Siemens and Dubai Airports sign major agreement

Muscat: Siemens Postal, Parcel & Airport Logistics (SPPAL) and Dubai Airports signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore potential areas of collaboration that will enhance passenger experience and throughput, cost optimisation and energy efficiency at Dubai International (DXB) and Dubai World Central (DWC).
The pact identifies the intent to explore potential areas of collaboration in the fields of data management, analytics and digitalisation. As part of this agreement the companies aim at utilising Internet of Things (IoT) technology and infrastructure as well as analytics capabilities, establishing a standardized and secure way to exchange quality-assured data across different stakeholders at the airports in real-time. For the digital technologies, Siemens is using MindSphere, its open, cloud-based operating system for the Internet of Things.
“By employing advanced data analytics and machine learning, a great deal of added value can be derived from data. Through this agreement, we would seek to help Dubai Airports improve ultimately the overall customer experience by analysing various elements of airports technology, including passenger flows and interactions with airport facilities and existing bag and cargo flows,” said Michael Reichle, Chief Executive Officer of SPPAL.
“The use of the latest technology in data science will optimise the flow at each touchpoint and enhance productivity and efficiencies for the benefit of Dubai Airports and its customers,” said Michael Reichle, Chief Executive Officer of SPPAL,” Reichle added.
“Our ongoing focus is to use data, analytics and technology to boost service, throughput and efficiency across the board simultaneously,” said Michael Ibbitson, Executive Vice President of Technology and Infrastructure at Dubai Airports.
“Siemens has extensive expertise in this area and a long and successful track record working with Dubai Airports. We’re excited about unleashing the potential of closer collaboration for the benefit of our customers and our bottom line.”
Under the MoU, activities of collaboration cover among other things joint opportunities for pilot studies as well as research and development. The companies will examine opportunities ranging from intelligent passenger flow management, maintenance cost reductions, power supply efficiencies and predictive asset management.
In its push towards strengthening its digital presence, Siemens also plans to set up two MindSphere Application Centers in the United Arab Emirates. The company has made a commitment to setting up 20 of these MindSphere Application Centres in 17 countries. Each of the centers spans multiple locations in different countries and specialises in a particular industry in which Siemens is active.
At these centres, around 900 software developers, data specialists and engineers work together with Siemens customers to develop digital innovations for data analysis and machine learning. These new solutions are being developed on MindSphere, Siemens’ open, cloud-based operating system for the IoT.
In the United Arab Emirates, the two new centres will be located in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The MindSphere Application Centre in Dubai will handle airports, logistics and cargo to co-develop innovative approaches that improve the movement of people and goods.
The centre will optimise the efficiency of logistics by leveraging advanced analytics and IoT solutions provided by Siemens. The other center in Abu Dhabi will cater to process industries, mainly focusing on oil and gas, water and waste water, enabling customers to improve operational efficiency and reduce their costs across the whole value chain.