception his crew is generating helps to elevate operational efficiency and passenger trip on the neighborhood’s airports.
“We mix data from airplane in the skies with data about what’s going down on the ground,” he says. “That perception method I will forecast what number of passengers I mediate will come. We’ve delivered a brand fresh machine that has enormously improved our skill to foretell what number of passengers will flip up in a 15-minute time gash.”
The work we’re doing is bringing your complete data on flights together. We’re growing a single airport operational understanding. Knowledge goes into a single space that begins 360 days out however is continuously as a lot as this point. Our work is all about growing better data
Cut Woods, MAG
Woods’ crew continues so that you just can add extra data to ship extra analytical depth. “I do know which passengers earn turned up because I’ve got trusty-time data,” he says. “I do know that, as an illustration, if we’ve best probably got 10% of the folk flying to Malaga thru security at any given time, I will originate talking to the airline and issue, ‘Accomplish you would possibly per chance chase or no longer? Attributable to, in the intervening time, you’re best probably going to be a third stout versus what you’re expected to be.’”
Appropriate form now, Woods says his crew is engaged on a project that aims to optimise the skill of the departure lounge by utilizing trusty-time data. The crew has realized customer delight drops because the lounge begins to possess up. Having this perception method folks across the airport can procure methods to elevate customer experiences by facing passenger flows.
“We know what number of folk are thru security for that particular particular person flight and we can originate thinking dynamically about playing round with call-to-gate times,” he says. “We are able to inaugurate to organize the occupancy of the departure lounge to withhold it a incandescent atmosphere for every person. We are able to call folks early when I do know a flight is prepared.”
Woods gives various examples, such as fastidiously allowing the queue to hold for a rapid interval in security areas to make extra position in the departure lounges. He says this data-led design treats passengers as a continuous poke of folks. Managing occupancy ranges method possibilities are happier – and there’s a probably wait on for MAG, too.
“I do know as a end result that we can procure extra income,” he says. “We’ve proven thru the data that giving folks a better trip also increases the propensity to spend. So, there’s a good relationship. Delivering a a lot better trip creates a symbiotic wait on – folks will likely be happier and extra at threat of spend money with us.”
