INFLIGHT CATERING Process Analysis and User ... - IATA

INFLIGHT CATERING 

Process Analysis and User 

Requirements 

www.iata.org/stbsupportportal 1 IATA Simplifying the Business 

© INTERNATIONAL AIR TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION 2007

REVISION 

Document Status 

Version Date IATA StB - Authors Notes 

1.0 14.03.2007 � Nicolas Bondarenco, 

RFID Deputy Manager 

� Benoit Pilon, Manager 

Airport & Inflight Services 

Initial Version 



� Benoit Pilon, Manager 

Airport & Inflight Services 

Update of the following chapters following 

inflight Task Force Review Meeting 

(22.03.2007, Geneva): 

1.4. RFID technology for the trial 

(clarifications) 

5.3. Structured data 

5.4. Prioritization 

5.5 Technical Requirements 



UR 26: priority set to 2 instead of 4 



Glossary of Terms 

Stakeholder Physical Location Type of product 

Airline HQ N/A 

Repair Facility U/S trolley repair 

Warehouse Serviceable trolleys 

Aircraft N/A 

Caterer Catering Facility 

Kitchen Food 

Commissary Non-food, non-bonded items 

Bonded Facility Bar and Duty Free items 

Equipment Store Serviceable food trolleys 

Duty Free Supplier Bonded Facility Duty Free items, if outsourced 

Repair Supplier Repair Facility U/S trolley repair, if outsourced 

Definitions: 

Catering Equipment: All rotable equipment used for catering; including trolleys, carriers, ovens, coffee 

makers, etc. 

Trolley: Container on wheels (trolley, cart, etc.) 

Carrier: Container carried by hand (carrier, stowage unit, box, etc.) 

Galley: Infrastructure on board aircraft into which trolleys and carriers are inserted. 

In this document, the word trolley is used to identify both trolley and carrier. However, a decision will be 

made as to whether RFID technology should apply first to trolleys, and then to carriers, or to both at the 

same time. 



Table of contents 

1. Executive Summary ..............................................................................................................................5 

2. Project Objectives & Scope..................................................................................................................6 

2.1. History..................................................................................................................................................6 

2.2. IATA Project Objectives & Scope ........................................................................................................6 

2.3. Global Approach ..................................................................................................................................7 

2.4. Global Planning....................................................................................................................................7 

3. Context ...................................................................................................................................................8 

4. Process Cartography ..........................................................................................................................10 

4.1. Objectives of the Process Description Approach ..............................................................................10 

4.2. Macro Process Cartography..............................................................................................................10 

5. Process Description............................................................................................................................11 

5.1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................................11 

5.2. Define and Implement the Marketing & Sales Strategy – Process Description ................................11 

5.3. Manage Catering Equipment Asset – Process Description ..............................................................12 

5.4. Procure Catering Equipment – Process Description.........................................................................12 

5.5. Provide Inflight Service – Process Description..................................................................................13 

5.5.1. Level 1 – Macro Level ................................................................................................................13 

5.5.2. Level 2 – Overview .....................................................................................................................13 

5.5.3. Level 2 – Determine Catering Equipment Requirements...........................................................14 

5.5.4. Level 2 – Operate Inflight Service Activities ...............................................................................16 

5.6. Maintain Catering Equipment – Process Description ........................................................................35 

5.6.1. Level 1 – Macro Level ................................................................................................................35 

5.6.2. Level 2 – Define Maintenance & Repair Programme.................................................................35 

5.6.3. Level 2 – Maintain & Repair Catering Equipment ......................................................................36 

5.6.4. Level 2 – Manage & Track the Maintenance Performance........................................................41 

6. User Requirements .............................................................................................................................43 

6.1. Criteria used for User Requirements prioritization ............................................................................43 

6.2. The track & trace approach ...............................................................................................................43 

6.3. Structured of required data................................................................................................................45 

6.4. Operational user requirements ..........................................................................................................47 

6.5. Technical requirements .....................................................................................................................56 



1. Executive Summary 

This document (in orange in the following picture) is the second report that is part of the IATA inflight project. 

It describes in details all the inflight processes where the management and the maintenance of the inflight 

equipment - especially trolleys - are involved as well as the management of trolley contents. 

Along those processes the main issues have been listed and the stakeholder needs to improve operation 

business activities and to limit those issues have been detailed and prioritised. 

Inflight Project Process Description 

Process Description 

Deliverables 

Identify high 

level potential 

benefits 

Identify issues 

and define 

needs 

Describe and 

set up a trial 

Select 

Technology 

Evaluate with 

trials 

Detail cost & 

benefits 

analysis 

Develop a 

Recommend 

Practice 

• Initial IATA view on the potential benefits of the use of 

RFID in Inflight 

• Description of the detailed processes and main operational 

encountered issues 

• Identification and prioritization of the stakeholder needs for 

an RFID solution applied to inflight, peer reviewed by the 

inflight task force. 

• The elements of the user requirements to be tested in the 

trial, along with which party will provide what element of 

the trial. 

• The technology to be carried forward to trial based upon 

tests and peer opinion for the use of RFID 

• The results of the trial applied to the inflight processes as 

well as technology performance results. Mainly focused on 

trolleys management and maintenance with some 

technology tests for trolley contents. 

• A report on the detailed business case for RFID on 

catering trolleys, supported by realistic costs from the 

industry and returns on investment from airlines. 

• A new Recommended Practice to be included in future 

JPSC manuals 

High Level 

Business Case 

Process 

Analysis and 

User 

Requirements 

Trial 

Requirements 

Technology 

Report 

Trial Results 

Report 

Detail Business 

Case 

Recommended 

Practice 



2. Project Objectives & Scope 

2.1. History 

In April 2006, the first RFID workshop was held in Madrid with airlines, caterers and suppliers invited to 

attend in order to identify potential area of application for Automated Identification Technology within inflight 

services. There were 23 attendees from 21 companies in attendance: Airlines, Caterers, Government, 

Vendors, and Specialists who discussed the areas that were of importance to the industry. 

The workshop attendees were asked to list a number of industry issues. These issues were then collected 

into broad groups. Each issue within each group was given a nominal dollar value against the worth of 

solving the issues to their particular business. Therefore, an issue such as trolley maintenance may rate 

highly for airlines and caterers, but not at all highly for regulators. 

The outcome of this exercise showed that the areas that can be offer the most immediate benefits are: 

� Trolley Tracking 

� Trolley maintenance 

� Trolley Contents 

IATA then documented a high level Business Case published in October 2006. Last December, the IATA 

Inflight RFID initiative received strong support from the Simplify the Business Board of Directors, based on 

this preliminary Business Case. 

2.2. IATA Project Objectives & Scope 

In January 2007 IATA, as part of IATA's Simplifying the Business initiative, started to analyse in detail what 

RFID could bring to Airlines and Caterers in the management of trolleys and stowage units, their 

maintenance, and the management of their contents as well. 

IATA is now launching a process to identify user requirements to better manage these assets and needs the 

contribution of Airlines and Caterers to understand requirements as thoroughly as possible. After having met 

several airlines and caterers individually and after having consolidated all the identified needs in one 

document, a Task Force will review the user requirements. 

