YYC Calgary International Airport rolls out new baggage system in domestic terminal

YYC unveils new baggage system Calgary International is showing off its new baggage sorting facility ahead of its grand opening next week. Stephanie Wiebe reports.

Officials at Calgary airport say that with the new luggage system set to come online next week, passengers can virtually do away with fears of lost bags while traveling for business or pleasure.

For the past three years, workers at YYC have been installing a new sort of system aimed at handling luggage at the facility. It cost $150M to build and officials are certain that passengers will enjoy what they’ve come up with.

“Our guests are being able to be processed through the check-in line faster and more efficiently as we are introducing top of the line technology on kiosks and also self-bag drops in the check in area,” said Ivonne Gamboa, director of terminal construction at YYC Airport.

The new system has been installed at a number of European airports already, but this is the first time that it has been used in Canada.

“We are bringing Calgary to be among the most advanced airports in the world,” Gamboa said. “We are increasing our capacity to 8,000 bags per hour, double our previous capacity.”

One of the unique features of the new system is the ability to track bags across the network through the use of totes and an RFID tag.

“We are then able to provide our airline partners with reliability and a seamless journey that they need to process the bags of their guests.”

David Howse, a marketing instructor at Mount Royal University, says its improvements like this that changes how the public perceives the efficacy of an airport.

“If your luggage is at the belt by the time you get there, you’re just happy as opposed to not knowing how long you have to wait for your luggage. You create happy customers on the land, which is I think the goal of every major airport.”

He says that the tracking system is one of the most impressive pieces of the new system too.

“It is going to have a higher degree of accuracy of delivering baggage for the customers where other airports are more manual and visual based. The RFID system is almost fool proof, as long as there are no human errors.”

Howse also says that introducing these systems is often not without cost, so it is actually creating two audiences when it comes to air travel.

“We are seeing a divergence in the kind of consumer; one who wants to pay absolutely as little as possible with no perks and the other that just wants a good travel experience.”

Once all the phases of the new system are complete, YYC says it will have a uniform, consolidated system from one end of the building to the other.

(With files from Stephanie Wiebe)