Operations Management in Manchester Airport - Essay Example

OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT IN MANCHESTER AIRPORT Operations management deals with overseeing, designing and redesigning business operations for maximum client benefit. In an airport, there are many operations and all these operations need to be efficient while using as little resources as possible. The operations in an airport should thus, be combined in a way that would bring maximum client satisfaction. In this study, the operations management in Manchester airport would be discussed and how it may be improved. Parking- parking is a crucial aspect that needs to be operated and planned properly, failure to which passengers may miss flights. The prices for durations of parking are advertised on a large bulletin board and thus, no delays due to bill problems for passengers. The parking time at Manchester airport takes approximately 20. There is a large parking area and thus it is uncommon to miss parking space. Security inspection- with the 9/11 attacks, security in airports have been beefed up. Manchester airport is no different and it security operations thorough. The security procedures take about 3minutes. The delay however is worthwhile. The procedures involve a pat down and screening by X ray machines for dangerous equipments. Those with dangerous weapons are arrested by the stand by police and taken to the nearby Manchester Airport police station. The above security check is for entrance to the airport and not for boarding flights. Queuing- queuing is a security procedure as well as a measure to maintain order. Those in the queue are closely monitored by CCTV cameras while they line up to go and purchase or confirm tickets. This is a fundamental operation activity as it helps maintain order in the airport. The time taken in the queue depends on the number of passengers in the airport. But approximately staying in the Queue cannot take more than 10 minutes. The number of teller stations to which passengers buy or confirm tickets are many and thus efficient operation. Ticket buying and confirmation- The airport has a self check-in ticket kiosk which allows one to insert an id and credit card for validation. The boarding pass then prints itself automatically; this reduces the queues at the counters. They also allow one to view the itinerary and select seats. The process takes approximately 5 minutes. According to McGregor theory of operation management, time is an essential factor, all operations are supposed to be time inclusive (McGregor 34). The introduction of self check in tickets in the airport is thus in line with the McGregor theory. Document Verification- In an international airport such as Manchester, the human traffic is unimaginable. The logistics therefore in of ensuring that everyone is he/she claims to be is thus a nightmare. This operation is both complex and time consuming. It should thus be handled carefully because if handled wrongly could increase the occurrence of a security breach. The counters in Manchester airport are up to the task. The airport has 30 counters for verifying travel documents and thus reduce thee delays at this operational stage. Because of the many counters this process takes approximately two minutes. Waiting bay- The passengers then have to wait for approximately 20 minutes in the waiting bay, this is where the non passengers are left. The ticket is used to ensure only those travelling enter into the next section. The time taken here is because of saying goodbyes. The passengers enter into the center of the airport or the terminuses, while those coming to wave the goodbye go out through another section. Those going out get out through n exit door to avoid confusion. This is operation is helpful as it enables security to monitor movements. Eating/feeding- Tax free hotels inside the hotels ensure that those travelling eat what they want. The hotels offer all types of food. The area is a wireless networking gateway. The food is necessary for long distance travelers who do not want to take food in the plane. Luggage weighing- luggage needs to be weighed so as to determine the price one has to pay to check them. The luggage is weighed, after inspection. Again, in this activity standby police are present to arrest any person found with illegal objects or weapons. The suspect is then taken to the police station at the airport. The bags are checked and recorded electronically to avoid their loss. This is a vital part of operations as bags lost are as a direct result of mismanagement of operations. The entire process of luggage weighing and inspection takes about 10 minutes. Flight announcements- due to the intense activities of airports and large numbers of flights involved a comprehensive flight announcement system is paramount. Public address systems should be in every art of the airport to inform passengers of the incoming and outgoing flights. The gate numbers and directions to the gates are also given through the public address system. Manchester airport has an adequate address system, comprised of screens showing time of arrival for flights and time of departures. The announcements are in interval of 3 minutes and are communicated in the world three main languages, English, Spanish and French. This ensures the non speakers of English get the messages (Richard Chase, F. Robert Jacobs, Nicholas Aquilano 34). Boarding- the passengers stay in the boarding room for approximately 5 minutes, this is to enable the plane to turn and be organized. This is an equally crucial activity as it enables the airline to know the number of people who are late and therefore, take necessary action. The Manchester airport boasts of a mega boarding room which is not only luxurious but also large. After waiting for the plane to turn, the passengers then board the plane. The departure time should be strictly observed. If the weather is not appropriate and therefore the need for delay, the passengers are requested to move back to the airport and therefore vacate the boarding section. Also, in case of delays the information if the delays should be relayed to the flight announcements so as to inform the other passengers. Delays for more than a day are informed to the constituent carrier to avail accommodation for its passengers. The arrival of passengers in the airport necessitates proper planning. They are supposed to take different paths as compared to those departing. Therefore, an elaborate system is necessary to navigate the incoming passengers and to re- direct those in transit. In Manchester airport the arriving passengers arrive in the left wing of the airport, while the departing uses the right wing. This ensures that the two do no get mixed up. Provision of rental cars and guidance on how to use public transport is the responsibility of the airport (Heizer, Jay H.Render, Barry 67). It is in this light that, Manchester international offers companies offering rental cars offices in the airport. The staff also advises those not familiar with the country about the public transport system. Those who parked their cars and have returned also pay the fee and thus pick up their cars. Despite, the efficiency of Manchester airport, at hand there is still a lot to be done to further improve its efficiency. There is a need to increase the amount of technological input in the airport. For example to offload traffic in queue the airport should introduce mobile check in services and remote bags drop off facilities (Richard Chase, F. Robert Jacobs, Nicholas Aquilano 67). These facilities will immensely help to decongest the airport and increase surveillance and therefore, make operations more efficient. Technological advancement also is needed in the security arena. Increased use of surveillance cameras and use of X-rays would help in easing the security nightmare and consequently increased efficiency. Arrival and departure immigration cards should also be introduced so as to shorten the queues. For inbound flights cards may be distributed to passengers while onboard the plane. The airport should also include floor walkers so as to reduce the time taken between terminals. This in effect would reduce delay of passengers and thus, reduce time wasted in the airport. Customer service is a highly sensitive issue especially in airports; it is affected by human traffic. When traffic is high the customer service is poor and vice versa. However, this should not be the case the customer service should always be of its high to ensure maximum efficiency of the system. Manchester Airport should therefore, elevate the level of their customer service. With these changes, large crowds would be able to be supervised efficiently without necessarily compromising security. The queues would grammatically reduce and thus, delays. With the incorporation of mobile kiosks the amount of transactions taking place at the heart of the airport would reduce and thus, reduce the amount of human traffic in the counters. References Richard Chase, F. Robert Jacobs, Nicholas Aquilano, et al., (2001) Operations Management for Competitive Advantage. Heizer, Jay H.Render, Barry(2008) Operations management. Upper Saddle River, N.J. Pearson Prentice Hall Slack, Nigel.Chambers, Stuart.Johnston, Robert (2007) Operations management. Harlow: Financial Times Prentice Hall. McGregor J. (2006) theories of operational management. SAGE. http://airportprocesses.blogspot.com/ retrieved 8, December, 2011 Read More