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Marco ChiechiDavid HojbergJanine MauriceKyle ShortJanelle WaltersNatalie Wintermute
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 2
Solar Panel Heated Runways
Marco Chiechi, David Hojberg, Janine Maurice, Kyle Short, Janelle Walters, Natalie Wintemute
Operations Management – AVIA1004-01
Professor Andrew Jacobs
Thursday, February 19, 2015
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 3
Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….4
2.0 Service/Product & Consumer Description………………………………………………………………………………….4
2.1 Product Analysis…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….4
2.2 Customer Analysis………………………………………………………………………………………………………….5
2.3 Competitive Analysis……………………………………………………………………………………………………..6
2.4 SWOT…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….8
3.0 Product Design………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….10
3.1Research and Development…………………………………………………………………………………………10
3.2 Services Design…………………………………………………………………………………………………..........12
3.3 Operations Strategy………………………………………………………………………………………………………14
4.0 Capacity…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...16
4.1 Manufacturing Design…………………………………………………………………………………………………..16
4.2 Determine Effective Capacity……………………………………………………………………………………….19
4.3 Capacity Requirements…………………………………………………………………………………………………21
4.4 Capacity Alternatives…………………………………………………………………………………………………...22
5.0 Quality………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………23
5.1 What to Measure………………………………………………………………………………………………………….23
5.2 How to Measure…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..25
5.3 Inspection Criteria………………………………………………………………………………………………………..26
5.4 TQM…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…27
6.0 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…28
References……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..29
Appendix A……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..34
Appendix B…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………....36
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 4
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Over 505,152 flights were delayed and 54,139 flights were cancelled in North America from
January 17, 2015 to February 18, 2015 (Flight Stats, 2015). Icing on the runways is the largest
contributing factor causing these delays and flight cancellations. Airports are currently applying
anti-icing chemicals to keep the surface above freezing point. Even though these chemicals can be
washed away, they are causing some environmental concerns. SOLARavia is a new Canadian
company providing customers with energy-efficient and revenue solutions for their daily needs.
SOLARavia’s mission is to provide the finest and most energy efficient products for all airports.
SOLARavia is now offering a solution to reduce all airport flight delays and cancellations due to
weather conditions.
2.0 PRODUCT & CONSUMER
2.1 Product Analysis
SOLARavia is introducing the interlocking, triangular solar power units to replace asphalt,
concrete and tarmac in airports. SOLARavia’s solar units will replace roadways, parking lots,
sidewalks, driveways, recreational surface, and, for the aviation sector, runways, aprons, taxiways.
The current asphalt surface being used at airports, groundside and airside, requires non-stop
maintenance due to cracking, potholes and varying temperatures (due to Canada's climate). During
the winter season, snow removal and winter maintenance causes a significant amount of damage.
SOLARavia’s panels offer LED lights embedded in a protected surface of polycarbonate. The
LED lights will be used as a replacement of pavement markings and runway edge lights. According
to Richard Guinot (2015), this product would provide instant centre line lighting required for
category 2 and 3 operations. The airport will be able to control the lighting intensity, colour,
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 5
location and more through a software SOLARavia has designed. If there are any complications with
the LED lights or damage occurs to the unit, the airport has the ability to change the unit in less
than ten minutes. This efficiency will require special training, supplied by SOLARavia during the
purchase of our product, for the airport operations department.
Our solar unit will also house a heating unit, held in the dialead composite casing (same
material as the Boeing 787 fuselage), which will allow the top layer of polycarbonate to stay above a
freezing level. This would allow the prevention of accumulating snow or freezing rain (up to a
certain point), thus delaying outbound and inbound traffic. The solar units require minimal
employee maintenance, and reduced capital invested into snow removal equipment. Airport
vehicles can be converted to solar panel friendly vehicles by switching from metal blades and
sweeper bristles to rubber blades and polypropylene bristles.
Foreign object debris (FOD) and wildlife awareness has been increasing significantly over the
years. The solar panels have a pressure sensitive feature which identifies when wildlife or heavy
debris have been detected on the runway. This pressure sensitivity will be tracked through the
same software which controls the LED lights. This feature will notify any operations employees of
debris on the runway and its exact location. This pressure sensitivity feature can also be multi
purposed for runway incursion preventions and runway accident information. If an aircraft has
landed on the solar panel surface(s) and has any complications, the investigation team will be able
to access the data collected as part of the investigation. Information such as velocity, impact
pressure and location of contact are constantly monitored and saved to a temporary hard drive.
2.2 Customer Analysis
SOLARavia’s solar units can be marketed to all airports across the world. Each airport may
require highlighting different advantages of our product and small modifications, but it will always
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 6
comes down to cost. SOLARavia’s priority is to ensure the product meets the regulatory
requirements, brought forth by Transport Canada, IATA and ICAO. As the initial product
introduction is occurring in Canada, SOLARavia will need to meet all the international requirements
for inbound traffic of international flights.
During the initial stage of the product life cycle SOLARavia will approach airports reaching
the runway rehabilitation/resurfacing stage. “Not many airports will be willing to rip up 12 million
dollars of pavement they just laid down a few years ago” (Guinot, 2015). SOLARavia will be
approaching airports with moderate to heavy traffic, multiple runways and a variety of weather,
including snow and ice. SOLARavia will be able to accommodate airports who do not experience
snow and icing conditions by marketing the solar units without the heating feature. SOLARavia will
then later target the remaining airports.
Due to global warming many industries are trying to be environmentally conscious. Airports
investing in this product are investing in a better, green future. These units helps reduce the carbon
footprint and provides clean energy. The energy produced will be a return on the airport’s
investment by converting the energy on site and to bring in capital.
