- Implementation and use of European AIS Database (EAD) -

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1 Evaluation of EAD - Implementation and use of European AIS Database (EAD) - Djordje Samardžija, SMATSA Ltd., djordje.samardzija@smatsa.rs Acknowledged by Emilija Radovanović, SMATSA Ltd. Abstract: European AIS Database is the most advantage aeronautical information system in the world. For the development of the system all relevant AIS knowledge and experience have been used. The system offers electronic data processing and archiving, lower costs, and improved data quality and data security. These improvements should increase customer satisfaction and enable further developments in air traffic management in order to meet demand of air traffic. In this paper author describes migration and transition of one European AIS to EAD. Author also evaluates implementation and operation of EAD using balanced scorecard evaluation method. Key words: Aeronautical Information Service, Database, Implementation, Evaluation, Lessons learned 1. Aeronautical Information Service (AIS) The history of aeronautical information has begun at the very start of international aviation. According to 28 th article of the Convention on international Civil Aviation [1], known as Chicago convention signed in 1944, each contracting State undertakes actions to Collaborate in international measures to secure the publication of aeronautical maps and charts in accordance with standards which may be recommended or established from time to time pursuant to the Convention. During progress of aviation the importance of data and information has been rising. This Convention article latter evolved into two annexes to the Convention: Annex 4 Aeronautical Charts; and Annex 15 Aeronautical Information Service. These annexes are part of international standards and recommended practices (SARPs). According to Annex 15 each Contracting State shall provide an aeronautical information service. [2] AIS shall make available all aeronautical information necessary for the safety, regularity and efficiency of air navigation. An aeronautical information service shall receive and/or originate, collate or assemble, edit, format, publish/store and distribute aeronautical information/data. Aeronautical information shall be published as an Integrated Aeronautical Information Package. [2] Integrated Aeronautical Information Package consists of the following elements: Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP), including provision of amendment service repository of static (permanent) data which are necessary for air navigation; Supplements to the AIP information of temporary nature; NOTAM (Notice to Air Man) and Preflight Information Bulletin (PIB) short messages which provide information about current status of radio navigation aids, airspace, aerodromes and services etc.; Aeronautical Information Circular (AIC) information regarding State legislation, regulation and administration; and checklists and lists of valid NOTAM lists of valid and effective publications. 1

2 2. Aviation Data driven business Current flight procedures are still dependent on radio navigation aids which are located on Earth surface (VOR, DME, NDB, ILS etc.). However, this kind of flying could not support rapid development of demand for air traffic. A lot of aircraft in the same airspace means that they need more sophisticated flying instruments and equipment which will provide more accurate navigation data. The development of modern navigation equipment started decades ago and current achievements could answer the needs. But, the development of aeronautical data processes was not so successful. Role of aeronautical data has been changed significantly after introduction of area navigation, required navigation performances concept and computer navigation systems. Many of these systems require aeronautical data and information of much higher quality than the quality currently available. The systems cannot achieve their full performance without proper data. The main problem is lack of aeronautical data in digital format for enduse. Aeronautical data chain, shown at the Figure 1, comprises data flow from data originators (aerodromes, air navigation service providers, meteorology service etc.) through AIS and at the end users of data (airlines, data integrators, data packers) which need and prefer digital data. However, the core problem appears when tasks are performed by multiple actors based on manual processes with the existence of numerous transaction points. At each of these points data may leave a (semi) electronic (or even a fully manual) environment and are transferred in paper form (=media break) rather than in electronic form. [3] The solution for this problem is implementation of systems that can ensure process, transfer and use of data in digital form. The European AIS Database (EAD) is one of these systems. 3. European AIS Database Figure 1 Aeronautical Data Chain. Source: EUROCONTROL [4] Comparing definitions of AIS and information systems 1 one can conclude that AIS is one worldwide information system (IS). The purpose of this giant IS is to facilitate air navigation and transport of people and goods. The timely presence of accurate and complete information is essential in modern aviation and 1 Information system is a system for the collection, transmission, processing and storage of data, and the retrieval and the distribution of information to support particular function. [8] 2