Following this, next steps would include: 

� Identification of the best RFID technology solution to cover documented needs 

� Type trial with some stakeholders 

� Documentation of a detailed Industry Business Case 

� Development of Industry Standards 



2.3. Global Approach 

Identify 

Identify 

What What is is at at Stake 

Stake 

Description of: 

• environment 

• context & challenges 

• objectives & scope of 

the project 

Macro Process 

Cartography & 

Stakeholder positioning 

Key gains identification 

Define 

Define 

High High Level 

Level 

User User Requirements 

Requirements 

Macro process 

description 

Identification of existing 

issues 

Identification of user 

requirements per 

stakeholder 

Requirements analysis & 

prioritization 

*Select *Select and and Test 

Test 

RFID RFID Technology 

Technology 

Selection of the right 

RFID technology 

solution 

RFID trial 

Write 

Write 

Business Business Case 

Case 

Trial results 

Cost / Benefits Analysis 

Rollout Map 

*Note: the main goal is to explore potential RFID solutions that could improve the inflight catering process 

for the benefit of stakeholders. Other solutions may be explored in addition to RFID. 

2.4. Global Planning 

Define needs 

Select 

Technology 

Evaluate with 

Trials 

Write Business Detail the Business Case 

Case 

Review with Task force & update 

Define 

recommended 

practice 

Organise 

Define users requirements 

Validate with Task Force 

Evaluate RFID technology 

Validate with Task Force 

Identify partners, RFID suppliers 

Kick-off & follow-up 

Write key learning's 

Collect key elements 

Pre-define the RP 

Validate the RP (Process) 

Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 

The Recommended Practice activities will also run in 2008. Some of the activity dates may slightly be 

changed. As a first step the technology will be selected for the trial and will have to suit identified needs the 

best way and demonstrate the benefits of the technology. As new types of RFID technology are currently 

under development, those solutions might be tested for environment and compatibility. 



3. Context 

The typical relationships between stakeholders, which depends on the airline model, is shown in the figure 

below: 

Suppliers 

Suppliers 

(food (food / / non-food) 

non-food) 

Caterers 

Caterers 

Stakeholder Stakeholder Relationships 

Relationships 

Duty Duty Free 

Free 

Suppliers 

Suppliers 

Passengers 

Passengers 

Airlines 

Airlines 

Repair 

Repair 

Suppliers 

Suppliers 

OEM 

OEM 

Suppliers 

Suppliers 

The Airline Inflight Offering 

Inflight service has always been an important driver in customer relationship management to meet 

passenger needs and expectations. 

Airlines propose different offerings to passengers: traditionally, airlines have provided beverages and food 

as part of the ticket price, with duty free sales on international flights. However, some airlines (and in 

particular low-cost companies) now sell food and drinks on board. The industry is currently looking at 

offering passengers to pre-purchase their meals on-line. The key word here is constant evolution of the 

market place, which puts pressure on the underlying catering infrastructure to adapt quickly. 

If airlines are going to continuously improve their product offerings then everything should be done to ensure 

that the product delivery is achieved with minimum cost and maximum efficiency. 

The Role of Caterers 

Inflight catering remains a complex operational system, with hundreds of takeoffs and landings every day for 

different airlines, with specific products and with up to tens of thousands of meals produced daily at large 

catering facilities. 

The business of flight catering changed in the mid-1980s as airlines began selling their flight kitchens and 

outsourcing food production to maintain competitive service. In response caterers changed their business 

model and gained expertise in logistics. Following 9/11, caterers and airlines turned to food suppliers to 

further reduce costs and caterers became assemblers and drastically reduced their food production. The 

future of the catering industry will require a shift from mass production to a more retail business, focused on 

meeting specific passenger requirements. This will require quicker response times on the part of caterers 

and in particular in terms of asset management to support these new services. 



The Catering Equipment 

The catering equipment used to transport and load inflight products such as trolleys and carriers need to be 

available in the right quantity, for the right aircraft, at the right time and also need to be fully serviceable. 

Caterers also have to face potential disruptions such as flight delays due to irregular operations and aircraft 

substitutions due to mechanical failure. 

The asset is therefore key to perform the service and caterers usually maintain reserve trolley equipment 

(buffer stock). Airlines must therefore carry more equipment than should be necessary to operate, which 

increases inventory cost. 

Inventory counts are not accurate, often done manually, and it is difficult to identify precisely where trolleys 

are worldwide. Trolleys go missing and need to be replaced; it can also be necessary to truck trolleys 

between kitchens to deal with equipment unbalances. 

Given this context, the need for a technology that can help overcome those main issues as well as rise to 

new challenges is great. 

Global Environment 

Although, both caterers and airlines try to differentiate themselves to grow their business, many of the 

behind-the-scene processes are similar. 

This offers the possibility to look at new technology in the context of cost-sharing business models to lighten 

individual costs and afford the optimal solution through the development of Industry standards. 



4. Process Cartography 

4.1. Objectives of the Process Description Approach 

For this project the process description approach has been chosen: 

� To provide the stakeholders with a common and shared view of the inflight activity 

� To free ourselves from the bounds of any organisation (cross-functional oriented) 

� To identify step by step all the main issues and impacts 

� To identify needs / solution to improve performance of the processes 

� To identify what needs to be measured for a better 

performance management control 

� To evaluate potential benefits and value added 

4.2. Macro Process Cartography 

The following identified processes are mainly focused on the Airline inflight point of view. The macro process 

cartography is focused on inflight needs. All the identified processes will not be detailed, or some will be 

more detailed than others, as the objective of this analysis is to identify all the potential needs covered by 

the use of an Automated Identification 

technology to improve the inflight supply chain, reinforced by an 

Information 

System solution. 

Operational processes 

The operational processes contribute directly to the realisation of the service. It mainly regroups the 

operating inflight activities. 

Support processes 

They contribute as a support of the operational 

processes 

Performance management processes 

They contribute to improve service and to reach the 

company strategic objectives. They allow adjusting and 

following up the coherence of existing processes. 

Define Define and and Implement Implement the 

the 

Marketing Marketing & & Sales Sales Strategy 

Strategy 

Manage 

Manage 

Catering Catering Equipment Equipment Asset 

Asset 

In In Scope 

Scope 

Out Out of of Scope 

Scope 

Management process 

Operational process 

Support process 

Lead, Lead, Measure, Measure, Analyse, Analyse, Report 

Report 

Procure Procure Catering Catering Equipment 

Equipment 

Provide Provide Inflight Inflight Service 

Service 

Maintain Maintain & & Repair Repair Catering Catering Equipment 

Equipment 

Perform Perform Caterer Caterer Contract Contract Management 

Management 

Perform Perform Duty Duty Free Free Supplier Supplier Contract 

Contract 

Management 

Management 

Perform Perform Repair Repair Supplier Supplier Contract 

Contract 

Management 

Management 

Perform Perform OEM OEM Supplier Supplier Contract 

Contract 

Management 

Management 



5. Process Description 

5.1. Introduction 

For each macro process, a detailed table provides the following information: 

� Process description: a description of the process into activities, including location of the activity 

as well as acting stakeholder 

� Related documents: describes the list of document(s) (input and output) involved along the 

process 

� Comments: a list of comments to understand the process in further details 

� Questions: a list of questions to clarify process, rules or any other relevant point 

� Main issues: identification of the main issues and impacts in terms of performance (delay, 

quality, visibility…) and cost 

� Needs: description of the user requirements to improve inflight catering 

� Added value: description of the potential added value achieved by finding ways to meet identified 

needs 

� Current key indicators 

and Identification of additional key indicators will enable performance 

measurement 

� Current IT Supports: existing IT solution (Out of scope for the moment) 

� Required data description: list of data to track and trace along the chain 

� Constraints to be taken into account: identification of all constraints to be taken into account 

before building solution. 

