Yves Crespel is the group communication director of Alvest, a group dedicated to the design, manufacture and distribution of technical products for the aviation industry, including aviation ground support equipment, spare parts and services. One of the GSE suppliers under its wing is TLD, and Crespel spoke to Airside at the IAGSE Expo about some of the major trends that he and TLD have identified in the GSE market, and how the company is leading the way in meeting rapidly changing customer requirements
Crespel points to three particular trends shaping the GSE sector, and TLD as a result. The first of them is the move towards more environmentally friendly GSE. The GSE sector is following the car industry, though it is some years behind, he opines, with its transition towards electric vehicles being the norm rather than the exception becoming pretty much irresistible.
The move towards electric GSE may still be some way behind the advances seen in the motor industry, but it is following the same trends, he advises. As for TLD, “We have developed our GSE to meet the needs of this evolving market.”
A second trend concerns operators seeking to extend the life of their GSE units through such measures as fleet use optimisation and proactive maintenance. Such thinking has led operators to seek the data that can be provided by telematics.
What’s more, the pooling of GSE that is possibly becoming more common amongst operators at many airports around the world is also driving the need towards GSE being fitted with telematic track and traces systems, for all sorts of reasons (not least to see who is responsible when something goes wrong, but more prosaically to determine different levels of use amongst handlers, as well as to identify where and how each ground service provider uses its GSE).
In fact, the day might come in the not too distant future at which GSE is used ‘by the hour’, Crespel suggests, as operators seek to maximise the value of their GSE use.
The third trend he identifies is the move towards autonomous vehicles. TLD is taking a leading role in the development of autonomous GSE technology, as evidenced by its role in the TractEasy driverless baggage tractor currently undergoing development.
TractEasy is the result of collaboration between TLD and EasyMile of Toulouse, France. The jointly developed vehicle is an autonomous version of TLD’s Jet-16 electric baggage tractor; it is now being used by a “major US airline at a large airport in the US”, demonstrating its capability and – perhaps – what the ramp of the future might look like.
TractEasy will enable both indoor and outdoor driverless operations in full compliance with airport regulations, but most importantly without the need for extra infrastructure. It certainly looks like being only the first of many models of driverless autonomous vehicle offered by TLD.
Peugeot is also currently testing TractEasy for moving parts to car production lines. With a top speed of 25km/h, it is designed to be safer than any vehicle driven by a human. It of course has anti-obstacle detection features and, because it is driverless, could offer significant savings on operating costs.
In a separate press release celebrating the deployment of a TractEasy unit in the US, TLD noted: “It is great to finally reveal our autonomous baggage and industrial tractor. With this strategic partnership with EasyMile at TLD we’re fully into the deployment phase, with testing done in both airport and industrial environments.”
Taxibot
Another GSE technological step-change that TLD has been closely involved in is shown in the Taxibot tow tractor. Taxibot is a semi-robotic towbarless aircraft tractor that is controlled from an aircraft’s flight deck by the pilot. Taxiing with engines off saves money and lessens emissions, while a taxiing speed of 23 knots is quite possible.
TLD and its partners recently concluded live Taxibot tests at Germany’s Frankfurt Airport – all of which went extremely well, TLD affirms. Trials are now being conducted in India, and are likely to continue for at least a year.
India represents a potentially very important market for Taxibot, and other technology like it, TLD suggests. New-build greenfield airports could easily welcome Taxibot in a way that existing congested and cramped major European hubs, for example, might not. Hence China, too, may also be an important future market for the system, TLD argues.
