Feature

Autonomous technology takes off at airports around the world

David Keene, CEO of Aurrigo International, talks to DPA Magazine about the way autonomous technology, born in Coventry, is changing the way baggage and cargo are transported around the world’s airports.

29/05/2024 16:36:34

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Aurrigo International has been making moves in the autonomous vehicle space for nearly 10 years, initially developing pods and shuttles for first and last-mile passenger transport journeys and, more recently, looking to explore aviation’s need for greener efficiencies.

The company’s entry into this space first came in 2018 with IAG and British Airways, where it created the first generation Auto-Dolly, operating a proof-of-concept project at Heathrow T5 that moved baggage in Unit Load Devices (ULD) around the terminal. This was designed and built at Aurrigo’s Advanced Engineering Centre, and was created to be fully autonomous, with no cab for the safety operator or manual driving capability.

Word of the technology quickly spread, and Aurrigo received significant interest from several airlines and ground handling companies, but with the level of interest came feedback on how the Auto-Dolly could be evolved to meet specific use cases.
This included a vitally important meeting with Changi Airport Group (CAG) in 2019 at the ITS World Expo in Singapore.

Read the full article in DPA's June 2024 issue

Written By Sophia Bell

Sophia Bell is the Group Editor of DPA, Connectivity, and PBSI. She joined the team in 2020 as Assistant Editor after achieving a First-Class Honours BA in English Literature and Film Studies from the University of East Anglia. In her current role, she leads the editorial strategy, driving digital growth and ensuring each title continues to deliver trusted, relevant insight for engineering and manufacturing professionals.