5.2. Define and Implement the Marketing & Sales Strategy – Process Description 

Define Define and and Implement Implement the the Marketing Marketing & & Sales Sales strategy 

strategy 

Analyse Global 

Market & 

Competition 

Update 

Positioning 

Update 

Service 

Offerings 

Manage 

Service 

Offerings 

• Add / Delete routes 

• Update route frequencies 

• Modify service offerings 

• Re-allocate aircraft and catering 

equipment 

• Adjust supplier contracts 

• Buy new aircraft and new 

catering equipment 

There is no need to describe in detail this process. This process allows the user to determine Catering 

Equipment needs following the addition / deletion of routes, the adjustment of frequencies on existing 

routes, as well as the modification of service offerings. 

The need for new Catering Equipment will be fulfilled by purchasing equipment, covered by the ‘’Procure 

Catering Equipment’’ process. 

When 

equipment is purchased it becomes 

part of the asset to be managed. This is covered in the ‘’Manage 

Catering 

Equipment Asset’’ process. 



5.3. Manage Catering Equipment Asset – Process Description 

Existing 

Target 

Analyse Life 

Cycle Statistics 

Manage Manage Catering Catering Equipment Equipment Asset 

Asset 

• Repair Equipment when Broken 

• Replace Condemned Equipment 

• Prevent Equipment Breakable through 

Preventive Maintenance Programme 

• Plan Equipment Retirement 

5.4. Procure Catering Equipment – Process Description 

Manage Procurement 

Contracts & Request 

Quotation 

Plan 

Shipment 

Allocation 

Procure Procure Catering Catering Equipment 

Equipment 

Purchase 

Catering 

Equipment 

Receive 

Catering 

Equipment 

Plan 

Replacement 

Monitor 

Shipment 

Allocation 

Monitor and 

Manage Supplier 

Contracts 

There is no need to develop this process at that stage of the study. On the other hand it is important to keep 

in mind that this process is linked from the operational point of view to the processes ‘’Provide Inflight 

Service’’ and ‘’Manage Logistics’’. 

When buying catering equipment, a chipset (i.e. the quantity of trolleys required to fill all aircraft galley 

positions) is used, three to five chipsets are purchased with the aircraft. In addition, once a year, a certain 

quantity of trolleys is purchased to replace those condemned during the year. 



5.5. Provide Inflight Service – Process Description 

5.5.1. Level 1 – Macro Level 

Plan Inflight Service 

Operations 

5.5.2. Level 2 – Overview 

Determine Catering Equipment Requirements 

Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 

Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 

Build Trolleys 

Measure, Analyse and Improve 

Provide Provide Inflight Inflight Service 

Service 

Operate 

Inflight Service Activities 

Plan Inflight Service Operations 

Operate Inflight Service Activities 

Manage and Track 

Manage & Track 

Pre-flight In-flight Post-flight 

Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 

Offload Receive 

Trolleys Trolleys Ship Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 

Inspect 

Trolleys 


© INTERNATIONAL AIR TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION 2007 

Store 

Food 

Trolleys

5.5.3. Level 2 – Determine Catering Equipment Requirements 

Plan Inflight Service Operations 



Description Physical Area Stakeholders 

1. Issue monthly Flight Provisioning Plan by station 

to Caterers (flight number, origin, destination, 

departure time, days of week, aircraft type, meal 

code by class of service, bar code, duty free code, 

poly bag loading (i.e. items boarded outside trolleys 

and carriers)) 

HQ Airline 

2. Calculate Catering Equipment allocation by 

station, by type of equipment, to support busiest 

day of the week during the month 

HQ Airline 

3. Communicate to Caterers revisions to the 

Catering Equipment Allotment Plan 

HQ Airline 

4. Conduct equipment inventory / advise Airline of All parts of the Catering Caterer 

current equipment inventory and of equipment 

requirements to meet new allotment plan 

Facility 

5. Redistribute equipment amongst stations, when 

appropriate, on a monthly basis 

Related documents 

� Flight Provisioning Plan 

� Catering Equipment Allotment Plan 

Equipment Store Caterer 

� Fax-form may be used for equipment inventory reporting, or e-mail 

Comments 



� Usually each Catering Facility asks for more equipment then it really needs to keep a reserve 

(buffer 

stock). 

� Airlines have little control over their trolleys, 

carriers 

and other equipment. 

There is no 

information regarding: 

� Age of trolleys, 

� Number and types of trolleys in the fleet, 

� Data needed for future requirements, 

� Flow of equipment (on aircraft, at Catering 

Facilities, at Equipment Stores, at Repair Facilities, at 

Bonded Facilities, on transport). 

Therefore: 

� Trolleys and equipment treated as cost, not as inventory 

(as assets, leased equipment, etc.) 

� Life cycle cost analysis not possible 

� Warranty and modification work not possible 

� Equipment procurement not supported (planning difficult, specification input, 

etc.). 

Questions 

Main issues Impacts / Measurable information to share 

� Airlines often do not take into account 

operational peaks and valleys during the 

day in the calculation of equipment 

allocation 

� Caterers perform equipment inventories 

manually 

� Redistribution of equipment amongst 

stations is necessary to ensure 

operations but this cost is not measured 

or controlled 

� Caterers usually keep a buffer stock of 

trolleys, carriers and other equipment, 

which is costly for the airlines (overstock) 

� Inventory may include errors and is costly 

for caterers (labour intensive) 

� Uncontrolled cost burden 

Needs Added value 

� Automate trolley inventory control 

� Know in real time where all trolleys are 

and in which quantity 

Current Key indicators Request for further key indicators 

Current IT Support Required data description 

� Internet-based communication for 

inventory reporting (depends on Airline / 

Caterer collaborative level achieved) 

Constraints to be taken into account 



5.5.4. Level 2 – Operate Inflight Service Activities 

Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 

Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 

Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 

Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 



Operate Inflight Service Activities 

Pre-flight In-flight Post-flight 

Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Ensure Daily Catering Equipment Requirements 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 

Offload 

Receive 

Trolleys 

Trolleys 

Ship Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 



Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 


1. Ensure that for a particular flight the required 

quantity of equipment is available – one day before 

flight 


2 When missing equipment, use buffer stock 



Comments 

� Daily check of equipment quantities is done manually and is time consuming. 

� Airlines have little control over their trolleys, carriers and other equipment. 