2.3 Competitive Analysis
SOLARavia’s main competitor is geothermal runway heating. The idea was introduced at
Heathrow Airport in London, England. In 2010, Heathrow encountered a severe snow and ice storm
causing 4,000 flight cancellations, stranding 9,500 passengers at the airport. This storm cost British
Airways £25 million (Snow and Ice disrupt Heathrow Airport again, 2014).
During the summer months, geothermal runway heating gathers heat produced on the
tarmac and stores it underground. Once the winter months have approached, the energy is slowly
released in order to warm the piping, and heat the asphalt to a temperature just above zero. This
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 7
process can be used as a prevention and solution method during winter conditions. In order for the
underground system to gather the warmth from the sun, the airport’s asphalt will need to be
replaced with concrete slabs and piping. Installing this new technology, with the vision of
preventing future delays and cancellations, British Airways lost £50 million (Gammell, 2011).
In addition to Heathrow Airport, geothermal runway heating was installed at the Oslo
Gardermoen Airport in Norway. For years, this system has also proven successful heating bridges,
roadways and sidewalks around the world. Due to this success, Saint Cloud State University in
Minnesota has shown our competitor’s system will pay for itself within two to five years of
investment (Athmann, Bjornsson, Borrell, & Thewlis).
Due to the continued usage of concrete, the airport will be required to invest sufficient
money on repairs, including crack sealing, runway maintenance, runway repainting, etc. To fulfill
these requirements, the airport will need to shut down the runway for long periods of time in order
to replace the concrete. Depending on the circumstances, the piping will need to be replaced
simultaneously.
The underground piping will routinely require maintenance to ensure it remains sealed. If
an unforeseen circumstance occurs, the pipes could burst and will require immediate attention.
Customers of the geothermal system will have difficulty completing this task. They will be forced to
tear apart the concrete, fix the piping and pour more concrete. These steps will require ample time
and the runway to remain closed for long periods.
Due to the piping and energy storing location, the units will need to be installed further
underground requiring adequate initial funding and continued investment to maintain the
equipment.
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 8
Evaluating this company has proven the efficiency our product can provide. This technology
eliminates the cost of runway replacement, crack filling and runway painting etc. Additional to the
runway maintenance, asphalt is required to be resurfaced after 20 years and sometimes more
frequently due to wear and tear. Our product provides the airport staff the feasibility to change a
unit if required using minimal time, requiring the runway to be closed for ten minutes or less. Our
units include multipurpose services including LED lighting, energy production and runway surface
heating. The airport will only have to invest money during the initial stage of installation, due to the
replacement of their previous runway. Post-installation of the solar runway, only a general
maintenance cost is required for upkeep of the solar panel. The chemicals used at the airport could
create a hazard to the water system; however, SOLARavia’s units provide the ability to separate the
chemicals from the water sources, providing a cleaner water system. The energy that can be
provided through SOLARavia’s panels, can be consumed for the airport’s energy needs. If any
additional power is present, the airport is able to claim it as capital.
2.4 SWOT
To achieve the strategy and mission, SOLARavia has put together a SWOT analysis.
2.4.1 Strength
The energy gathered by the solar panels will provide sufficient benefits to the airport,
allotting the energy towards the electricity required at the airport, which may result in a return on
the capital gained. Not to mention, the environmental impact involved with the new technology will
be a game changer in the industry--providing clean energy, repaying airport assets, reducing and
possibly eliminating the usage of anti-icing fluid. The airport will no longer have to spend the
taxpayers’ money on asphalt maintenance (crack sealing, rehabilitation every 20 years, and more).
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 9
Line painting and above the ground lighting will no longer be required due to the LED lighting
provided.
2.4.2 Weakness
SOLARavia’s biggest road block is the initial capital cost required from the airport. The
airport will have to either build a new runway with the technology, tear apart an existing runway, or
invest in the technology once the runway has reached the rehabilitation stage. If no airport is willing
to invest until their runway reaches the rehabilitation stage, SOLARavia will experience a very slow
start and lack start-up capital. Alongside the initial cost, the airport will require to purchase some
new features for their current equipment. For instance, they will require a different type of bristle
for their current sweeper as well as replace the bottom plow strip with a softer edge to prevent
damage to the units.
All products and services provided in the aviation industry will require approval by all
regulators in the industry. For example, Transport Canada, International Civil Aviation Organization,
International Air Transport Association and more.
2.4.3 Opportunity
SOLARavia’s panels were developed for the primary use on airport runways. In the long
term, these panels will provide SOLARavia with the opportunity for future development. These
opportunities include taxiway, apron, helipads, roadways, sidewalks, driveways and many more.
Once SOLARavia’s customers has analyzed or used the product, they will provide feedback
and request any additional features. Our possible product development will depend on the
feedback provided by airports using our panels.
2.4.4 Threat
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 10
Competition is one of the biggest threats to any business. Competition includes companies
already in existence with a product in place. For instance, our geothermal competitors have
installed their system at Heathrow Airport and Oslo Gardermoen Airport. SOLARavia’s competition
will also include companies with the technology and ability to develop a competing product and
steal market share. The fast paced development of technology is an increasing threat to SOLARavia.
Airports in locations of minimal sunlight may have difficulty committing to SOLARavia. With
this limitation, airports might not see the return on investment as quickly due to less energy
obtained. This fear of commitment makes it difficult to forecast possible demand. This balance will
force SOLARavia to estimate how many to produce and how much to store in the warehouse.
3.0 PRODUCT AND DESIGN
3.1 Research & Development
SOLARavia has taken the concept of solar panels and applied a unique spin on the item with
the development of solar powered runways. Immense research and development is necessary to
test and implement this revolutionary product. SOLARavia has already secured the required
materials necessary to implement the solar powered runways. In conjunction with securing all
required materials necessary, SOLARavia has set up a warehouse for high impact testing of all
materials and panels. Other inhouse activities consist of training initiatives on how to operate,
maintain and repair the panels. SOLARavia is in stages of developing computer software to remotely
program and operate the panels. This will allow consumers to program LED displays, notification of
runway contamination (FOD, wildlife, etc.) and access information regarding aircraft accidents.
