Guidance on Concept Planning and Designing of Airport Collaboration Centers

Many airports historically operate with various disciplines working in silos spread throughout the airport campus. More than 20 years ago the Emergency Operation Center became a focus for airports to bring various subject matter experts to gather to work face to face during a large scale event or disruption to airport operations. The benefit of bringing various disciplines together in the EOC usually results in better information sharing, situational awareness and better decisions to help reduce the impacts, and improve efficiencies in response to large scale events. This type of collaboration center is usually only activated during certain large scale events.

On a daily basis many airports have some type of communications centers/dispatch centers, airfield operations and post 911 security operations centers. Some of these centers are combined some are not however airports are beginning to realize the benefit of having subject matter experts working together on a daily or semi-daily as needed basis to improve collaborative decision making for regular and irregular operations (IROPS).

A guidebook on how to concept plan the right size center and appropriate subject matter experts including staffing plans, how to choose a good geographic location and square footage for future growth and sustainability. How to approach change management from both the senior level and staffing level. This is not just a work location change but a business process and cultural change and options on how to implement the opening of the centers considering day one, one year or two years out

Research current airport centers as well as non aviation centers
Survey airport needs for collaboration tools
Compare and contrast the European and/or Canadian collaboration center models to U.S. airports
Develop a use case study for a small, medium and large size airport
develop best practices and lessons learned
Develop a concept planning template and flow chart
Develop room layout options
Develop staffing models options
Develop tools to develop key performance indicators (KPIs)
Recommend technology solutions to support these centers

$500,000
There is a fair amount of research to be done including non airport collaboration centers and at least one international center deemed a best practice to be interviewed on site
The use cases will also involve travel to those airports
There are several development sections including concept planning, change management and technology that need tools to be developed in support

Reference ACRP Idea #6 Development of Joint Operations Center as well as ACRP report 189 Design Consideration for Airport EOCs