Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Huawei Technologies (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. (Huawei Malaysia) to support Malaysia Airports’s Airports 4.0 initiative, its digital transformation vision.
Airports 4.0 is an initiative of Malaysia Airports, a digital transformation framework encompassing infrastructure enhancement, capacity development and digital innovation that aims to enhance terminal optimisation, operational efficiency, revenue generation and regulatory compliance, ultimately leading to enhanced customer experience. Based on the existing stage of the framework, the core focus of Airports 4.0 is said to enhancing connectivity and real-time information by connecting all stakeholders in one fully integrated digital ecosystem.
At the core of the MoU, is the ‘Joint Innovation on Fully Connected Airport Initiative’ which includes the study of implementing next generation network architecture design to consolidate wired network in airports, the possibility of latest WiFi 6 technology, Digital Indoor Solution (DIS) 4G LTE network and future 5G technology use case in airports to improve passenger experience and operation efficiency.
The collaboration will also look into the feasibility of implementing suitable IoT (Internet of Things) solutions in respect to connectivity. Lastly, the collaboration aims to establish a Fully Integrated Network Communication Managed platform to manage above technology and integrated data to enable future big data analysis throughout the entire airport, further improving airport operation efficiency and reduce overall ICT cost.
Eman Liu, President of Global Transportation Business Department said: “The concept of a smart airport is now becoming a reality as airports around the world adopt innovative technologies enabling digital and visualized flight services, passenger services, and airport operations. Our solutions incorporate the latest ICT technology such as cloud, the Internet of Things (IoT), and Artificial Intelligence (AI), and a cloud-pipe-device collaboration, delivering a one-stop innovative ICT infrastructure platform to help Malaysia Airports build future-oriented smart airports. It is our aim to bring substantial benefits to customers in terms of safety assurance, airport operational efficiency, and service quality, creating the best-in-class travel experience for passengers worldwide.”
Huawei said it has provided a wide range of ICT solutions for airports, airlines, and air traffic control authorities across the world, enabling them to achieve digital transformation and improve their service capabilities, operational efficiency, and revenue growth. These ICT solutions include indoor/outdoor modular data centers, servers and storage devices, converged cloud platforms, Big Data analytics platforms, and integrated wired/wireless communications solutions. To date, Huawei has provided ICT products, solutions, and services for more than 60 airports, airlines, and air traffic control authorities worldwide.
Malaysia Airports claims to be one of the largest airport operator groups in the world—in terms of number of passengers handled—managing 39 airports across Malaysia (with five International airports, 16 domestic and 18 STOLports [Short Take-Off and Landing]) as well as one International airport in Turkey.