Our next focus is developing test runways in well researched locations, understanding
feasibility of runways in variable conditions and analyzing the data collected in regards to wear, tear
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 11
and general maintenance. As a key element of the solar runways is their ability to reduce snow and
ice build up by having a heated surface.
SOLARavia has chosen to launch its test market at the Region of Waterloo International
Airport, located in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Waterloo Airport is an appropriate candidate as
the airport encounters a variety of weather conditions ranging from dry summer days to heavy
snow falls in the winter. Another key element that makes Waterloo Airport compatible is the airport
has a lower priority Taxiway that is closed during winter months, with moderate traffic during
spring, summer and fall months. The closure of Taxiway Bravo during the winter months will allow
SOLARavia to apply the technology to the Taxiway and then commence testing without any
detrimental impact to airport operations.
Once SOLARavia has established its primary test location at the Region of Waterloo
International Airport it will branch out into hotter climate locations, such as Arizona, to test the
durability and sustainability of the panels in a much different environment. Testing our product in
Arizona will not only advance our research on how these panels operate in warm-hot weather, it
will also introduce an entire new market segment in the United States. The panels will be built,
designed and tested to incorporate the need of the differing climate. This would include elements
such as the elimination of the heated surface from the panels to reduce cost and increase usability.
The target range for testing is one full year. This will allow us to research the impact of
varying weather conditions, as well as record wear and tear of the infrastructure and equipment.
Key areas we will be closely analyzing are as follows:
How the panels react to changing weather conditions such as extreme cold/heat - will the
materials expand/contact in varying conditions?
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 12
How a variety of aircraft types affect the material of the solar panels? Can the panels
withhold the weight of larger aircraft? Will the panels need to be comprised of different
material for heavier equipment?
Will the material of the panels affect the aircraft or operating equipment tires? Can aircraft
and operating equipment safely operate on the surface of the panels in varying conditions?
How feasible is maintenance on surfaces made of of solar panels? What equipment will
need to be acquired or changed out in order to perform all necessary maintenance?
Is the learning curve of implementing such a system at this time too great? What
requirements are necessary for companies and employees to introduce this revolutionary
technology?
It is necessary to carry out thorough tests under the trial period of a year to eliminate any
deficiencies or defects in the product in the early stages. This will also help SOLARavia determine
and repair any critical steps to ensure our product is of excellent quality and a necessity in the
coming year of aviation progression.
3.2 Outline Service
The services supplied by SOLARavia outside of the tangible solar panels will be geared
towards environmental concerns, training employees on the proper procedures for installation and
maintenance, help to reduce energy used, as well as the implementation of the software used to
operate the solar panels.
Environmental Concerns: Upon completion of the solar paneled runway/taxiway, the design
will incorporate two channels that run parallel along the full length of the runway/taxiway. The
channel is a two layer design. The top section will consist of any wiring and electronic components.
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 13
The lower section will allow for any rainwater and/or deicing fluid to be carried away to a
designated treatment area set out by the airport. On current asphalt/concrete runways, the
majority of waste water and deicing fluid is subject to enter the community's water possibly
contaminating the communities’ drinking water.
With any highly used road surface, contaminants such as machine oils and fuels are subject
to collection and being carried away by rainwater and snow melt. Small amounts of contamination
could build up causing issues over time.
Figure 1 – De-icing (Deicing Fluid, 2015)
The most serious environmental issue comes from aircraft deicing/anti-icing fluid. Types I
and IV are the most common found at medium and large airports. While type I is used to de-ice
aircraft and does not last long on the aircraft surface, type IV is more viscous and adheres to the
aircraft longer. When an aircraft rolls on the runway, the anti-icing fluid sheers of onto the ground.
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 14
This can be seen by the light green colouring left behind (Chapter 3 - Deicing/Anti-icing Fluids,
2010). See Figure 1 – De-icing.
With these two are a possible cause for environmental concerns, our system will allows for
contamination to be carried away to designated treatment facilities. This will result in a great
improvement on both the environmental impact that the airport would otherwise have to look
after as well as increase the positive outlook that the public has on the airport.
Training: Due to the complexity of this groundbreaking technology, SOLARavia has a
program in place to train airport personnel on the proper procedure to installing, maintaining and
using the product by means of in house and hands on methods. The focus of the training will be on
how to replace old panels with new ones fast and efficiently as to not hinder operations and how to
do minor repairs on broken panels. The training will also be directed to ground control personnel on
proper procedures for using the paneled runways.
Reduce Energy usage: The whole reasoning behind the implementation of solar runways is
to harness the sun's energy to use instead of the traditional energy used from the cities grid power.
The airport would have control of whether they wanted to use the power on the property or sell it
back to the city as profit or any variation of the two.
3.3 Operation Strategy
Due to the costly implementation, time commitments, detailed equipment and personnel
training on solar powered runways, SOLARavia is aware it will not be easy or feasible to roll out this
technology to many airports immediately. Our future customers will want to see and hear about the
benefit of our product from test airports. After the inaugural year test period we are initiating first
at the Region of Waterloo International Airport and then in Arizona, we are confident and positive
airports will be looking to invest in the long term benefits of solar powered runways.
