As part of its "Connect 2020" strategic plan, Groupe ADP is deploying its capacity for innovation through a comprehensive and ambitious programme, “Innovation Hub", that has been allocated a budget of €16 million.
Groupe ADP is placing an exceptional area, expertise, visibility and financing capacity at the disposal of innovative businesses. The "Innovation Hub" programme embodies this challenge of transformation and competitiveness by putting into perspective the open innovation approach undertaken since 2010. This approach inspired the implementation of projects such as automated baggage drop-off, the transport comparison service, and the mobile software solution PRIMA, which enables frontline staff to better welcome and inform passengers
According to Edward Arkwright, Deputy CEO of Groupe ADP: "The launching of the 'Innovation Hub’ programme meets the twofold challenge of transformation and competitiveness. Our holistic approach covers multiple fields of application, from the smart airport to new modes of transport, from robotics to CSR. Our airports are real living laboratories. The innovations developed are rolled out across the Paris airports and soon internationally, through our network of airports."
"Innovation Hub" is based on three complementary drivers: OPEN, CONNECT and INVEST
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OPEN: ensuring the culture of innovation is spread by means of conferences, immersion programmes, challenges. Many ways to stimulate creativity and the exploration of new areas.
In particular, by setting up a digital passport, we have been able to raise awareness about the challenges of digital transformation among more than 1,200 Groupe ADP employees. More targeted actions enable immersion in the Paris innovation ecosystem (incubators, fab lab, etc.), technological showroom spaces and learning expeditions are rolled out to enable employees to understand the new trends and matters arising from the digital economy.
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CONNECT: a programme dedicated to young innovative businesses that provides support, gives visibility and accelerates the implementation of experimental projects. Groupe ADP has a portfolio of some fifteen projects a year based on three categories: The smart airport, new modes of transport and robotics. This programme is based on a partnership approach with partner incubators/accelerators to cover the whole value chain of airport activities: tourism with the "Welcome City Lab", engineering and property with "Impulse Labs", aeronautics with "Starburst" and, more recently, Groupe ADP has become a founding member of the "Nec Mergitur" security/safety innovation platform, Hub One, a subsidiary of Groupe ADP has, for its part, joined the international accelerator "Alacrité", which has just set up in France.Among the projects being trialled are the customisation of passenger services using chatbot technology, and the use of big data and artificial intelligence to optimise the operation of runways and industrial baggage-sorting systems.
Automated valet parking service, the fruit of a partnership-based approach between Groupe ADP and the start-up Stanley-Robotics Paris Aéroport is launching an automated valet parking service, which now enables passengers to save time when parking their vehicle. Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport thus becomes the first French airport to introduce such a system. |
- INVEST: a dedicated internal investment-fund-style budget, with a budget of €16 million, to support the financing needs of start-ups, in keeping with co-development. This plan is completed by subscriptions to external funds (X-Ange, Capital 2, Cathay Innovation, etc.), which provide expertise and qualified sourcing at global level. Groupe ADP has thus been able to acquire a minority stake in the innovative company "PACIFA DECISION" in order to co-develop a solution for monitoring the operation of a terminal in real time through a 3D, ergonomic, on-the-go interface. This solution is currently being rolled out.
"Innovation Hub", a dedicated programme and space
"Innovation Hub" is also the name of a quirky 300-plus sq.m space located in the heart of the new Groupe ADP head office at Paris-Charles de Gaulle.
This open, hybrid space showcases the solutions proposed by innovative businesses, hosts events and fosters co-development between the Groupe ADP teams and its external ecosystem.
Groupe ADP aims to gradually develop this type of space, fostering openness, new ways of working and the creation of innovative ecosystems within its different partner airports as part of its international strategy.
"Play Your Airport"
A new global innovation challenge to imagine the airport of the future As part of its "Innovation Hub” programme, Groupe ADP is organizing an innovation challenge called "Play Your Airport". This challenge is open to start-ups, students, the general public, as well as to Groupe ADP employees. The aim is to imagine what airports will look like in the future in areas as varied as accessibility, services, security, customer service, etc.
This competition calls on collective intelligence and will enable the global monitoring of innovations in the airport world, stimulate intrapreneurship with employees and nurture studies for new Groupe ADP infrastructures, like the Terminal 4 project at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport. The winning projects will be supported and financed with a view to being trialled. The challenge will take place between May and December 2017 |