FEBRUARY 2012

POINT OF VIEW
Aviation Industry
Navigating the Clouds
2012, HCL Technologies. Reproduction Prohibited. This document is protected under Copyright by the Author, all rights reserved. 2
Cloud Computing in Aviation Industry
Internet continues to revolutionize the operations of aviation industry,
generating tremendous value in terms of higher revenues, reduced operational
costs and customer-centric, globally-distributed ticketing processes. However
aviation industry is facing some major challenges in the recent times like rise of
low-cost carriers, rising fuel prices putting pressure on margins and increased
competition due to easy accessibility of comparative pricing. Cloud
computing is the technological intervention which may help the aviation
industry to meet these challenges. A move to cloud computing has the
potential to not only simplify and accelerate business processes but also
generate growth with faster product and services innovation, greater flexibility
to react to increased demands and improved business intelligence and reduced
costs. Lets see how aviation industry can utilize cloud:
?Real-Time Analytics and Business Intelligence
In Aviation Industry, planning and operations are seamlessly integrated
with various systems such as Operations Control, Reservation and
Revenue Management and Crew Management. Constant examination of
traffic data with previous load factors as well as demand forecast figures
requires real-time analytics. Traffic prediction and simulation of
operational discrepancies caused by delays, weather conditions and other
unpredictable circumstances need in-depth business intelligence.
Cloud technologies can be used to provision much higher capacity as and
when needed for real-time analysis in the disruptive events such as
volcanic eruptions.
?Higher Customer Experience
Consistent and reliable performance of customer facing IT systems such
as check-in counters goes a long way towards sustaining and improving
customer experience. Traditionally, airlines face a major challenge in
providing optimum performance over WAN networks due to bandwidth
constraints and latency underlying airline IT backbone. Due to its
ubiquitous nature, cloud based environment can provide a more near-the
end user experience and are not as constrained by bandwidth while
handling delays/prolonged operations. A happy customer will always
come back.
?Cost Savings with Focus on Core Services
Cloud computing technologies will allow airlines and airports to focus on
their core business and avoid large scale investment in next generation IT
infrastructure such as data centers. Many of the worlds major airlines
receive reservations, inventory, departure control and other software
services from trusted third party providers. The main attraction of cloud
shared infrastructure is the lower per unit costs, economies of scale and
the simpler operations management. Cloud based reservation platforms
offered on SaaS such as SITA are already becoming increasingly popular.
Cloud Computing in Aviation Industry - Powered by Clouds
?Security
For Aviation Industry, processing customer data and keeping data secure
is critical from a competitive standpoint. Cloud is getting increasingly
mature and secure to handle critical data with Tier 3 data centers coupled
with regulations and frameworks such as ISO-27002, COBIT and
Sarbanes-Oxley which the airline industry can rely upon. Incident
investigation can also be easier leading to faster recovery and response
times. Systems are automatically patched and updated by expert software
specialists on payroll of cloud provider. They also ensure latest antivirus
updates and actively monitor intrusions with world class intrusion
detection system which an airline might not be able to afford. Cloud
providers bring economies of scale and cost of these security systems is
distributed across all consumers making it more affordable to the airline
industry.
Aviation Industry is at its inflection point; and cloud computing with its
unique set of benefits can help in reducing cost, improving cash flow and
increasing effectiveness. In addition to the above benefits there are various
other areas within the airline operations that can benefit from adopting cloud
(as you can see below). A cloud on the process block shows where we forecast
higher affinity to cloud platforms.
2012, HCL Technologies. Reproduction Prohibited. This document is protected under Copyright by the Author, all rights reserved. 3
Cloud Computing in Aviation Industry - Powered by Clouds
Operations
Management
Airlines Management Functions
Finance &
Accounting
Crew
Management
Business
Management
Routes Planning
and Market
Assessment
Strategic
Pricing
Distribution
Strategy
Strategic Airline Functions
Interface with External Agencies Planning and Operations
Reporting
Invoicing and
Revenue
Management
Communications
/ Transactions
Functions with
affinity to cloud
Legend
Strategic Business
Unit Management
Capacity
Management
Branding and
Communication
Safety & Security
Processes
Inventory
Management
Ticket Reservation
& Distribution
Customer
Relationships
Loyalty Clubs
Promotions
and offers
Collaboration
with Suppliers
Cargo
Management
Check in
procedures
Crew
Scheduling
Baggage
handling
Whether, fuel
reports
Incident
Management
Maintenance
Management
Route Scheduling
& Flight Dispatch
Airline Functions
In order to effectively leverage the cloud computing technology in the
organization, the CIO of an airline has to ensure that a proper assessment of
the organizations IT landscape is made. Adopting cloud has an impact not
only on your application landscape but also on IT governance and related
areas. It is recommended that an organization should create cloud strategy in
line with their business strategy for systematically leveraging cloud computing
capabilities.
Rashi Gupta is a lead consultant with HCL Technologies Business and IT
Transformation Services practice and has been instrumental in developing
HCLs cloud migration framework. In last 7 years of her experience she has
worked on transformation initiatives for Fortune 500 clients spanning
engagements around Business and IT Strategy, Cloud strategy and value
discovery. She can be reached at
Rupak Rathore is a principal consultant with HCL Technologies Business
and IT Transformation Services practice and is key innovator behind CRI and
associated frameworks. Over last 15 years, he has helped many customers use
technology to deliver superior value to businesses. He can be reached at
Business and IT Transformation Services (BITS) arm of HCL aims to
increase value of IT while reducing cost and mitigating risks associated with
such transformation. BITS provides consulting services across the globe and
has many Global 1000 companies as its customers.
HCL's cloud consulting services help customers evaluate cloud as part of their
overall IT service delivery strategy, recommend which enterprise applications
can be moved to the cloud, target operating model, benefits/risks, people,
process and technology for using Cloud. The service includes creation of
enterprise cloud strategy, cloud governance, readiness and migration
assessments for adoption of cloud platforms.
Reach us at
About the Authors
rashi_gupta@hcl.com
rupak.rathore@hcl.com
cloudconsulting@hcl.com
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Cloud Computing in Aviation Industry - Powered by Clouds
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