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 15
Our target market will be airports with runways, taxiways or aprons in the process of
development, rehabilitation or resurfacing. It would be wasteful for any airport to tear up perfectly
good infrastructure in order to incorporate new costly technology. That being said, when the time
comes to add, repair or expand the runway it can be extremely feasible to construct the solar
runways at this time. Our initial target airport will be Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport. There are
currently talks and studies taking place in regards to Billy Bishop extending its runway in order to
allow C Series jets to fly in and out of the airport. The runway expansion would include a 200 meter
expansion on each end, totalling 1632 meters (Yuen, 2015). This is an ideal location as the panels
can be added easily without effecting previous infrastructure.
SOLARavia’s operational strategy incorporates the Porter's Five Forces Model into its
strategy development process. This includes analyzing the immediate rivals in the industry, any
potential new entrants to the market, the customers, suppliers and any substitute products in the
market. In conjunction with the previous operational strategy SOLARavia will be focusing on the
following steps:
Step 1: Analyzing the Environment - this takes into account our company’s SWOT analysis as
previously mentioned in this report. It also focusing on understanding customers, the environment,
industry and competitors.
Step 2: Determine the Corporate Mission - this covers the purpose of our company and the
value we provide to the industry.
Step 3: Form a Strategy - this incorporates building a competitive advantage, what does
SOLARavia do to set our company apart?
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 16
Incorporating all of the above steps will allow SOLARavia to stay efficient, productive, and
competitive in the markets while ensuring product quality and delivery needs are met.
4.0 CAPACITY
4.1 Manufacturing Design - Where is it produced?
SOLARavia has decided to outsource all materials from other companies, however, we are
assembling the casing for the internal electronics in our warehouse. We are choosing to do this
because the infrastructure and cost to build all materials would be very expensive. All the products
we have found to build this solar runway all have been known to make quality items and are ISO
9000 certified.
We are choosing to outsource the polycarbonate materials for our surface from Curbell
plastics. Polycarbonate is a transparent thermoplastic material with good strength and stiffness and
outstanding impact resistance. (Curbell Plastics Inc, 2015) For each solar runway panel we will need
one triangular cut polycarbonate piece to fit over all of our components. We have chosen Curbell
because they have been serving other companies and the United States government and several
military departments for over 70 years in the United States. The polycarbonate we have chosen to
use has 20% of it’s volume filled with glass that strengthens the material dramatically. It has a
tensile strength of 16,000 psi and a flexural modulus of 800,000 psi (see chart below). We have
chosen to have a thickness of 1” because that will give us the most strength for the shape of our
panel.
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 17
For our lighting we have been in contact with a supplier in Hong Kong called Chinavasion
that have multiple options for LED lights. These lights are waterproof and have colour changing
capabilities to any specifications that is required by reprogramming. Their warehouse is located in
China and can be imported to us within four business days (Chinavasion, 2015). Each individual
panel will require 12 2.5”-1” (L x D) LED circular light.
In order to regulate and program the lights there will be one circuit board required for each
light so we can control all aspects of the panel. For this we have K & F Electronics supplying a single
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 18
sided 8 x 15” circuit board composed of aluminum core materials. K & F’s circuit boards are certified
under the ISO 9001: 2008 certifications and they have also been an industry leader since 1972
located in the United States. K & F Electronics manufacture boards using high temperature
materials and they have engineers on staff that are able to help us with all our questions (K & F
Electronics, 2015). This is why we have chosen K & F to supply us with their boards.
So that the airports we supply to can make a return on investment, we have incorporated a
solar panel within our product. Instead of manufacturing the solar panels ourselves, Sundance Solar
is providing us with a PowerFilm 15V 100mA flexible solar panel that we have retrofitted into our
design, using one panel in each. Sundance Solar from the United States, was established in 1999
and are consistently trying to build newer and better products for their consumers (Sundance Solar,
2015). Even though Sundance Solar has not been around for a very long time, we feel that 16 years
of experience is more than qualified when trying to find a reliable solar panel supplier.
As for the casing of our product, we are building a 6” triangle base made of carbon fiber
reinforced plastic, created by a DIALEAD™ composite which is what the majority of the Boeing 787
Dreamliner is composed of (The Boeing Company, 2008). We are being supplied the composite from
Mitsubishi Plastics in Japan and will then manufacture the casing to our exact specifications. This
composite is lightweight, high in stiffness, has a high thermal conductivity and has a low coefficient
of thermal expansion (Mitsubishi Plastics Inc, 2015). We trust with a name like Mitsubishi that they
have a very dependable product that will be supplied to us which was established in 1943. Infused
within the plastic we will have six metallic heating elements supplied to us by Kanthal in Sweden.
These specific heating elements that are Nikrothal nickel-chromium alloys can reach a temperature
from 50 - 1425°C (Sandvic, 2015). With these elements that will be controlled through our software
and circuit boards there will be no problem keeping runways and taxiways clear of snow, ice or rain.
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 19
To hold it all together we have found that a sample product, such as bolts, should be
imported. The bolts that we have found are called Ti-Matic® Blind Bolts manufactured by Alcoa in
the United States. This bolt is lightweight because of the titanium materials and the large bulb that
is formed during installation makes this bolt the best choice for our composite product. The Ti-
Matic® Blind Bolt is a high strength, vibration resistant, cost effective lightweight blind fasteners
that have been used in many critical aerospace structural applications. The spindle is mechanically
locked to provide vibration resistant foreign object debris free installations (Alcoa, 2015). Since
Alcoa now have a partnership with Firth Rixson, a global leader in aerospace jet engine components
we have decided to get all of our fasteners from them. Alcoa has been developing the aluminum
industry for over 125 years, they now have approximately 62,000 employees in 30 countries (Alcoa,
2015). So we are safe to say they are a reliable source for our bolts.