Questions 


� In practice, it seems the inventory 

control is not performed, especially 

when Catering Facility serves lots of 

different airline customers with daily 

flights 


� Calculate automatically the required 

number of trolleys on a daily basis by 

type, by Airline 

� Simulate / plan / control 

real trolley stock 

by type, by Airline 

� Automate trolley inventory control 

Inspect 

Trolleys 

Inspect 

Trolleys 

� Difficulty to get visibility on real equipment 

needs 

� Reduce over stock to an optimized level 

(cost savings) 

� Reduce labour costs 

� Know in real time what 

each Catering 

Facility has in stock 



� Internet-based communication for 



Store 

Food 

Trolleys 

Store 

Food 

Trolleys

inventory reporting (depends on Airline / 

Caterer collaborative level achieved) 


Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 


Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 


Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Offload 

Trolleys 

Receive 

Trolleys 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 

Ship Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 

Inspect 

Trolleys 


1. Pick up Airline X serviceable food trolleys from 

Equipment Store by type for a particular 

flight 


2. Prepare and print Flight Labels Food Prep/Commissary Caterer 

3. Attach correct Flight Label to proper trolley Food Prep/Commissary Caterer 

4. Build trolleys with galley equipment Food Preparation Caterer 

5. Build trolleys with TSU + food Food Preparation Caterer 

6. Build trolleys with dry food Commissary Caterer 

7. Re-build trolleys with bar Bonded Facility Caterer 

8. Re-build trolleys with duty free Bonded Facility Caterer/Duty 

Free 

Supplier 

9. Identify and attach U/S Tag on U/S trolleys Food Prep/Commissary 

Caterer/Duty 

Free 

/Bonded Facility Supplier 

10.Ship U/S trolleys back to Equipment Store for Food Prep/Commissary 

Caterer/Duty 

Free 

eventual shipment to Repair Facility 

/Bonded Facility Supplier 

11. Prepare Customs Docs for bar / duty free Bonded Facility Caterer/Duty 

Free 

Supplier 

12. Note trolley number and/or seal number on Bonded Facility Caterer/Duty 

Free 

Customs Docs 

Supplier 

13. Prepare Catering Manifest 


Food Prep/Commissary Caterer 

� Flight Labels show flight number / date / galley position / trolley content. 

� Customs Docs are government requirements. 

� Numbered seals. 

� U/S Tags. 

� Catering Manifest. 

Comments 

� Through-away RFID tags for meals, bar items and duty free items. 

� This will involve manufacturers 

of bar items and duty free items. 

Questions 

� RFID embedded flight labels? 


� Although most Catering Facilities use 

software to prepare 

Flight Labels, these 

still need to be printed and placed on the 

� Labour intensive. Risk of error 

proper trolley 

� Customs Docs must be prepared, most 

of the time manually 




Store 

Food 

Trolleys

� Identifying trolley number and/or seal 

number on Customs Docs is a manual 

process at most 

Catering Facilities 


• Identified U/S trolleys are 

not usually sent back to 

Equipment Store and will be 

loaded onto truck and 

aircraft, since it is estimated 

too late in the process 

• Impacts 

onboard quality of 

service and irritates Cabin 

Crew 


� Automatically assign trolley and its 

contents (number 

of meals, special 

meals; duty free and bar items) to a flight 

� Cost savings. Increase process reliability 

number/date 

� Automatically prepare Customs Docs 

� Automatically identify U/S trolleys 

� Automatically link trolley, its contents 


� Avoid loading U/S trolleys 


and seal number 

used 

to Customs Docs 

� Automatically prepare and update 

Catering Manifest 

� Cost savings. Increase process 

reliability 



Software to prepare and print Flight Labels. � Type of contents 


Food 

Preparation area may be hot/cold. 

Risk of liquids. 

Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 

Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 


Return Duty 

Free Trol leys 

to Catere r 

Re-build Duty Free Trolleys 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Offload 

Trolleys 

Receive 

Trolleys 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 

Ship Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 


1. Unseal and unlock duty free trolley Bonded Facility Duty Free 

Supplier/Caterer 

2. Verify the seal number by using the handheld Bonded Facility Duty Free 

selling tool (if applicable) or on Customs Docs 


3. Download sold items data from the handheld Bonded Facility Duty Free 

selling tool onto the database 


4. Verify duty free trolley’s contents (manually) Bonded Facility Duty Free 


5. Re-build duty free trolley based on Airline Bonded Facility Duty Free 

specifications 


6. Write seal number on Customs Docs and key Bonded Facility Duty Free 

the seal number in the handheld selling tool (if 

applicable) 


Inspect 

Trolleys 



Store 

Food 

Trolleys

7. Fill a ‘’Loading / Update Contents’’ document Bonded Facility Duty Free 


8. Put the handheld selling tool in duty free trolley Bonded Facility Duty 

Free 

(if applicable) and lock and seal duty free trolley 



� Customs Docs 

� Loading / Update Contents 

Comments 

Questions 


� Verification of duty free trolley’s contents 

is done manually and sometimes the 

inventory contains counting errors. 

� Labour intensive. 

� Compliance with Airline specifications 

should really be done after duty free 

trolley is locked and sealed. 

� Impacts accounting and billing directly. It 

also can impact relationship with the 

Airline. 


� To verify duty free trolley inventory 

automatically. 

� Labour savings. Reduce risk of error. 

� To automatically 

confirm re-built duty 

free inventory against Airline 

specifications. 

� Increase product compliance. 




Ensure Daily Build Trolleys 

Move 


Move 

Load 

Trolleys 

Catering 

Trolleys 

Equipment 

Return Duty to 

Equipment Re-build Return Duty to 

onto 

Requirements Duty Free Free Trolleys Staging 


Truc ks 

Trolleys to Caterer Area 

Return Duty Free Trolleys to Caterer Facility 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 



Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 


1. Assemble built duty free trolleys from Airline X 

for shipment to Caterer Facility Y 

Outbound dock Duty Free Supplier 

2. Load onto truck for delivery to Caterer Facility Outbound dock Duty Free Supplier 

3. Drive truck to Caterer Facility Road Duty Free Supplier 

4. Unload duty free trolleys from truck Inbound dock Duty Free Supplier 

5. Sign transfer of responsibility document Inbound dock Duty 

Free 


Inspect 

Trolleys 



Store 

Food 

Trolleys

6. Transfer duty free trolleys to Secure Room Secure Room Caterer 


� Transfer of responsibility document 

� Invoice 

Comments 

� Duty Free Supplier may handle several airlines using different caterers. 

Questions 


� Some trolleys may be missing during 

loading process (not all picked-up) 

� Impacts 

the process time delivery 

� Trolleys not put in the right truck 

� Impacts the process time delivery 


� Identify trolleys leaving the Bonded 

� We know what goes out of the Bonded 

Facility 

Facility (real time inventory 

control) 

� Ensure all trolleys 

are picked-up and the 

right ones / Facilitate sorting 

� Visibility and compliance with service / 

order 

� Timestamp to indicate when duty free 

cycle end. 

� Manage turnaround time 


� Turnaround time 


� End duty free cycle 


� Inbound and Outbound docks are 

opened to outdoor conditions (i.e. –40c 

to +40c, 0% to 100% humidity, 

with sun, 

snow, rain, etc.) 

