While the COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected the aviation industry, Vancouver Airport Authority, the organization that manages 聽(YVR), has recognized the crisis as an opportunity to rethink its operations.
As the airport moves forward in a post-pandemic world, its renewed focus is to become the region鈥檚 鈥攕trengthening the core of its operations, organization and finances, and reimagining its role in the economic recovery of our region.
By its nature, YVR is a gateway to and from destinations around the world. But what if the airport was also an access point for learning, for leading innovations in sectors in and outside of aviation, and for engaging with sa国际传媒鈥檚 business community in new ways?
This is YVR鈥檚 vision for Gateway to the New Economy.
At the core of this vision, YVR is establishing the Innovation Hub @ YVR, a centre for excellence to spur innovation and drive growth across our region. The Innovation Hub @ YVR will allow the airport to look beyond its traditional focus on solutions for passenger processing and broaden it to support and address a wider range of regional challenges.
鈥淎s we look to the future in a post-COVD world, we see a real opportunity to drive innovation for the whole region,鈥� YVR鈥檚 VP, Innovation and Chief Information Officer Lynette DuJohn explains.
鈥淚n many ways, an airport is a city unto itself. People are working and travelling and some are just visiting to experience the amenities we offer. Against this backdrop, we can test and trial new technology for a wide variety of applications, making YVR an ideal proving ground to find solutions for the challenges of today and beyond. And if we can create solutions here, chances are those innovations can be applied at other airports, within our community or even for other industries around the world.鈥�
Designed in the spirit of y蓹 tat蓹l虝t蓹l虝鈥� [pronounced yuhtahtulltall], which translates to 鈥渓earning together鈥� in the language spoken by Musqueam, the Innovation Hub @ YVR will leverage partnerships to drive innovation across the region. While it鈥檚 still early in the planning phase, a number of partners are already on board to bring the airport鈥檚 centre for excellence to life.
This includes building on YVR鈥檚 talent agreement with Musqueam to provide training and development opportunities as well as partnering with BCIT to use the airport as a living lab for its Centre for Digital Transformation (C4DT) Internet of Things program. The Internet of Things, or IoT, refers to physical devices that are connected to the internet, collecting and sharing information. Leveraging sensors at YVR will add a layer of digital intelligence to processes and allow for the sharing of real-time data.
鈥淧reviously, we were very narrowly focussed on the airport experience in terms of innovation. That鈥檚 still important to us, but now we鈥檙e expanding the idea that innovation is about the region as a whole and is essential to ensuring businesses across sa国际传媒 are positioned to thrive.鈥�
This also means keeping the airport鈥檚 broader goals top of mind when developing concepts, including generating ideas that will help YVR meet its climate targets and make the airport more accessible for people with disabilities.聽
Other partnerships under the Innovation Hub @ YVR include Unity Technologies, a leading real-time 3D development creator, and Vancouver-based GeoSim Cities, experts in large-scale precision 3D modelling, who together are developing the airport鈥檚 Digital Twin technology.
YVR鈥檚 Digital Twin is exactly what it sounds like 鈥� a virtual, real-time interactive representation of YVR鈥檚 terminal, airfield, and Sea Island Lands鈥攁nd it will be the digital learning ground for the centre for excellence.
Not only will YVR鈥檚 鈥渢win鈥� enable the airport to accelerate its understanding of complex systems, explore hypothetical changes, and enable faster and better decision-making, but it will also help the airport build new partnerships and contribute to the collective economic recovery.
Another key partner is Vanderlande, a global leader in material handling and logistics automation. Vanderlande will be using YVR as its base to develop innovative design-build solutions for the baggage handling systems for use across its worldwide operations.
鈥淲hat we鈥檝e seen throughout COVID is that the use of technology has accelerated. The airport has historically focused on building new facilities in response to growth, but now is the time to use technology to improve our passengers experiences, lower our carbon footprint and become more operationally efficient, all though technology and innovation鈥� DuJohn says. 鈥淲e鈥檙e now focusing more on clicks rather than bricks.鈥�
YVR鈥檚 Centre for Excellence will kick off in May, with the goal of creating meaningful partnerships and sustainable solutions that will benefit people, the community, and the local economy.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not just an idea incubator. We鈥檙e broader than that. We want to see our innovations come to reality,鈥� DuJohn says. 鈥淥ur success will be measured by people using our innovations in their day to day lives.鈥�
YVR will share more information on the Centre of Excellence in the weeks ahead. Learn more about YVR鈥檚 .