3 safe and efficient navigation. However, a huge problem jeopardizes functioning of this important aviation IS. The international standards and recommended practice set highlevel requirements which States shall meet, but the development mostly depends on particular State (their ideas, resources, culture, etc.). This is the main reason for the current situation where we have unequal status of AIS in the world. On one side there are high-tech AIS systems in use (e.g. in Europe) and on the other, there is an absence of similar systems in developing countries). This is a concern because aviation does not recognize borders. Many efforts and resources are spent all around the world to resolve these inconsistencies and non-harmonisation issues. The EAD could be the answer what aviation has been looking for. The European Aeronautical Information Services Database (EAD) is a single, centralised repository of aeronautical information. It enhances quality of aeronautical data by using international standards and rigorous data-checking procedures, including in-depth validation and verification. [6] EAD contains following information: for ECAC 2 area: AIPs, NOTAMs and full set of static aeronautical data (aerodromes, navigation procedures, obstacles, airspaces, airways, navigation aids and general information on aviation organizations and authorities); and for the rest of the world: NOTAMs and minimum set of static data. Two types of clients use European AIS Database: data providers and data users. Data providers provide aeronautical data for EAD and use the database for distribution of their aeronautical publication and other information. The typical data provider is State AIS. Data providers could be connected with the database in two different ways: via ECITs (EAD Client Interface Terminal). Clients using ECIT directly populate EAD from their remote locations. system-to-system connection ESI (EAD System Interface). This solution is 2 ECAC European Civil Aviation Conference designed for clients which poses their own database and transfer data from that database to EAD. Data users (airlines, air navigation services providers, data integrators, civil aviation authorities, etc.) access the database and retrieve aeronautical publication or generate different useful reports. Before the existence of EAD, data users had to contact many different data providers, but now they get necessary data from one point. They can access database via ECIT or via Internet. Figure 2 EAD concept [10] EAD consists of several modules: SDO (Static Data Operations) application for communication with central database which contains permanent, i.e. static data; INO (International NOTAM Operations) application for distribution of temporal (dynamic) data in the form of short aeronautical messages; PAMS (Published AIP Management System) library of European AIPs; AIP tool for creation and publication of AIP in electronic form (pdf and html); DU (Data User) application for access to the EAD and retrieving data. One of major objectives for the implementation of European AIS Database is the improvement of the data quality. Data quality will continue to increase as all parties use standardised rules and procedures, implemented at system level, and ensure crossborder consistency. Additionally, other quality 3

4 improvement steps have been taken to ensure that errors, which were not detected during input, in the EAD are identified and rectified, thus enhancing the quality of the data contained in EAD. [6] EAD data are checked against Annex 15 requirements which ensure full consistency with user requirements and international standards and recommended practice. EAD is the right answer on a rising need for automation 3. EAD has been developed in cooperation of EUROCONTROL, its member-states and industry. Many experts from various European states participated in the process of development of EAD. These experts are still involved in the maintenance and improvement of the database. EAD is a pan-european project where many inconsistencies and nonharmonization issues have been discussed and overcome. For this purpose EAD project can be example of collaboration of different States and different practices, not only in aviation and IS field. 4. Evaluation of information systems Evaluation is systematic determination of merit, worth, and significance of something or someone using criteria against a set of standards. [7] According to Smithson and Hirschheim (1998) the evaluation of information system is the assessment or appraisal of the value, worth or usefulness of an information system. Traditionally, over the years the evaluation has been consisted of basic cost benefit analysis and feasibility studies in development phase and postimplementation evaluation. [8] Evaluation of activities, progress, effectiveness, finances and other important things in business provides feedback (the essential part of management), learning process, quality and risk assessments. Evaluation of information systems could be justification for huge investments, examination of implementation failures and could provide essential data for further development and feasibility studies for new systems. [5] For the successful evaluation some important items should be defined and assessed before beginning, like: object of evaluation hardware, software, people or their interaction; objective and purpose of evaluation problem resolving, project closure, collection of feedback, etc.; who conducts evaluation users, IT experts, government commission or external independent auditors; how is evaluation conducted methodology; period and frequency of evaluation before implementation (e.g. factory or site acceptance test), during development and implementation or during regular use. [5] For the purpose of this paper the balanced scorecard evaluation concept will be used. The balanced scorecard is a set of measures that gives top managers a fast but comprehensive view of the business. The balanced scorecard includes financial measures that tell the results of actions already taken. And it complements the financial measures with operational measures on customer satisfaction, internal processes, and the organization s innovation and improvement activities. [9] In their original work Kaplan and Norton compare balanced scorecard with dials and indicators in an airplane cockpit. The pilots need detailed information about many aspects of the flight. Similar, managers have to be able to view performance in several areas simultaneously. [9] 3 The need for automation is increasing because the continuous growth in quantity of information which are needed by modern navigation systems onboard or air traffic management systems on-ground. 4