� Lots of metal around. 

� Lots of radio frequencies (walkie-talkies, 

etc 

� Trolleys are banged around. 

� High volumes. 

Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 


Move 

Clean Food 

Load Deliver 

Trolleys 

Operate 

Trolleys 

Trolleys Trolleys 

Offload Rec eive 

Re-build Return Duty to 

on 

onto to 

Tr olleys Trol leys Ship Duty 

Duty Free Free Trolleys Staging 

Board 

Trucks Aircraft 

Free Trolleys 


to Du ty Free 

Move Trolleys to Staging Area 


1. Move built trolleys into chillers Staging - Chillers Caterer 

Inspect 

Trolleys 



Store 

Food 

Trolleys

2. Move built trolleys into ambient temperature area Staging - Ambient Caterer 

3. Prepare oven racks and entrées (frozen meals) Staging Caterer - Dispatcher 

4. Verify content (specs 100%), check Flight 

Labels; count the equipment and any poly bags 

5. Complete security check based on local 

regulations, and food safety check (temperature 

probe) 

6. Seal trolleys and note seal numbers on the 

Catering Manifest (only duty free and bar) 

7. Sign the Security Declaration Form (specifying 

there is no prohibited items in the catering) 


� Security 

Declaration Form 

� Catering Manifest 

Comments 

Questions 

Staging Caterer - Dispatcher 





� If a food trolley is not placed in the right 

area, the cold chain may be broken 

� Serious food safety breach 

� Bar trolley is not placed in the right area 

(for instance white wine in chillers) 

� Decreased 

quality 

� The service delivery team does not 

verify all the trolleys. Even if verified, 

errors may occur. 

� Labour intensive. Items may be missing 

from trolley 


� Trigger automatically a warning before 

the cold chain is 

broken and save 

� Cost savings. Increased food safety 

contents 

� Trigger automatically 

a warning when a 

� Keep quality of products 

trolley does not go to the right area 

� Automate trolley content verification. 





� Temperature may be from –40c to 40c. 



etc.). 




Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 

Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 


Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Prepare and Load Trolleys onto Trucks 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 

Offload Rec eive 

T rolleys Trol leys Ship Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 

Inspect 

Tr olleys 


1. Assemble Airline X trolleys for a given flight Staging Caterer - Driver / Loader 

2. Move trolleys to the Outbound Dock Outbound Dock Caterer - Driver / Loader 

3. Conduct security check of trucks (prior to loading 

must ensure there is no prohibited items inside 

the 

truck) 

Outbound Dock Caterer - Driver 

4. Segregate by galley as per aircraft type and 

destination 

Outbound Dock Caterer 

- Driver / Loader 

5. Take 

Catering Manifest, check trolleys and verify 

seals 

Outbound Dock Caterer - Driver 

6. Load trolleys into trucks Truck Caterer - Driver / Loader 

7. Seal the trucks Truck Caterer - Driver 

8. Complete Security Documentation Form Truck Caterer - Dispatcher 

9. Drive to appropriate aircraft for the flight Tarmac Caterer - Driver 


� 1. For bar and duty free, this is done from Commissary / Bonded Facility / Secure Room 

� Catering 

Manifest 

� Security Documentation Form (Sealing of the vehicle): 2 copies are given to the Driver, one for 

the airport security who uses it to check the seal number on the truck and the second one kept 

by the Driver; one is also kept by the Dispatcher 

Comments 

� The Dispatcher in the previous activity 

who checks and counts trolleys regarding requirements 

fills the Manifest and then the Driver or Loader counts 

and checks the Manifest. 

Questions 

� Readers on the trucks? 


� Some trolleys may be missing during 

loading process (not all picked-up) 


� Trolleys not put in the right trucks 


� Trolley temperature checking 

is required 

but only done randomly 

� Risk of breaking the cold chain 


� Identify trolleys leaving the Catering 

� We know what goes out the kitchen (real 

Facility 

time inventory control) 

� Ensure all trolleys are picked-up and the � Visibility and compliance with service / 

right ones / Facilitate sorting 

order 

� Record temperature information from 

each trolley and trigger warning if the 

cold chain is broken 

� Cost savings. Increased food safety 



Store 

Food 

Tr olleys


� Count leaving trolleys 


Constraints to be taken into account Event 

� Outbound Dock is opened to outdoor 

conditions (i.e. –40c to +40c, 0% to 

100% humidity, with sun, snow, rain, 

etc.) 



etc 


• Risk of liquid spills. 

• High volumes. 

Move 


Load 

Trolleys 

Catering 

Trolleys 

Equipment 

Return Duty to 

Equipment Re-build Return Duty to 

onto 



Tr ucks 


Deliver Trolleys to Aircraft 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Offload 

Trolleys 

Re ceive 

Trolleys 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 

Ship Duty 

Free Trolle ys 

to Duty Fre e 

Inspect 

Trolleys 


1. Place each trolley into proper galley position Aircraft Caterer 

2. Verify catering plan and Catering Manifest Aircraft Caterer and Senior Crew 

Member 

3. Check seal numbers 

Aircraft Cabin Crew 

4. Obtain crew signature for catering (on the 

Catering 

Manifest) 

Aircraft Caterer 

5. Check the number of meals vs. PAX count, 

special meals 

vs. PAX orders and crew meals 

Aircraft 

Cabin Crew 

6. Check the final pax loading figures and adjust 

meal supply as necessary plus other supplies 

(done half an hour 

prior to door closing) 

Aircraft Caterer 

7. Order last minute meals + critical other stuff 


� Catering Manifest 

Comments 

At the gate, truck, at 

airport 

Cabin Crew 

� Through-away RFID tags for meals, bar items 

and duty free items. 

� This will involve manufacturers of bar items 

and duty free items. 

Questions 

� Readers on aircraft? 


� Bar & duty free items are not checked � Items may be missing for service. 



Store 

Food 

Trolleys

(due to customs restrictions) 

� Verification by Caterer of trolley loading � Risk of error may affect inflight service 

against catering plan is usually done 

only on long haul flights. 

later on. 

� Cabin Crew sign Caterer Manifest but 

have no time to verify that all items listed 

have actually been delivered. Usually 

Cabin Crew only has time to check that 

all meals have been delivered. 

� Risk of invoicing errors. 

� Last-minute 

� Items may be missing 

for inflight service 

ordering is not 

necessarily 

available on all 

flights. 

later on. 


� Automate meal counting process by 

� Eliminate Cabin Crew errors in counting 

applying throw-away RFID tags on each 

meals against time pressure. Improve 

meal during food preparation. 

inflight service. Reduce risk of invoicing 

� Allow galley check by acquiring 

bar 

items and duty free items with throw- 

errors. 

� Improve inflight service. Reduce risk of 

away RFID tags already applied. 

invoicing errors. 

� Trigger automatically a warning 

before 

the cold chain is broken 

and save 

contents. 

� Cost savings. Increased food safety. 




� Ramp is opened to outdoor conditions 

(i.e. –40c to +40c, 0% to 100% humidity, 

with sun, snow, rain, etc.). 



etc.). 


