Efficiency first, spectacle second
For Max Hirsh, managing director of Airport City Academy, a research centre focused on airport planning and development, Changi’s success is not just about quality, but nailing the everyday fundamentals, from speed to safety to connectivity. It’s also about having the flexibility to adapt when things don’t go as planned.
“In the world of aviation, that happens a lot,” Hirsh says. “The challenge isn’t achieving that balance just once – it’s maintaining it for decades in the face of changing demands, technologies and disruptions. Changi succeeds because it treats that balance as an ongoing project, not a one-off design feat.”
[Changi] is like Singapore in a nutshell: efficient, clean, organised, and you can trust everything works as expected – Alisha Rodrigo
If you’ve ever flown through Singapore, you’ll likely have noticed the sense of calm that pervades the airport. What you likely don’t realise is how carefully manufactured that tranquility is. Behind the scenes sits a huge and tightly choreographed operation in which automation, biometrics and predictive analytics are used to remove bottlenecks before they become visible, while 60,000 staff keep baggage, cleaning, energy use and passenger flow ticking along in sync. As Hirsh puts it, Changi often feels “one step ahead of you”.
Autonomous cleaning robots are one of the small operational touches that help Changi run smoothly.
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