Operational excellence ambition
London Gatwick Airport is one of the UK’s busiest and most well-connected international airports, located 27 miles south of London. Despite operating with only one runway, it has long ranked among the most visited airports in the country. Its excellent transport links allow passengers to reach central London quickly and easily. With over 46 million passengers annually and a £2.3 billion asset base, Gatwick is striving to become London’s airport of choice by delivering great service every day, continuously improving, and operating as one cohesive team. This ambition extends to all employees, including the maintenance teams, whose role in ensuring smooth, reliable operations is more crucial than ever.
Significant asset management challenges
Prior to the implementation of Ultimo's EAM solutions, London Gatwick faced several key asset management issues due to outdated, unreliable and disconnected systems:
• Outdated systems: Their previous Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) system was no longer fit for purpose, running on unsupported hardware with limited vendor support, making it unreliable for modern operations.
• Data integrity issues: Asset data was inconsistent and duplicated, undermining the reliability of trend analysis and performance reporting.
• Disjointed systems: The lack of integration between the EAM system and the Document Management System (DMS) was causing discrepancies between asset construction and maintenance activities.
The start of the Asset Data Platform project
To resolve these issues, London Gatwick launched the Asset Data Platform (ADP) project. The implementation of Ultimo's EAM solution was a key component of the ADP project, aiming to manage the entire asset lifecycle from initiation to decommissioning.
The three main goals of the Ultimo EAM’s implementation were to:
• Rationalize and cleanse data: Update and clean asset data to ensure consistent, high-quality asset records.
• Modernize systems: Replace outdated EAM and DMS systems with modern, scalable, and flexible/configurable solutions.
• Integrate systems end-to-end: Facilitate seamless transitions from asset creation to operation and maintenance, enabling seamless information sharing across departments.
Ultimo’s EAM platform was selected for its configurability and long-term adaptability.
Improved performance and availability of assets
With the adoption of Ultimo’s EAM, London Gatwick achieved several operational improvements:
• Improved data integrity: Accurate and reliable data now enables effective trend analysis and better decision-making.
• Better collaboration: Integrated systems allow for more effective cooperation between construction and maintenance teams, bridging a longstanding gap.
• Lifecycle insights: The team now has visibility into asset creation, operations, maintenance, and eventual decommissioning. Teams can now manage and track asset performance across all lifecycle stages.
• Airdat integration: Ultimo was integrated with Airdat to automatically verify that contractors and permit validators are qualified, based on synced qualification data—dramatically reducing manual checks and administrative overhead.
“We can now ensure that our assets are created, managed, operated, maintained and replaced to give the best performance.”
The Future for London Gatwick Airport
London Gatwick’s long-term strategy involves leveraging the Ultimo EAM platform to transition from reactive to proactive and eventually predictive maintenance. The platform forms the backbone for all their ongoing digital transformation initiatives. These efforts will support their ongoing commitment to safety, compliance and sustainability, while always striving for excellence and fostering teamwork.
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