� Risk of liquid spills. 



Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 

Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 


Operate Onboard Aircraft 

Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Offload 

Trolleys 

Receive 

Trolleys 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 

Ship Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 

Inspect 

Trolleys 


1. Unlock the trolleys and remove the seals Aircraft Airline - Senior Cabin 

Crew 

2. Check contents for completeness Aircraft Airline – Cabin Crew 

3. Serve the passengers Aircraft Airline – Cabin Crew 

4. Sell duty free items to passengers Aircraft Airline – Cabin Crew 

5. Use the handheld selling tool to record sold duty 

free items 

Aircraft Airline – Cabin Crew 

6. Fill out Customs docs and Sales Report for duty 

free items 

Aircraft Airline – Cabin Crew 

7. Print twice the inventory from the handheld Aircraft Airline - Senior Cabin 

selling tool (sold items and remaining contents) 

8. One printed inventory report is left in the duty 

free trolley, while the second one is kept by the 

Senior Cabin Crew 

9. Input seal number into the handheld selling tool, 

as well as on Customs docs 

10. Put the handheld selling tool into the duty free 

trolley and lock and seal the trolley 

11. Add another specific seal with Senior Crew 

Crew 

Aircraft Airline - Senior Cabin 

Crew 


Crew 


Crew 


Cabin number 

Crew 

12. Identify and attach U/S Tag on U/S trolleys Aircraft Airline – Cabin Crew 

13. Stow trolleys for landing Aircraft Airline – Cabin Crew 


� U/S Tags show what is defective on trolley (brake, wheel, lock, magnet, appearance, etc.) 

� Customs Docs 

� Sales Report 

� Airlines may also sell bar and meals. 

Comments 

Questions 

� Are crews encouraged to report faulty equipment? 


� Cabin Crew can make errors in counting 

items sold. 

� Lack of visibility on true sales. 

� Shrinkage of items does occur. 

� Increased cost of sales. 

� Cabin Crew are reluctant to tag U/S 

trolleys as they have no confidence that 

this tagging will actually 

result in the 

trolley being fixed. 

� Unsafe practice that leads to trolleys being 

used again for operations before being 

repaired (perhaps many times). 



Store 

Food 

Trolleys

Needs Added 

value 

� Know exactly in which trolley(s) specific 

meals are loaded and for whom 

� Improve service 

� 

Ensure that U/S ID can only be 

cancelled by Maintenance staff. 


� Ramp is opened to outdoor conditions 


� 

Ensure U/S trolleys are not used for 

operations again prior to being 

repaired. 




� Cabin pressurisation cycles 

� Risk of liquid spills (hot, cold, sticky) 

Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 

Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 


Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Offload Trolleys from Aircraft 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 



Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 


1. Offload trolleys from aircraft Aircraft Caterer 

2. Drive trucks to Catering Facility Tarmac Caterer 


Comments 

� Customs do not require to seal trucks as long as the bar and duty free trolleys are sealed 

Questions 

� Should RFID readers be installed in trucks? 

� Should RFID readers be installed at aircraft 

doors? 


� Damage of equipment during transport � Costly 

repairs 


� Track where and how many times 

trolleys are identified as damaged 

� Plan maintenance requirements 




Inspect 

Trolleys 

Store 

Food 

Trolleys

Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 

(i.e. –40c to +40c, 0% to 100% humidity, 

with sun, snow, 

rain, etc.). 

• Lots of metal around. 

• Lots of radio frequencies 

(walkie-talkies, etc.). 

• Trolleys are banged around. 

• Risk of liquid spills. 

Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 

Receive Trolleys 


Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Offload 

Trolleys 

Receive 

Trolleys 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 

Ship Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 


1. Empty the trucks Inbound dock Caterer 

2. Split food trolleys and non-food trolleys Inbound dock Caterer 

3. Empty food trolleys and remove Flight Labels Receiving Caterer 

4. Send food trolleys to cleaning area Receiving Caterer 

5. Send non-food trolleys to Commissary/Bonded 

Facility 


Receiving Caterer 

� Flight Labels, put on when trolleys were dispatched, are removed prior to cleaning. 

Comments 

� This is where most trolley damage occurs. 

Inspect 

Trolleys 

Questions 

� How many doors are used on inbound dock? Depends on catering size: will need 

a survey 

� Which door(s) are used to receive trolleys coming back from Repair Facility, Duty 

Free Supplier 

or being delivered from airline store? Depends on caterers 

� Should RFID readers be installed in the trucks and at all 

Inbound Dock doors? 

Current Main issues Impacts / Measurable information to share 

� Blank U/S Tags need to be available on 

board each aircraft and at all Caterer 

� Paper process is costly to manage. 

� 

Facilities. 

U/S Tags are usually not completed 

properly by Cabin Crew or Caterer staff 

and are not really used by Maintenance 

staff. Maintenance 

staff usually inspects 

the trolley and carry out necessary 

repairs, regardless of what the U/S tag 

says. 

� Wasted resources spent on completing 

U/S Tags when info is not really used. 

� U/S trolleys are often emptied first, along 

� Sub-optimal process since U/S trolleys 

with serviceable trolleys, before being 

may be sent to the cleaning area at times 

segregated. Since U/S Tags are 

when serviceable ones may be required 

attached to trolley doors and since 

for operations. U/S Tags may also be 



Store 

Food 

Trolleys

trolley doors were opened to empty 

them, Caterer staff often do not notice 

U/S Tags and send U/S trolleys to the 

cleaning area along 

with serviceable 

ones. 

� Sometimes U/S trolleys are sent to the 

Repair Facility prior to being emptied 

and/or cleaned. 

� Airline operations present peaks and 

valleys which means that trolleys also 

come in with peaks and valleys during 

the day. 

� Most airlines do not know how many 

cycles each trolley has gone through. 

� Caterer staff do not keep track on 

received trolleys, 

even manually 

accidentally removed during this process, 

which means that U/S trolleys may be 

used for operations again prior to being 

repaired. 

� Additional costs incurred to ship back U/S 

trolleys to the Caterer Facility to be 

emptied and/or cleaned. 

� Trolleys must wait in line to be emptied 

and cleaned. Temporary overstock also 

puts pressure on available 

space. 

� Most airlines have not implemented a 

Preventive Maintenance Programme 

(PMP) for their trolleys. 

� No inventory control. 


� Remove paper process for U/S trolley 

identification. 

� Cost savings. Increase process reliability. 

� Remove requirement to show what 

is 

broken on U/S ID. 

� Increase efficiency 

� Allow for automated detection of U/S 

trolleys at Inbound Dock and 

ensure that 

U/S ID can only be cancelled by 

Maintenance staff. 

� Allow for automated inventory control. 

� Automatically keep track of how many 

U/S trolleys are received. 

� Facilitate segregation. Ensure U/S trolleys 

are not used for operations again prior to 

being repaired. 

� Know how many trolleys 

come into 

Caterer Facility (by Airline and by type). 

� Improve trolley repair workload planning. 