4.2 Determine Effective Capacity
During the prototype stages of our solar units we had 6 employees specialized in each
requirement of construction. These six skilled employees will move into management and quality
control positions as we expand into our markets and start to take on contracts. Because we expect
only one airport to introduce our units before a second contract, we have started with one hundred
employees for the construction of our first order. Twenty-five of these employees will be skilled
labourers with SOLARavia specific training for the complex stages of production. The other 75
employees will be general labour to complete the final stages of putting the units together.
There are a variety of different engineers/technicians that are required to build our product.
We have two Electrical Engineers that are also serving as our IT department. We also have one
Mechanical Engineer that helped us look at how our product will function once all parts are
assembled by our Manufacturing Engineer which is our Production Specialist. Our Materials
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 20
Engineer chose what type of surface our product would be made of. He came to the conclusion that
polycarbonate was the best choice. Our Environmental and Power Engineer looked at how the solar
runway panel would impact the environment and also how our panel will generate power.
This is the team that helped us achieve the next step which was manufacturing. Now that
we are in this phase, we have 100 assemblers dedicated to compiling all components together
working 8 hour shifts. Some of these labourers will be creating the carbon fiber base of our product
with a cast iron form so that all materials can fit inside. We also have 10 skilled electricians working
for us to complete any wiring that needs to be done as instructed by one of our engineers. As for
the installation these workers will be subcontracted out to the airport employees since our product
is simple to install. At the airport there will need to be an onsite manager from SOLARavia to act as
a liaison for our company. We also have two quality control personnel who are serving our
company as testers of the panel. These members have chosen polycarbonate over another
material like tempered glass for our surface because of its durability, weight and cost. Tempered
glass can be very costly. It also does not diffuse sunlight very well allowing the sun to glare into
the pilot’s eyes, which is undesired for obvious reasons. Polycarbonate on the other hand is
nearly indestructible and and inexpensive. Also when installed it creates a seal that is
watertight (Campbell, 2013).
Effective Capacity is the capacity a firm can expect to achieve, given its product mix,
methods of scheduling, maintenance, and standards of quality (Heizer & Render, 2014). With our
staff at the moment we would not be able to fulfill an entire order for a runway. We would need
multiple assembly lines and a lot more general labourers, so that more than one panel can be
produced at a time. Which brings us to requirements.
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 21
4.3 Capacity Requirements
As our demand increases and we get more and more contacts with airports, we will need to
hire more workers to assemble the product at a higher pace. This means dedicating a specific area
where our assemblers can have multiple lines to produce the panels more efficiently. Once 50
panels have been made then stacked on a skid, our quality and control specialists will pick random
panels to be tested for quality assurance and the remainder of the skid will go into the storage
section of our warehouse. The engineers we have will have their own section of the warehouse
where they will be implementing the compatible software into the circuit boards.
We at SOLARavia believe that once one airport adapts our product into their runway many
airports will want us to introduce our product to their airport as well, so that they can see for
themselves how much money they can save. This is all part of our demand forecast. Airports will
want to see other airports try our product first because they can be withdrawn from a solar runway
because it is new and has never been done before. Now because of this our inventory will be
reduced as we wait and see how our customer reacts to the product. Once that customer approves
us to implement our panels into their runway, we will be manufacturing at full capacity to get the
order out to them as quickly as possible.
As we look at our short term forecasts for the next three months, we should see a few
airports testing out our product on one or more of their taxiways and aprons. For this, our
production level will be in the small to medium range because we do not want to build up too much
inventory. Once we have a second or third airport we are supplying their taxiways and aprons it will
be time to step up production level. This is because within our first year we will be working out how
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 22
many labourers and assembly lines we require and we will not need as nearly as much to supply a
full 5000’ runway.
For our medium and long range forecasts we find that within three years we will be already
supplying a few airports with runways. We state this because by that time the airports that have
had their aprons and taxiways for roughly one to two years and will be very motivated to upgrade
their main runway. These airports will see how much money they are saving and will realize how
much money they could be saving. We will need to either acquire an existing storage facility or
build onto our warehouse to store these panels. We will also need to hire more skilled labourers
and technicians to keep up with demand. If we should face a supplier constraint, we have made
alternate arrangements with other suppliers, so that it can be resolved without delay.
4.4 Capacity Alternatives
As we all know, constraints can and most likely happen even with the best companies in the
world. The trick here is to have a contingency plan in place, if something were to happen we could
deal with it without hesitation. One of our largest constraints could be a manufacturer we use, can
no longer supply us with their product for any number of reasons. For this we have found alternate
suppliers we can reach out to and protect us from a major loss.
The top layer of our product is the polycarbonate sheet, the manufacture that we can use
should our supplier not keep up with demand is called ePlastics. ePlastics are located in the United
States and have been supplying other companies since 1914 (ePlastics, 2015). The materials to
make the shell casing that we manufacture is made up of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic. This can
be supplied to us by TEIJIN who are located in Japan and was established in 1918 (TEIJIN, 2015). Our
LED lights can be shipped to us from superbrightleds in the United States who were founded in
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 23
2002 (superbrightleds, 2015). The part that will control the entire panel can be sent to us via a
different supplier as well. Our circuit boards could be sent from Cir-Q-Tek in the United States, who
is a leader in manufacturing circuit boards (Cir-Q-Tek, 2015). The solar panels that are supplied to us
are manufactured well, we have found another supplier located in the US as well called Flex Solar
Cells. They have been building solar panels since 1996 (FlexSolarCells, 2015), so we feel that they
will be a great alternative. As for the heating element, it was fairly easy to find another supplier but
Induceramic is located in Canada and was founded in 2006 (Induceramic, 2015). If needed these
elements can make it to our facility rather quickly. Finally for our titanium bolts we use, United
Titanium has been manufacturing titanium fasteners since 1962 in the United States (United
Titanium, 2015).
The only other constraint we might have is defective parts. If materials should break while
being assembled, we are able to use defective parts should they be sent to us from suppliers. Now
instead of sending back those parts we are able to repurpose them.
