Analysis of layout flexibility on the efficiency of airport passenger terminals

Abstract

The usage of concepts that add flexibility to built spaces by generating the capacity to adapt to new demands is an economically viable and operationally attractive alternative to deal with demand fluctuation. This study aims to analyze the influence of those concepts on the Airport Passenger Terminal's layout by evaluating the performance of the 13 busiest Brazilian airports' check-in areas. It carries out a comparative assessment to establish the main flexibility parameters within the Airport Passenger Terminals. Moreover, it identifies the most efficient characteristics used in the built spaces at the airports. For that, this examination applies the DEA-BCC model oriented to input, analyzing as input data the relation between the check-in area and the total area of the Airport Passenger Terminal building, the number of check-in counters and the waiting time at the queue, and output data the installed capacity of the airports. The results indicate that change in the percentage of check-in area used is the criteria that best reflects the efficiency of an Airport Passenger Terminal.