5 Figure 3 Balanced scorecard links performance measures [9] 5. Implementation of EAD in AIS Serbia and Montenegro In this section of the paper the implementation of European AIS Database in AIS Serbia and Montenegro will be presented. Implementation of EAD started with negotiation with EUROCONTROL on Migration and transition plan and Implementation plan in AIS Serbia and Montenegro planned to connect to the database via ECITs which should be located at important sites (aerodromes, area control centre, publication office and NOTAM office) and to migrate to all EAD modules (see page 3). After successful definition of these plans one, on first sight simple, problem (previously not anticipated as a potential risk) stopped implementation for more than three years. Decision on hardware, software and training procurements had already been made when problem about network connection between local terminals and servers occurred. In 2008 process started again and by the end of that year AIS Serbia and Montenegro migrated on four of five modules (SDO, PAMS, INO and DU; electronic AIP migration on-going). 6. Lessons learned during implementation process Comprehensive awareness campaign should be conducted before the start of implementation. During implementation process many units had to cooperate: AIS, Telecommunications, IT, legal department, human resources, financial and procurement departments. Naturally, AIS was the most interested actor in implementation of EAD. But some of implementation tasks AIS could not process on their own. The problem happened when some of other units should be 5

6 involved. Some of legal or financial experts were not quite familiar with EAD and its requirements and prerequisites and were not able to successfully participate in implementation process. The main drawback was that these experts had not been properly aware about all relevant issues. This caused that some tasks were delayed and on the other hand some of them had to be re-done. Resistance to a change in ATM system could be legitimate (sometimes). The Air Traffic Management (ATM) is a system where every change should be subject of detailed analysis and safety case. Despite these analyses some changes are hard to implement because of employees` resistance. This has been the case in AIS Serbia and Montenegro migration process. One terminal has been planned to be installed in Area Control Centre. The most important benefit of so installed terminal is that duty manager and other air traffic control officers (ATCO) can access the database and retrieve up-to-date information on the airspace which they monitor and control as well as on the neighbouring areas. ATCOs are highly competent officers which are in charge to ensure safe, regular and expeditious air traffic. They work in very complex environment, with many operational systems and subsystems, and they are trained several years before they start with job. Also they are obliged to attend refresh courses which are organized on regular basis. The last thing what they need is introduction of new system when everything runs smoothly. Generally, ATCOs are not staff who will easily accept any change in the environment where they work. This is something which had to be taken into account before implementation process started and appropriate awareness campaign among ATCOs and other ATM employees. Implementation of the simplest solution could be crucial step forward. In the section 5 of this paper one outage of implementation process was mentioned. At that time there were two possible solutions for connection between local terminals (ECIT) and database server: network rented from a major international telecommunication company or a satellite connection. Due to unavailability of rented network in Serbia and Montenegro at that time the satellite connection solution was chosen. For installation of satellite antenna AIS Serbia and Montenegro had to get permission to use special frequency from State telecommunication agency. The State bureaucracy showed again how it can be slow and inefficient. More than three years were lost in pointless communication between State telecommunication agency and AIS Serbia and Montenegro. Finally, EUROCONTROL proposed the simplest, but the most appropriate solution virtual private network through Internet. This solution was not even discussed in the beginning because the other two were some kind of standard in Europe. After implementation of the VPN Internet solution everything started to go easy. Modules have been implemented one by one. Instead of implementing this so obvious solution, choice of a exotic network connections resulted in three years delay. 7. EAD balanced scorecard In this section the balanced scorecard evaluation of EAD will be given. The system will be observed from four perspectives: what is financial impact of EAD (costs of implementation and running costs), customer requirements (what does EAD implementation bring to AIS customers), how has EAD changed AIS business and what are the conclusions which could be used for further implementations and developments? 6

7 FINANCIAL PERSPECTIVE Implementation cost Lower running costs CUSTOMER PERSPECTIVE Improved data quality Better availability of products Competitive advantage INTERNAL BUSINESS PERSPECTIVE Data process in electronic environment Improved security Higher workload INOVATION & LEARNING PERSPECTIVE New skills and competencies of employees Technological break through Figure 4 Balanced scorecard evaluation of EAD Financial perspective Implementation cost. Before the implementation of European AIS Database only one unit within AIS Serbia and Costumer perspective Montenegro has had several internal working databases populated with geospatial data. These databases have been used for chart design. However, the quantity of data and information was increasing and the need for one database which will include all static data became obvious. This happened in the right time implementation of EAD started all around Europe. There were two options: to develop its own database or to join this pan- European activity and implement off the shelf product. At that time EAD activity was completely defined: product, service providing, network, backup, maintenance and development procedures. Implementation of EAD was cheaper solution than to develop own database which would meet both, ICAO requirements and AICM/AIXM 4 specification. Lower running costs. EAD increases flexibility of production and service providing. The eaip module allow to the AIS to create new product electronic Aeronautical Information Publication. Currently, in the AIS Serbia and Montenegro, the AIP is produced only in paper form. This type of production requires a lot of preparation and checks before the printing process even starts. Also, paper version has high costs for printing material (including paper) and distribution costs (post or courier delivery) could be decreased by delivering the electronic version on CD or via Internet. Apart 4 AICM Aeronautical Information Conceptual Model AIXM Aeronautical Information Exchange Model this, the new way of distribution is much more environment friendly because there is no need for paper. Improved data quality. EAD is made to meet ICAO and other industrial standards for aeronautical data. The database has its own automatic checking procedures which check format, resolution, integrity, completeness and in some cases accuracy of inserted data. The EAD service provider conducts regular checks of random samples. These checks ensure that data quality requirements will be met. Beside this, essential meta-data (who, when, what, why) about activities on database are kept. This allows AIS to fulfil traceability requirements. Better availability of products. As already mentioned, through EAD AIS products are available in electronic form, too. This is very important for AIS users because: they will be able to retrieve aeronautical information in electronic form which will make easier further data process and use; and with the worldwide presence of Internet users will be able to access to the aeronautical database from every location on the world. Competitive advantage. AIS Serbia and Montenegro was in a way forced to migrate its operations on EAD, because majority of European AIS providers have already established their own databases or they migrated on EAD. From the aspect of electronic products provision, AIS Serbia and Montenegro was behind other AIS service providers. But with this implementation AIS has come back. 7