5.0 QUALITY
SOLARavia is a company committed to the standards of quality set forth by ISO 9000. Our
company looks to achieve this certification within the next 5-7 years to better achieve a new level of
quality for our product. Furthermore, all products currently used in our solar panels are created
according to ISO 9000 standards.
5.1 What to measure
Solar panels are a relatively new way for residential and commercial real estate to generate
extra revenue, year round. As more and more companies are investing in this venture, it has
become easier to innovate and build upon the initial production of solar panels. Our company has
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 24
done extensive research and development to alter this product, in order to create our solar panels
that are ideal for use at an airport.
Our test area on taxiway Bravo will consist of 2,222 solar panels for our 50002 ft test area
will generate $138,281.25 per year based on 15KW per square foot and 12 hours of sunlight per day
and 295 (Current Results, 2015) days of sunlight per year in Waterloo. The amount of money
generated per year on just this test bed will generate 2,812,500.00 KWh per month at $0.80 KWh
(Weather Underground, 2015).
The solar panels created at SOLARavia are created with airport authorities in mind. Our goal
is to provide airports with a product that generates enough electricity to take care of all of their
electrical needs. As most airports will soon realize, solar energy is a clean, natural, and profitable
energy source that benefits parties at an airport. Our product allows for advanced LED runway and
taxiways lights, ensuring there is never a time the airfield is without lights. During the average 12
hours of daylight that the Region of Waterloo International Airport receives, the airfield will receive
15 KWh per square foot, for a total of 75000 KWh per day (Green Building, 2009).
Our system is designed to recover costs previously incurred using a regular asphalt runway.
SOLARavia has innovated our solar panels to best facilitate the active daylight hours to generate
enough revenue to create a 10 year Return on Investment. Our ROI allows for airport planners to
adequately complete their 25 year forecasting when creating a master plan for the airport.
Asphalt runways are now a thing of the past. Solar energy is wasted on asphalt on the
airfield because nothing is being absorbed and used to benefit the airfield, and the maintenance
alone on the runways to the airfield up to Transport Canada standards costs an airport authority
millions of dollars per year. Within the last decade, airport authorities all of the world are noticing
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 25
an increase in pricing when building a brand new runway. In 2006, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta
International Airport opened runway 10-28, nearly five years after the start of the project. Facing
delays in weather, cost, and time constraints, the runway was built for no little than $1.284 billion-
the most expensive runway to be built in the United States (Washington Post, 2006).
5.2 How to measure
Solaravia focuses on the consistency in craftsmanship produced in their product.Our solar
panels have been created with the customers in mind; these customers are not just the staff at each
airport authority, but also the millions of passengers that will travel across our innovation each
year. SOLARavia demands quality from each of our manufacturers, therefore, it is pertinent that all
shipments we receive containing parts for our product contain zero defects.
It is understood that consistency is not always 100% possible when working with people
creating parts. For that reason, SOLARavia has put a procedure in place to handle any defect
products we may receive in a shipment from our manufacturers. Any part is that identified as a
defect, whether through our inspection process, or from a customer, is stripped for it’s working
features and stored for future use. If there is ever a need for parts and there is a delay with our
“Just-in-Time” shipment of parts, our company has a small selection of parts put away for quick and
timely assembly and repair of a part for our solar panels.
Airport authority managers will take into effect the cost per year to maintain the quality of
an asphalt runway. They’ll consider the cost to seal cracks, fill potholes, paint lines, fix lights and the
cost to labor and equipment. Airports around the world spend millions of dollars each year just to
maintain their runways and taxiways. After the initial wave of contracts are built and tested, we
expect to have airport signing agreements to start planning for a solar panel runway or taxiway
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 26
once the life cycle of their asphalt runway has run out. After we receive contracts for our solar
panels, airport managers will be eager to start a new runway life cycle- only instead of asphalt,
they’ll be replacing it with solar panels. Ripping up a runway and replacing the runway with solar
panels will take a shorter time length than building a brand new runway, therefore shortening the
time length to have an unserviceable portion of an airfield.
5.3 Inspection criteria
As aviation is such a safety-sensitive industry, it is crucial to mitigate any preventable errors.
SOLARavia is committed to the safety and wellbeing of its customers. To achieve this, our company
is taking a source inspection approach, this meaning doing the job properly from the start while in
production stage to ensure there will be no costly or irreversible processes later and that the high
standard of quality can be achieved. There is little room for variation in regards to the process, this
will lead to an increased overall standard expected. It is the vital goal of our operations managers to
ensure inspections are performing to our standard of exceptional. As our goal is to produce a
product of unparalleled quality is if important to identify any defects or deficiencies early in the
manufacturing stages so appropriate steps can be taken to correct these and repair any defects or
deficiencies. The process of carrying out an inspection mid-manufacturing or post production has
been created and can be extremely costly; therefore, it is critical to monitor progress closely and
correct any flaws early. Our products will undergo a multitude of testing procedures and any bad
processes will quickly be altered and eliminated. Employees will be trained in inspection criteria and
required to adhere by checklists to ensure compliance and consistency in a task (Heizer & Render,
2014).
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 27
5.4 Total Quality Management
Total Quality Management: an approach to the management of an organization that
integrates the needs of customers with a deep understanding of the technical details, costs, and
human-resource relationships of the organization (Dictionary.com, 2015).
Total Quality Management (TQM) is the importance of quality throughout an entire
organization, it is the commitment by management to produce excellence in all aspects of products
and services within a company. SOLARavia fully embraces the idea, acception and implementation
of TQM. The goal of our company is to show commitment in regards to excellence with everyone
from suppliers to customers (Heizer & Render, 2014).
