Gabriele Ruggieri Head of Aviation at software and hardware specialists, Custom, offers his view on the role of IT in the aviation and airport industry…
- I understand Custom is making waves in the airport world with both software and hardware solutions. Could you describe how this process began and the choice to enter into the airport industry?
GR: It has been a natural / easy choice since Custom was and still is leader in railway transportation ticket vending machines (TVM) and highways tolls payment machine printers; Custom designs and produces 600,000 printers per year and the cross-synergy between other transportation divisions and the retail division has facilitated Custom to enter into the ATI sector; Custom software development is limited to supporting the integrators (CUTE / DCS providers) through supplying them API’s, tools, and suite of software for seamlessly integrate / use / remote monitor Custom printers, in such sense they are the “solution providers”, not Custom.
- Do you feel that airports in general are using antiquated and out-of-date software? Do we need an IT revolution in the sector?
GR: We think that airport environment, as well as the banking one, due to the intrinsic security, is necessarily conservative. Nevertheless we support players that are very innovative and we are confident that Custom can contribute through providing the ATI industry with cutting edge technologies; just as an example, we replaced older printers that were printing at 140 mm/sec with ARM CPU based ones printing at 220 mm/sec and the new TK862 is studied to reach 300 mm/sec printing speed: it means faster check-in operations and overall better customer experience. Furthermore, Custom has anticipated the IATA Resolution 753, having ready off-the-shelf RFID enabled printers for those airlines which selected the RFID technology to get IATA compliance.
We think that rather than a revolution we will go through a natural evolution where Custom will play a key role because it can source experience and technologies from 6 different vertical markets where the Company is involved.
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