Current key indicators Requ est for further key indicators 

� Time to turnaround 

� Type of trolley (half 

size, full size) 

� Quantity by type 

of trolleys and for each 

area 

� Age of trolley 


� Serial number 

� Part number 

� Its standard (Atlas / KSSU) 

� One week tracing history 

� Details on last repair(s) 


� Inbound dock is opened to outdoor 

conditio ns ( i.e. –40c to +40c, 0% to 




etc.). 

� Receiving area is cold/hot, wet and dirty 

(food, sticky 

liquids, etc.). 


• Lots of radio frequencies 

(walkie-talkies, etc.). 

• Trolleys are banged around, 

tipped over, etc. 

• High volumes. 



Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 

Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 

Clean Food Trolleys 


Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 



Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 


1. Identify which trolleys should be cleaned 

according to operational priorities 

Cleaning Caterer 

2. Process trolleys through cleaning machine Cleaning Caterer 

3. Segregate trolleys by Airline and by type 


Cleaning Caterer 

Comments 

Inspect 

Trolleys 

Questions 

� Do U/S Tags go through cleaning machine? If not, how do U/S Tags end up at Repair Facility 

with the proper trolley and how are U/S trolleys identified to make sure they do not end up back 

in operations before being repaired? 

� What types of chemicals are used? 

� What process is used when cleaning machine is broken? What deviation from cleaning 

temperature and types of chemicals used is involved then? 



� Allow for automated detection of U/S 

trolleys at Cleaning and ensure that U/S 

ID can only be cancelled by 


� Facilitate segregation. Ensure U/S trolleys 






� Trolleys may end up going from –40c to 

+110c. 

� Many types of chemicals are used. 

� Drying method can involve airflow or 

heat. 




Store 

Food 

Trolleys

Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 

Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 


Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Ship Duty Free Trolleys to Duty Free Supplier’s Bonded Facility 

Offload 

Trolleys 

Receive 

Trolleys 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 

Ship Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 

Inspect 

Trolleys 


1. Segregate duty free trolleys from other non-food 

trolleys 

Inbound dock Caterer 

2. Store duty free trolleys in Secure Room Secure Room Caterer 

3. Pick up duty free trolleys from Secure Room Secure Room Caterer 

4. Load duty free trolleys onto truck for delivery to 

Duty Free Supplier’s bonded facility 

Outbound dock Caterer 

5. Sign transfer of responsibility document Outbound dock Caterer/Duty Free 

Supplier 

6. Drive truck to Duty Free Supplier’s bonded 

facility 

Road Duty Free Supplier 

7. Unload duty free trolleys from truck 


� Transfer of responsibility document 

Comments 

Inbound dock Duty Free Supplier 

� Whether a Duty Free Supplier is used or not depends on Airline. Otherwise, Caterer re-builds 

duty free trolleys. 

� Re-building duty free trolleys is usually only done at one of the Airline’s hub. 

Questions 

� Frequency of shipment to Duty Free Supplier? 

� Which doors are used to ship duty free trolleys to Duty Free Supplier? 

� Does Caterer staff keep track of shipped du ty free trolleys manually (by Airline and by type)? 


Needs Added 

value 

� Automatically keep track of how many � Improve planning 

of Duty Free Supplier 

duty free trolleys 

are shipped to Duty 

Free Supplier. 

workload. 

� Automatically identify 

each duty free 

trolley’s inventory. 

� Further improve planning 

of Duty Free 

Supplier workload. 


duty free trolleys are received at Duty 

� Confirm receipt of entire shipment. 

Free Supplier. 

� Timestamp to indicate when a trolley is 

shipped to Duty Free supplier 

� Manage Turnaround time 


� Turnaround Time 


� Start duty free cycle 



Store 

Food 

Trolleys


� Inbound and Outbound Docks are 

opened to outdoor conditions 

(i.e. –40c 

to +40c, 0% to 100% humidity, 

with sun, 

snow, rain, etc.). 



etc.). 

� Trolleys are banged around, tipped over, 

etc. 


Ensure Daily 

Ca tering 

Eq uipment 

Requirements 

Inspect Trolleys 

Re-build 

Duty F ree 

Trolley s 


Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Offload 

Trolleys 

Receive 

Trolleys 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 

Ship Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 


1. Identify already tagged U/S trolleys (tagged by Cleaning – Holding 

/ Caterer / Duty Free 

Cabin Crew) 

Bonded Facility Supplier 

2. Identify and tag additional U/S trolleys Cleaning – Holding 

/ Caterer / Duty Free 

Bonded 

Facility Supplier 

3. Segregate U/S trolleys Cleaning – Holding / Caterer 

/ Duty Free 

Bonded Facility Supplier 


� U/S Tags 

Comments 

Questions 



� Timestamp to indicate when a trolley is 

taken out of service 




Inspect 

Trolleys 



Store 

Food 

Trolleys


� Start repair cycle 




Ensure Daily 

Catering 

Equipment 

Requirements 

Re-build 

Duty Free 

Trolleys 

Store Food Trolleys 


Return Duty 

Free Trolleys 

to Caterer 

Move 

Trolleys 

to 

Staging 

Area 

Load 

Trolleys 

onto 

Trucks 

Deliver 

Trolleys 

to 

Aircraft 

Operate 

on 

Board 

Clean Food 

Trolleys 



Free Trolleys 

to Duty Free 


1. Store serviceable trolleys by Airline and by type Equipment store Caterer 

2. Pick up U/S trolleys from Cleaning - Holding 

area and segregate U/S trolleys by Airline, by type 

Cleaning - Holding Caterer 

3. Store U/S trolleys by Airline 


� U/S Tags 

Equipment store Caterer 

Inspect 

Trolleys 

Comments 

� Non-food trolleys are not stored but simply replenished in the Commissary / Bonded Facility. 

Questions 


� Since U/S trolleys can only be repaired 

at one of the airline’s hub, there are 

many ways to ensure U/S trolleys 

reaching a hub. They can be shipped by 

truck or in the belly. However, too often, 

the U/S Tag is simply removed and the 

trolley put back in service. 

� Since airlines and Caterers do not really 

know how many trolleys are needed to 

support operations and how many 

serviceable trolleys are on hand, 

overstock situations exist. 

� Unsafe practice which forces Cabin Crew 

to re-tag the trolley as unserviceable. 

� Overstock puts pressure on available 

space. 


� Allow for automated detection of U/S � Facilitate segregation. Ensure U/S trolleys 

trolleys at Equipment Store and ensure 


that U/S ID can only be cancelled by 



� Allow for automated inventory control. � Know how many trolleys are needed 

to 

support operations and how many 

serviceable trolleys are on hand. 






Store 

Food 

Trolleys


� Dust. 

5.6. Maintain Catering Equipment – Process Description 

5.6.1. Level 1 – Macro Level 

Define the 

Maintenance & Repair 

Programme 

Maintain Maintain Catering Catering Equipment 

Equipment 

Maintain & Repair 

Catering Equipme 

nt 

Manage 

and Track 

Several 

ways of managing repair activities exist, such as: 

� Send U/S trolleys to Airline Shop at the Airline’s hub 

� Send U/S trolleys to a Repair Supplier, outsourced solution 

� Use a so-called mobile facility which consists of repairing 

U/S trolleys in an equipped vehicle 

� Repair U/S trolleys directly in Catering Facility, fully equipped to repair trolleys. This solution 

provides a quicker rotating and faster turnaround. 

