Trivandrum, India – IBS Software Services, a leading provider of new-generation IT solutions to the global Travel, Transportation and Logistics (TTL) industry, has signed an agreement to provide AvientCrew, its crew management solution, to KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, the national airline of the Netherlands and the oldest airline in the world. The airline will utilise AvientCrew to gradually replace their existing mainframe system, INCRA, which has been handling the carrier’s crew operations since the 1970s.
Crew Management System
AvientCrew is an intricately designed crew management system that optimizes crew utilization and maximizes crew productivity throughout an airline’s operating environment, providing real-time alerting, crew data management as well as real-time solutions and decision support functions for problem solving. AvientCrew will help KLM manage all aspects of their crew operations from the handover of the plans from their vacation and rostering systems, to the period beyond the day of operations, allowing for the consistent monitoring and identification of problems as they arise, thus improving overall crew-tracking performance while reducing disruption costs.
The system will ensure that rosters comply with governmental and regulatory requirements, airport restrictions, crew training, licensing and airline-specific requirements, as well as efficiently manage crew changes and disruptions on the day of operation.
The final choice for IBS’ solution was made after a period of intense and extensive research. Two potential suppliers were selected for a ‘proof of concept’ to help arrive at a final decision. 40 selected KLM users along with business analysts and project architects tested both systems thoroughly before IBS’ AvientCrew was accepted as the best overall solution and IBS the chosen business partner to KLM.
Mr Y de Haan, executive vice-president of KLM operations, said, “This new system for roster maintenance for our cabin and cockpit crew is very important for the KLM operation. We are very happy cooperating with IBS.”
According to Mr VK Mathews, chairman and CEO of the IBS Group, “We see this deal with KLM as a major milestone for IBS and the AvientCrew product, yet again demonstrating our ability to meet the rapidly evolving needs of the air transport industry. An airline of the size and stature of KLM opting to move away from legacy systems is vindication of IBS’ vision for the air transportation industry.”
Crew Management Decision-Support
AvientCrew, helps airlines manage their crew and optimise crew utilisation and enhance productivity right from initial planning through to the day of operation. It enables easy viewing and manipulation of pairings, rosters, crew data and fast system enquiry. It provides crew management decision-support functions that are effective in solving a wide range of problems by real-time simulation and advanced ‘what if’ capabilities. The system improves crew productivity through pairing and rostering optimisation and reduces disruptions due to absence of crew.