New Software Helps Airports and Airlines Minimize Delays

Ascent Technology Inc has introduced the comprehensive SmartAirport Operations Center, a new generation of software solutions for airports and airlines sold under the SmartAirport Operations Center brand.

"Each product suite is a one-stop shop for a major problem, and has a benefit that flows directly to the bottom line, through efficient use of human and physical resources and through higher passenger satisfaction ratings" says Windler L. Schweer, Ascent's vice president of sales and marketing. "The rearrangement of Ascent's products into four product suites puts tremendous power into the hands of Ascent's airport and airline customers."

Four product suites now fall under the SmartAirport Operations Center umbrella. The SmartAirport Schedule Builder product suite simplifies the creation, editing, and maintenance of the flight schedules; the SmartAirport Capacity Analyzer suite determines the impact of changes in flight schedules and airport resources on airport operations; the SmartAirport Operations Manager suite supports the planning and real-time management of key airport resources such as gates, stands, remote parking positions, check-in counters, and baggage belts; and the SmartAirport Personnel Allocator allocates passenger-service and ramp-service personnel, generating long-term requirements, assigning and updating employee rosters, and responding to contingencies on the day of operations.

"It is easy to see why our SmartAirport Operations Center products bring a lot of relief to airport and airline managers." says Karen A. Prendergast, Ascent's president. "These days, it seems like every traveler has a horror story, because airport and airline resources are over stressed. Fortunately, our products are relieving a lot of that stress through the efficient use of resources for popular flights," explained Prendergast, pointing out that Ascent's SmartAirport Operations Center is built on proven technology. The SmartAirport Operations Center products support more than 30,000 arrivals and departures daily.

About Ascent

A spin-off of the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Ascent Technology was founded in 1986 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. The company specializes in solving complex resource scheduling, allocation, and management problems for airports and airlines worldwide, from touchdown to takeoff. Ascent's solutions combine advanced database, artificial intelligence, mathematical optimization, and data-mining technologies with industry-standard platforms to provide fully integrated systems that automate resource scheduling, situation assessment, and real-time response to schedule disruptions. For more information visit www.smartairport.com.

Contact David F. O'Sullivan of O'Sullivan Communications Inc, 978-264-0707 x206, david@ocmarketing.com.