The Products - Richard N. Best Associates
   



      
 
Harrisburg International Airport's Long Term Parking Plaza

Harrisburg International Airport:



Upgrade and Replacement of Revenue Control System for Susquehanna Area Regional Airport Authority at Harrisburg International Airport

[Note: Richard N. Best Associates earned the Pennsylvania Parking Association's 2012 Parking Design and Innovation Award for this project.]

In 2011, Susquehanna Area Regional Airport Authority (SARAA) at Harrisburg International Airport (HIA) was experiencing problems with its existing parking operation. Not only was the system unreliable, threatening the airport's largest income stream, it also failed to support innovative upgrades. In particular, the antiquated parking equipment was standing in the way of expanding a customer loyalty program to include parking rewards, a strategic necessity for HIA to compete effectively with major airports in the region.

Timothy J. Edwards, executive director of HIA, summarized the issue at hand: "Basically, the system would not allow the upgrades we needed to make, so we decided to purchase a brand new system," he said. "We needed to make the investment if we were to continue to grow as a regional transportation center. Therefore the decision was made quite quickly – it’s a very high priority."

"We had to update the technology," said Edwards, "to remain competitive in a really competitive business."

    
   

HIA has earned national recognition for its loyalty programs. In a segment titled "Cash in on Airport Incentive Perks," which aired on the Today Show on January 2, 2012, Sara Spagnolo of Travel + Leisure highlighted innovations at HIA: "At Harrisburg International Airport in Pennsylvania, not only will members be offered access to the lounge itself, but my favorite perk is that they're offered access to the front of the line for the security checkpoint, so that of course saves time for a traveler who's looking to get out quickly and easily...These small regional airports are offering the most innovative and unique programs."

The SARAA leadership knew that, in order to keep their edge, they had to extend their loyalty program to include perks for frequent parking customers, but the existing parking technology was holding them back. "We had to update the technology," said Edwards, "to remain competitive in a really competitive business."

In choosing Richard N. Best Associates, SARAA gained access to cutting-edge technology from a company willing to install an entirely new system without disrupting the customer experience or the airport's primary revenue stream. Furthermore, said Edwards, SARAA knew that ongoing support from Best would "meet or exceed our needs."

   

"It was a challenge, and certainly a success," said Jeffrey M. Best, vice president, Richard N. Best Associates. "Harrisburg International Airport operates 24 hours per day, seven days a week. We needed to replace all systems and equipment while keeping the existing system fully operational throughout the process."

   

The Best Challenge

Major goals of the project were to increase parking and revenue control system flexibility, ensure reliability, and incorporate new capabilities in order to improve and expand services. This case study highlights how Best applied a strategic approach to the project, together with elements of creative ingenuity to meet specific project goals and exceed expectations.

RNB knew it would be a challenging project from the start. Not only was there an ambitious timetable, construction had to proceed with care to ensure smooth customer service, safeguarding SARAA's primary revenue stream. Each parking facility needed to remain operational throughout construction, and old and new revenue control systems needed to run side-by-side to meet the criteria. "It was a challenge, and certainly a success," said Jeffrey M. Best, vice president, Richard N. Best Associates. "Harrisburg International Airport operates 24 hours per day, seven days a week. We needed to replace all systems and equipment while keeping the existing system fully operational throughout the process."

Project Details

Richard N. Best Associates upgraded the main parking garage, the long-term parking lot, the daily/employee lot, the administration lot, and the ground transportation hub. Installation began October 25, 2011 and was completed on May 3, 2012.

      
Entrance to Multi-Modal Transportation Facility
 
   
 
Ground Transportation Exit
 
   

The complete overhaul included installation of parking gates and automatic pay stations, along with sophisticated facility management software. As part of the contract, RNB will continue to provide training, preventive maintenance and rapid on-site service to keep the new systems at peak operating performance.

Best partnered with Federal APD and other manufacturers to source everything from facility software to parking gates, automatic pay stations and cashier terminals, fee computers and an Automatic Vehicle Identification (AVI) system.

Federal APD supplied cutting-edge parking equipment for the project. MN Technologies, a Federal APD Software Resource Partner, provided an Xpress PARC Frequent Parker system, TransCore manufactured the AVI system, and Commend International provided the IP Intercom system. In total, project upgrades outfitted 24 lanes of equipment. A Helix ramp in the Multi-Modal Transportation Facility (MMTF) includes 13 gates with an automatic count system for each level.

Entrance lanes, including the MMTF and the Long Term Economy Lot, were all supplied with Universal One Verifier Credit Card Ticket Dispensers with HID Card Readers. Universal One Exit Verifiers with HID Card Readers were installed in a nested area on the 4th floor of the Garage Helix. The Employee and Administration Lots were supplied with HID Card Readers and G90 CD Parking Barrier Gates. Entrance and exit gates from the Taxi Staging Area and the Ground Transportation Curbside/Pick Up Area utilize TransCore AVI Readers.

