The European Commission Horizon 2020 Grant Strengthens Copenhagen Optimization’s AI-Driven Airport Optimization Solutions
23rd November 2021
Copenhagen Optimization’s Better Airport® software platform launched as the first holistic end-to-end solution for planning and executing airport operations to increase efficiency and prepare airports across the world for handling of complexity in analysis, planning, and operational execution as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to challenge the recovery.
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK— Copenhagen Optimization announced the completion of the prestigious Horizon 2020 research and innovation program by European Commission which has run for two years and ended on sept. 30th 2021. Copenhagen Optimization was singled out among thousands of applications across Europe for the company’s Better Airport software solution to drive optimization across the world’s airport network and prepare for the challenge of increased passenger demand in a cost-efficient, sustainable way.
Over the last 24 months, Copenhagen Optimization has utilized a grant of just over EUR 2.1 million. The program was created to establish international networks of excellence, foster cross-border cooperation, and fund multi-national projects that will drive internationalization across the EU.
Copenhagen Optimization’s Software-as-a-Service Better Airport creates innovation by being the first holistic end-to-end solution for planning and executing airport operations, providing airport operators with an AI-driven, easy-to-use solution that efficiently and effectively creates optimized operational plans enabling informed decision-making across airport stakeholders. This has proven effective to handling volatility in aviation during COVID-19 pandemic.
“We’re honoured to have received this valuable support from the European Commission to advance airports towards EU’s goal of a Single European Sky,” said Kasper Hounsgaard, Managing Partner at Copenhagen Optimization. “The planning process of airports is a complex challenge, and we are proud to be providing a solution to deliver efficient operations both airside and landside.”
Despite turbulence in aviation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is expected that there will be over 14 billion airline passengers by approx. 2035. This massive increase in passenger demand will cause major pressure on current infrastructure why airports need to look to cost-effective and resource-reducing solutions. Better Airport delivers this by fully optimizing the utilization of existing resources to increase efficiency and improve passenger experiences around the world.
The Horizon 2020 grant has enabled Copenhagen Optimization to run large scale trials of their newly added airport allocation solution across airports around the world with the goal of improving aircraft-to-building efficiency, reduce aircraft taxiing time, and other challenges that commonly plague busy airports that run on razor-sharp time constraints. Thanks to the program, Better Airport has provided a data-driven solution to postpone physical investment in airport infrastructure by at least three years, reduce staff costs by 10 percent, and decrease passenger waiting times by 50 percent at participating airports. Better Stand & Gate, a module to the Better Airport software portfolio, provides a deeper insight into aircraft allocation and parking, enabling airports to save between €5m and €15m up front, with further cost savings of up to €10m per year overall.
“Ultimately, as more and more airports implement Better Airport®, it will lead the way for interconnectivity between airports, allowing further transparency and collaboration airports in between, not only enriching airport operational management and strategy, but also in the end, heightening the experience for passengers,“ said Anders Dohn, Managing Partner, Copenhagen Optimization and continued “With Better Airport, airports will obtain a solution that enables decision making at both the operational, tactical, and strategic levels, which will lead to a more efficient daily operation and ensure that the airport can cope with future growth.”
Better Airport can support optimal operations planning also in a COVID-19 context as it integrates seamlessly with airport systems to create operational plans for the entire airport operation. This secures situational awareness and proactive planning and has during COVID-19 meant airports such as London Heathrow Airport , Copenhagen Airport, Stansted Airport, Singapore Changi International Airport and many more have been able to create optimized check-in counters opening plans that reflect counters unavailable due to physical distancing, balance allocation of flights, and bags to baggage reclaim belts to distribute passengers across the available area and avoid formation of crowds and queues. Better Airport provides a better flow of passengers, bags, and aircraft and ultimately a more efficient and optimized airport operation.
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No 880158.
