Yield-optimized flight simulator planning at Lufthansa
The customer
Lufthansa Flight Training (LFT) GmbH is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. It combines more than 50 years of experience in the training and development of cockpit and cabin crews, making it one of the world's leading providers of training services for airlines. More than 150 airlines from all over the world are currently training with the LFT Group at five locations.
Around 45 cockpit simulators are available for training at five locations - both full-flight simulators and flat-panel trainers. They are divided into 13 simulator families and a total of 23 simulator groups of similar training devices.The simulators are differentiated. The simulators are available around the clock, seven days a week.
Goals at a glance
Acceleration of planning
Even utilization of all capacities
Increased efficiency through optimal capacity utilization
Overview of all relevant KPIs
The project in detail
Executive Summary
A scenario training plan was successfully developed for Lufthansa Flight Training GmbH to optimize the allocation of cockpit simulator capacity. After the successful concept analysis and modeling with a profitability calculation, the system development was completed on the basis of the OPTANO platform. By involving the key users at an early stage, a 100%-compliant user interface with a very powerful optimization core was created. The project was implemented on-time and on-budget, achieving all quality gates by OPTANO experts in close cooperation with the customer.
The challenge
Simulator capacity planning is a very complex task, as it is subject to a large number of input parameters, cross-dependencies and training restrictions. In addition, the market is characterized by overcapacity, which means that customer-oriented training planning is important for sustainable customer loyalty.
The airlines book training sessions that differ in terms of hard and soft parameters regarding the training sequence and times. For example, there should be a rest period of 16 to 24 hours between two training sessions for a pilot crew - under no circumstances less than 16 hours or more than 24 hours. In additionIn addition, it is optimal for the customer if this rest period is exactly 20 hours. The ancillary conditions resulting from this are described as hard (16 - 24 hours) and soft (20 hours). In addition, there are further, customer-specific requirements, such as weekday checks, for example.preferences.
Long-term training planning is usually carried out three months in advance and involves up to half a dozen simulators at different locations at the same time, depending on the type of fleet. Previously, a planner needed several days for customized planning. However, a great deal of additional work was required to determine how well the solution met all the soft conditions.
The result
As part of the project, an IT-supported scenario training planning system was developed to optimize the allocation of cockpit simulator capacity in terms of revenue. The optimal capacity allocation is determined based on the customer's training requirements and the achievable revenues. The tool supports long-term training planning, taking into account the requested training volumes, the capacities, the hit rate of customer restrictions and the revenue optimum.
The implementation was based on the OPTANO platform on time, on budget and achieved all quality gates. Project management and training were also carried out by our experts.
The main project successes include
- Integrated optimization tool with an easy-to-use interface
- Yield-optimized planning of all simulator capacities
- Increase in simulator utilization
- Automatic compliance with all training restrictions
- Reduction in the cost of monthly scenario planning
- Improving process quality
- Improved flow of information between employees
- Transparent and comprehensible calculation of key figures