8 Internal business perspective Data process in electronic environment. One of main cause of errors in aeronautical data process is manual data manipulation. Manual work is highly dependent on human factors: awareness, competence, experience, motivation, work conditions and current workload. All this factors can cause errors. Therefore, ICAO recommends gradual implementation of automation in data processing [2]. EAD offers automation, especially in data transfer. Improved security. To operate on EAD AIS staff have to access the system using unique user name and password combination. By this mean unauthorized change of data is not possible. This should increase traceability, data integrity and confidence in data. Higher workload. Higher workload is temporal consequence of partial migration on all EAD modules. Currently, data operators populate both, SDO database and.doc files which are designed for paper version of AIP. Practically, the same data are inserted twice. This is temporary and will be solved by migration on electronic AIP module which should, on contrary, decrease workload of AIS staff responsible for AIP production. Innovation and learning perspective New skills and competencies of employees. During implementation process many of AIS staff have obtained new skills and competencies: IT knowledge For successful specification process and procurement of hardware, software and network, AIS staff analysed, investigated and evaluated several options. Firstly, they had to make good preparation for these tasks. Their IT knowledge has been enhanced by this kind of work. Technology oriented thinking Manual processes and work on ECIT are similar from higher perspective, but they need different way of observing tasks, different preparation and different approach. For work with ECIT and population of SDO, one must change way of thinking to adopt on the structure of the database. AICM/AIXM AIS staff became familiar with AICM/AIXM models. This is very important if we keep in mind that these models are essential in further development of worldwide AIS system. Project management During implementation process project team was working together with EUROCONTROL staff. The EUROCONTROL staff transferred a lot of knowledge about project management to AIS project manager and team members. This knowledge and lessons learned (see Section 6) form very useful basis which can be used for conducting projects in the future. Technological break trough. For decades many of the processes in AIS Serbia and Montenegro have been manually performed with very low use of computing and IT. The implementation and use of EAD could finish with practice of doubt in computers and computer systems. This has already been proved with successive implementation of document management system. 8. Conclusion The migration on EAD is one of the most important steps in the history of AIS Serbia and Montenegro. After four years long implementation process AIS Serbia and Montenegro started to use this state-of-the-art system. Like many other IS implementation, this was not ideal process, too. EUROCONTROL and AIS Serbia and Montenegro staff experienced many difficulties which were arisen before or during implementation process. By using this system AIS Serbia and Montenegro improves aeronautical data quality and availability which increases customer satisfaction. EAD operations will cut operation costs of AIS Serbia and Montenegro. The implementation of EAD system established knowledge database in AIS Serbia and Montenegro which can be used in further developments. This new knowledge relates to project management and new IT and AIS skills and competences. As EAD continues to evolve and to be upgraded, the human skills within AIS Serbia and Montenegro continue to be improved. 8

9 References: [1] ICAO Doc 7300, Convention on International Civil Aviation, 9 th edition, 2006 [2] ICAO Annex 15, Aeronautical Information Service, 12 th edition, 2004 [3] EUROCONTROL DAP/NET/CHAIN/007, CHAIN Overview, 2005 [4] EUROCONTROL, CHAIN Activity Overview, (presentation held during CHAIN Awareness campaign) 2006 [5] Smithson, Information Systems for Managers, course held at the University of New York in Belgrade (UNYB), March 2009 [6] April 2009 [7] April 2009 [8] Smithson and Hirschheim (1998), Analysing information systems evaluation: another look at an old problem, European Journal of Information Systems 7, [9] Kaplan and Norton (1992), The Balanced Scorecard Measures that Drive Performance, Harvard Business Review jan-feb, [10] EUROCONTROL, EAD commercial brochures,