Businesses fall under the realm of never ending improvement. Every aspect of a business
can always improve in some regard, this includes company personnel, materials, producers,
suppliers and equipment. SOLARavia is no exception to this business practice. As the company
progresses there will be room for improvement in every facet. A continuous goal for our company is
to make sure we stay up-to-date on new improvements. This includes training employees on new
advancements, enrolling personnel in seminars, ensuring we implement the use of quality materials
while staying up-to-date with new materials in the market, using efficient equipment, updating and
implementing improvements to machinery and ensuring and maintaining quality partnerships with
our producers and suppliers. SOLARavia is setting a high standard in the industry in relation to our
quality, personnel and unparalleled technology. Our goal is to practice excellence in every
department throughout our organization to ensure total quality management, in doing so
SOLARavia is sure to set the precedence in the industry and stay on top as competitors enter the
fast paced marketplace.
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 28
6.0 CONCLUSION
As a monopoly in the Canadian market, SOLARavia can penetrate the market and introduce the
product to be successful in various climates. Implementing SOLARavia’s technology will keep the snow
and ice from causing any further delays and flight cancellations. Airports will save money on winter
maintenance, reduce the use of chemicals, receive capital, be energy efficient and be environmentally
conscious. Although, airports are not responsible for airline delays, a small fee, $1 - $2 per passenger,
for the installation and operations will increase the likelihood of flights to depart/arrive safely and on
time (Guinot, 2015). SOLARavia has the potential to grow in various markets as well as the technology to
expand in many industries.
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 29
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SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 34
Appendix A
This appendix represents the e-mail conversation between Natalie Wintemute (group member), Steve Buckles and Brad Fowles from Transport Canada in Ottawa, Ontario.
From: Natalie Wintemute <[email protected]>Date: Wed, Feb 11, 2015 at 2:35 PMTo: Steve Buckles <[email protected]>
Good afternoon Steve,
I hope you had a good holidays and things are going well at TC.
I was wondering if you had the time to give your opinion on a school project I am working on in my Operations Management Course at the college.
My group project was asked to create a new aviation product or service for the industry.
My group has decided to create solar panel runways and taxiways. We have hypothetically chosen Waterloo International Airport as our test airport for the project because the size of YKF is large enough to produce enough traffic on the taxiway to make the investment worth it, but small enough that building the taxiway wouldn't impede quite so much traffic.
The goal is to start with a taxiway, and eventually move to an entire runway and then an airfield full of custom solar panels. These solar panels would be created to withstand the weight of a 737-800- Waterloo's critical aircraft. We are assuming the city has already approved funding and the airport is interested in proceeding with the plans.From Transport Canada's point of view, we were wondering two things.1. What type of critical aircraft would you recommend we take into consideration when building the taxiway to withstand the weight of and why?2. Do you see any short comings with the idea?
Thank you so much for your help, we appreciate the help you can lend to us in this project and your opinion will greatly aid us in our efforts to complete the project before our February 19th due date.
Thank you once again,
----------From: Buckles, Steve <[email protected]>Date: Tue, Feb 17, 2015 at 9:08 AMTo: Natalie Wintemute <[email protected]>
SOLAR PANEL HEATED RUNWAYS 35
Hi Natalie.
For clarity, is this idea of solar panels to run lighting connected with taxiways and runways or something else? I don’t see the word “lighting” in your proposal. Or is it to make these surfaces of solar panels as the load bearing surface for aircraft taxiing? What would the purpose of the solar panels be in your proposed application?
Either way it is outside my area of expertise. I would recommend you contact the local airport authority regarding the airport itself and NavCanada regarding approach aids and the like. It seems to me that the use of infields and areas surrounding runways and taxiways could be used as a solar panel farm and the power used by the airport for lighting, charging batteries, the terminal and clients etc with any excess power to be fed into the local grid. This approach could possibly offset airport operating costs and perhaps generate some income.
From: Fowles, Brad <[email protected]>Date: Mon, Feb 16, 2015 at 3:28 PMSubject: RE: Georgian College student project and your opinion.To: Natalie Wintemute <[email protected]>
Hi Natalie,
Sorry for the late reply. Today is my first day back in the office and I am just reading your email. I am probably too late to assist you with the project given your due date so I won’t go into too much depth. From an operational p[point of view a couple of things come to mind quickly.
1) Surface friction. Will the surface be slippery compared to a traditional runway surface? Coefficients of friction are critical to aircraft operations. How would it be affected by snow, rain, standing water, reverted rubber?
2) What size of aircraft might be expected to hold YKF as an alternate or perhaps use it in an emergency? Sometimes this may be bigger than what normally uses the field.
3) What about light reflection from the surface during all weather and day/night conditions?
4) Will runway plowing, sweeping and chemicals affect the surface over time?
5) If an aircraft crashes into the surface could the power generating capabilities of the panels act as an ignition source in any way?
Let me know how it goes. I have 2 group projects due myself within 2 weeks
Cheers,
Brad
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Appendix B
This appendix is a disucussion between Janine Maurice (group member) and Richard Guinot from the Region of Waterloo International Airport. Richard Guinot is the Airport Operations Coordinator, often assisting with many construction assignments and many more.