Automatic Cashier Terminals with Card Readers were installed at exit lanes from the MMTF and the Long Term Economy Lot. Additional lanes equipped with Auditor PowerPad4 Fee Computers with Card

Readers were placed at the MMTF and the Long Term Economy Lot. The Long Term Economy Lot also included an exit lane with a Bus Lane Card Reader. All of these lanes included G90 CD Parking Barrier Gates. A Commend intercom server and software was installed with multiple master stations and sub-stations throughout the facilities.

RNB installed Automatic Pay Stations in Baggage Claim and on the Skybridge. Office equipment included the Facility Management System Server and three consoles along with one Auditor PowerPad4 Fee Computer, a License Plate Inventory System, and software to manage the Xpress PARC frequent parker system and the Ground Transportation Area.

The Best Strategy

    
 
Multi-Modal Transportation Facility Exit Plaza

Maintaining service continuity for all airport parking systems operating during the construction phase required innovative planning and implementation on the part of Richard N. Best Associates.

The typical shutdown of facilities during removal and installation of a parking revenue system was not an option; therefore, all five parking facilities were kept in service, and both old and new technology systems ran parallel to one another. Whenever a new piece of hardware was installed, it was ready for operational use on the same day.

Construction was approached in eight stages:

  1. Garage Helix – RNB removed and installed 13 gates and signage while still in use by traffic. Communication and phone wiring was pulled to all locations within the helix (four levels).
  2. Surface Lots – Employee Lot, Administration Lot and Taxi Staging; no operations curtailed.
  3. Multi-Modal Transportation Facility Garage with two entrances and four exits – RNB shut down just one lane at a time and operated old and new ticketing systems in parallel.
  4. Ground Transportation Curbside/Pick Up with one entrance and two exits – All lanes remained in operation during demolition and reconstruction.
  5. Long Term Parking with three entrances and four exits – Again, RNB shut down just one lane at a time and operated the new equipment side-by-side with the old equipment.
  6. Terminal Pay-on-Foot Stations – During this operation the old pay-on-foots no longer operated.
  7. Ground Transportation Staging and Ground Transportation Curbside/Pick Up – New software package installed.
  8. Xpress PARC – New software package installed.

One-by-one, lanes were closed to remove old equipment and install the new system. As each new lane device was installed and configured, RNB tested connectivity and operations. Simultaneously, RNB trained facility staff to operate the new lanes as they were brought online.

During the last week of October 2011, RNB removed old equipment, ran new communications wire, installed new hardware and terminated all connections in the Helix ramps. Automatic lot counts enabled the ramp gates to be automatically raised and lowered, based on available parking capacity on each floor.

Between November 2011 and January 2012, all hardware was replaced, with each unit rewired, tested and put into service on the same day of replacement. This allowed old and new operations to run side-by-side, meeting heavy customer demand during three holiday periods, and protecting both the customer experience and SARAA's parking revenues.

SARAA Realizes Its Goals

The facility overhaul by Richard N. Best Associates permitted SARAA to realize its parking goals by providing innovative management capabilities, loyalty program enhancements, an advanced frequent parker system and the ability to add more features, functions and customer benefits as their strategies evolve.

The facility overhaul by Richard N. Best Associates permitted SARAA to realize its parking goals by providing innovative management capabilities, loyalty program enhancements, an advanced frequent parker system and the ability to add more features, functions and customer benefits as their strategies evolve.

    
   

The new parking management system allows each machine in the system to run on or off-line. Because each machine operates independently, the system collects and analyzes data in ways other systems cannot, affording the operations manager greater flexibility to find hidden revenue improvements by analyzing reports from multiple angles. The system also reduces equipment downtime because individual machines continue to operate if the network goes down temporarily.

The improvements and new equipment also enhance and expand the ability of SARAA and Harrisburg International Airport (HIA) to draw more regional travelers by offering programs that feature specific benefits to regular customers, such as the loyalty program for frequent parkers. With software such as Xpress PARC, RNB is helping HIA achieve its loyalty program goals.

      
Pay Station in Baggage Claim Area

Xpress PARC software, installed by RNB in Stage 8, is an efficient Frequent Parker System which allows repeat parking patrons access and egress to HIA parking facilities by using a PPUC (pay per use credential) at entrance and exit lanes. Frequent customers simply skip the exit booth or Pay in Lane machine; the system emails parking patrons a receipt for each transaction. Xpress PARC, fully and seamlessly integrated into the Federal APD ScanNet Central Management Software, provides HIA with many options and add-ons. HIA is already using a coupon feature programmed into the ScanNet software, another customer benefit provided by the parking revenue control equipment.

Looking to the future, HIA plans to add more features, functions and benefits to their existing rewards program. One value-added benefit in the planning stage is an online chart of Real-Time Parking Availability – using a computer or smart phone, parking patrons can find the best possible parking space by accessing a continuously updated graphic that details the status of each lot.

Overall, this case study of the parking facility overhaul at HIA exemplifies how vitally important it can be to pursue strategic investments at the right time. Furthermore, it highlights the importance choosing the best contractor to design and implement improvements, as well as provide ongoing support for the duration of the transition.

 

 
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