Siemens Postal, Parcel & Airport Logistics (SPPAL) has received an order to expand the baggage handling system in the arrival area of Bangalore International Airport in India. The company helps the airport operator to expand its capacities and further improve passenger convenience of international passengers. In 2015, Bangalore registered a record numbers of 18 million travellers, accounting for a traffic growth of more than 25%.

Sanjay Reddy, managing director of Bangalore International Airport, said: "Our cooperation with Siemens reaches back to the very beginnings of our airport. As a pioneer of change in Indian aviation, Bangalore was the first airport in India to be constructed through a public-private partnership. When the airport was built and opened in 2008, Siemens was already among our major partners and investors. We are happy to expand this cooperation with the new baggage handling contract."

Michael Reichle, CEO of Siemens Postal, Parcel & Airport Logistics, added: "We are proud of this strategically important project in Bangalore. In India, we build on our extensive proven track record of greenfield and brownfield projects. Moreover, Siemens operates and maintains the baggage handling systems in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Bangalore, the four busiest Indian airports. They account for almost 70% of passenger traffic in India."

As part of the modernisation and expansion in Bangalore, Siemens plans, supplies and integrates a state-of-the-art baggage handling system in the arrival area. The scope of supply also includes conveyor belts, a programmable logic controller (PLC) and a SCADA system for computer-based monitoring and control of all technical processes.

When Bangalore Airport was built as a greenfield project, Siemens was responsible for the overall engineering, procurement and commissioning (EPC) covering the complete project management and turnkey electrification.

Today, Siemens operates and maintains the complete baggage handling system at Bangalore comprising of Terminal 1 and the newly expanded terminal. In 2015, the airport saw an average of over 400 take-offs and landings per day, accounting for an increase of approximately 13%. Statistics point to an expanding market due to factors like demographic change and growth in leisure travel.