From: Richard Guinot Sent: Friday, February 13, 2015 12:06 PMTo: Janine Maurice Cc: [email protected]
Hi Janine, How are you doing? How is school coming along, almost done from the looks of it? I am actually doing a research paper on Alternative methods of snow removal for my IAAE accreditation paper and have been doing a lot of research and thus Currie has asked me to assist you with your questions below. 1 – First off anything is possible, it all comes down the same thing over and over again – COST!!!! For electrical based heat you need to first take into consideration that you need approximately 35 Watts/per sq foot of electricity to even have a chance to melt snow on pavement. When you look at YKF 08/26 you have 7002ft X 150ft = 1,050,300 sq feet X 35 Watts/600volts (grid voltage) = 61,267.7 AMPs. The amount of solar panels needed would be massive. Let’s just say for the moment that you didn’t want to go solar that you wanted to connect to the grid, you would literally have to install a hydro substation at YKF just to de-ice the runway and that doesn’t include the cost of hydro itself. Solar panels also reflect light and in the northern hemisphere they need to be turned south while control towers are turned to the north so the sun is at their backs, the reflectivity would most likely be an issue also unless we have enough land to the south. There is a company from Idaho called Solar Roadways (http://www.solarroadways.com/intro.shtml) and I have been meaning to contact them, from the website I gather that their system might work here at the airport it’s a question whether Transport Canada would allow such an installation at an airport here. They have a new approach one that would allow the airport to make money by selling hydro back into the grid and melt snow on the runway by activating heaters in the panels during the winter months using the solar energy they capture. They have built in LED lights which would give us centre line lighting and all runway markings at night but don’t know how it would work during that day, might have to paint over them for daytime ops. You would never have to rehab you runway again since the system they use is made of glass with some sort of abrasive material for friction, would just have to replace one of the squares when needed. 2 – Cost and feasibility will always be the short comings plus who wants to be “the guinea pig” of such a technology, any airport would be taking a huge chance that it may not work. Might be very difficult to find an airport willing to do such an undertaking, plus for solar panels you would need vast amounts of land like Denver airport has, even then it probably wouldn’t be enough to de-ice just one runway. Don’t forget that whatever technology you decide on you will always have to rip up the runway to do it, so it may only make sense to do when the Runway is in need of rehabilitation, not many airports will be willing to rip up 12 million dollars of pavement they just laid down few years ago.
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3 – Whatever product you install the airport wants to know what the return on investment period will be. To do that you need to figure out the current cost of equipment, operating costs, maintenance and de-icing chemical costs which are very expensive also. Plus is there any government funding for such an endeavour, you can scratch of ACAP for sure. I am also looking at it from an environmental factor, how does vast amount of Urea, potassium acetate and potassium formate used by airports affect the environment. There are a few US studies and they are finding that there are ground water issues and fish habitat issues if airport discharge storm water into local streams/rivers/lake/ponds etc. 4 – I would probably introduce it first on a GA apron/taxiway with not so much traffic to see how it preforms. One we were comfortable with the results and how it works than I would say all of our priority 1 snow removal areas would be next. One thing is for sure, you would never be able to get rid of plows period, the main goal of such a system should be to make sure we never get any ice on the runway and nothing adheres to the surface by keeping the pavement around 3-5 degrees Celsius. We can always push the snow off but if the system is able to melt it in very low OAT economically than we would be the “kings of the world” and every airport would be purchasing these things. Reality is it takes a large amount of heat in very low temperatures to do so and heat does not come cheap. 5 – The main thing is whatever system is installed it should always have a fast return on investment rate and low operating cost. A good example of this is retrofitting the runway with LED lights versus the current halogen, the cost per fixture is more expensive but the ROI is only a few years thanks to the large amount of energy savings. A few airports in Canada and US have already had them installed with lots of success. Sometimes companies and certain government agencies will help fund such endeavours to see if it really works. I like the solar roadways idea because you can make money by selling energy to the grid, de-ice you runway (don’t know how cost effective) , have instant centre line lighting for CAT 2 & 3 ops and you never have to worry about replacing asphalt or crack sealing a runway. You would literally only need a resident electrician to change out the units when needed a few maintenance guys to clear the snow off when accumulation is too much for the system to handle. Also, Heathrow and some other airports where looking into Geothermal Heating for runways. There is a study online somewhere from a University in Minnesota I think that has come to the conclusion that geothermal will work effectively from a cost and operating perspective. Bigger airports will find it much easier to justify that type of expenditure but smaller low commercial traffic airports will find it difficult. YYZ has way more flights and lots more equipment to maintain and operate it will probably be easier to justify. Airlines would love you because you would have way less delays and they would not be airport related. But at the end of the day the Airport does not pay for Airline delays and it comes down to feasibility and cost. My approach is to charge passengers a small fee like $1 - $2 to justify the installation & operating cost; it could be buried in the ticket or in the AIF. Feel free to call me if you want and I can talk your ear off about the subject. Cheers, Richard
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Richard J. Guinot C.M. | Coordinator, Airport Operations | Region of Waterloo International Airport 1-4881 Fountain St. N | Breslau, ON NOB 1MO | 519.648.2256 ext. 8513 | [email protected] | 519.648.3540 | www.waterlooairport.ca
From: Currie Russell Sent: February-13-15 10:36 AMTo: Richard GuinotSubject: FW: Assistance on an assignment Hey dude: Can you take a look at Janine’s email below? Since this is the sort of thing you’re researching for your paper, I thought you might have more knowledge/info on it than me. Are you able to answer her questions and respond? Would be really appreciated. Thanks. Currie From: Janine Maurice [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Thursday, February 12, 2015 9:13 AMTo: Currie RussellSubject: Assistance on an assignment Good morning Currie! How are you? How are things going at the airport? As you know, I’ve returned to school for my fifth (of six) semester and currently taking an Operations Management class. We are required to introduce a new product and my group chose to introduce the “Solar Panel Heated Runway”. We are wanting to use Region of Waterloo as our hypothetical airport. We were wondering if you could take a few minutes to answer a few questions.
1. What are your thoughts?2. What are the possible shortcoming?3. What would you expect from this product?4. If you were to introduce this product at the airport, where would you introduce it?5. What would you require and is there any additional features you would like?
Should you require any additional information or have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you, Janine MauriceAviation Management Student Georgian College