5.6.2. Level 2 – Define Maintenance & Repair Programme 

Define the 

Maintenance & Repair 

Programme 

Maintain Maintain Catering Catering Equipment 

Equipment 

Maintain & Repair 

Catering Equipment 

Define the 

•Repair U/S Trolleys 

Ship U/S 

Maintenance & 

• Destroy non repairable 

Trolleys 

Repair Programme Trolley 

s 

Define Maintenance & Repair Programme 

Returned 

Repaired 

Trolleys 

Manage & 

Track 

Measure, 

Analyse 

and Improve 


1. Define maintenance programme HQ Airline 

2. Define systematic maintenance HQ Airline 

3. Define predictive maintenance 


HQ 

Airline 

� Component Maintenance Manual (from Manufacturer) 

Comments 

� Knowing how many cycles each trolley has gone through is essential to implementing a 

Preventive Maintenance Programme. 

Questions 





� Historical repair data � To develop Preventive Maintenance 

Programme 




5.6.3. Level 2 – Maintain & Repair Catering Equipment 

Ship U/S Trolleys to Repair Facility 


1. Pick up Airline X U/S trolleys from Equipment Equipment store / Caterer 

Store and from Bonded Facility 

Bonded Facility 

2. Inform the Airline and the Repair Supplier (if 

applicable) about the quantity of trolleys to be 

repaired 

Outbound dock Caterer 

3. Load onto truck to be delivered to Repair Facility 

and confirm loaded quantity 

Outbound dock Airline / Repair Supplier 

4. Drive truck to Repair Facility and stop at the 

Airline’s warehouse 

for flow visibility if a Repair 

Supplier is used (if applicable). 

Document 

� U/S Tags 

Comments 

Road Airline / Repair Supplier 

� The Repair Facility designated by Airline is usually only at one of the Airline’s hub. 

� The Repair Facility can be the Airline shop or a Repair Supplier. 

� Frequency of shipment: once a week usually 

� When 

the Airline utilises its warehouse as a checkpoint the Airline also provides an equipment 

buffer stock 

� Some Caterer Facilities have maintenance staff walk around 

to perform quick repairs on site. 

Questions 

� Does Caterer staff keep track of shipped U/S trolleys manually 

(by Airline and by type)? 

� RFID readers at Repair Facility (Inbound/Outbound)? 

� Catering 

Facility sizing: 

• How many doors are used on 

Outbound 

Dock? 

• Which door(s) are used to ship 

U/S 

trolleys to Repair Facility? 


� Caterer does not deliver U/S trolleys to 

be repaired as not enough serviceable 

trolleys for operating properly 

� U/S trolleys used for operations. 



U/S trolley s are shipped 


� Improve trolley repair workload 

planning. 



U/S trolleys are received 

• Timestamp to indicate when 

a trolley is taken out of 

service 

� Improve trolley maintenance 

planning 

� Manage Turnaround Time 


• Analyse for each individual � Turnaround Time 

equipment the number of 

times it went to the Repair 

Facility 


� Start repair cycle 


� Outbound Dock is opened to outdoor 

conditions (i.e. –40c to +40c, 0% to 


etc.). 



etc.). 


etc. 


Repair U/S Trolleys 


1. Receive U/S Trolleys Repair Facility Airline / Repair Supplier 

2. Record received trolleys per Airline, per type Repair Facility Airline / Repair Supplier 

3. Stock the received equipment Repair Facility Airline / Repair Supplier 

4. Identify repair to be made (diagnostic phase) Repair Facility Airline / Repair Supplier 

5. Split reparable trolleys and non-reparable 

trolleys 

Repair Facility Airline / Repair Supplier 

6. Repair reparable trolleys Repair Facility Airline / Repair Supplier 

7. Document resolution (type of repairs, repair 

time) & archive it 


8. Stock the repaired equipment Repair Facility Airline / Repair Supplier 

9. Count repaired trolleys per Airline, per type Repair Facility Airline / Repair Supplier 

10. Count non-reparable trolleys per Airline, per 

type 


11. Inform the Airline about the number of nonreparable 

trolleys 


12. The Airline informs the company which is going 

to destroy non-reparable trolleys 

HQ Airline 

13. The airline is at the destruction process Repair Facility Airline / Repair Supplier 

14. Update of trolley asset inventory by taking 

account 

of non-reparable trolleys 


HQ Airline 



� Invoice 

� Airworthiness Certificate of Conformance (only delivered once when new material is purchased) 

� Document resolution 

� Release to service document 

Comments 

� Scan of the trolley by handheld scanner to identify it 

� Trolleys are identified by their part number and serial number, engraved on the trolley 

� 2. D one with Information System and share information with the Airline (collaborative approach) 

� 7. Done with Information System and share inform ation with the Airline (collaborative approach) 

Questions 

� Provide timeline estimation to the Caterer / Airline? 


� Regulators may decide to enforce 

� Needs to record of maintenance events 

stricter maintenance controls 

and actions per individual part and serial 

� 

number (already done?) 

� Sometimes trolleys from other Airlines 

are received and need to be sent back 

� Trolleys out of service longer. 


� Automated cross-check: The ones that 

have been shipped have been correctly 

received at the Repair facility and the 

ones that have been send back to the 

Caterer have also been correctly 

received 

� Asset control. 

� Registration of what actions are 

performed. Can be summarized in a 

number of predefined “Work Scopes” 

(“Heavy, Medium, 

Light Maintenance”). 

� Registration of what materials and 

spares are consumed and 

used. Can be 

summarized in a number 

of predefined 

“Kits” plus one open definition. (“Top- 

ten-list” incl. 

cost values). 

� Release to service document: Log data 

corresponding to Form One or 

Certificate of Conformance. 


� Age of trolley 

� Trolley Type and Brand 

� Types of reparation 

� Turnaround time to repair 

trolleys 





� Repair facility docks are opened to 

outdoor conditions (i.e. –40c to +40c, 

0% to 100% humidity, with sun, snow, 

rain, etc.). 



etc.). 


� Equipment ID (Airline, item number) 

� Date of coming into service 

� Serial number and Part number 

� Supplier 

� Maintenance History 



Return Repaired Trolleys 


1. Assemble repaired trolleys from Airline X for 

shipment to Caterer facility Y 


2. Load onto truck for delivery to Caterer facility Outbound dock Airline / Repair Supplier 

3. Drive truck to Caterer facility and stop at the 

airline warehouse for flow visibility if a Repair 

Supplier is used (if applicable). 

Road Airline / Repair Supplier 

4. Unload trolleys from truck at Caterer facility Inbound dock Airline / Repair Supplier 

5. Send trolleys to Equipment Store Equipment Store Caterer 

6. Store trolleys by Airline, by type Equipment Store Caterer 

7. Send Repair Supplier invoice to the Airline 

Document 

� Invoice 

Repair Facility Repair Supplier 

� Airworthiness Certificate of Conformance (only delivered once when new material is purchased) 

� Document resolution 

Comments 

� Trolleys are usually sent back once a week, and it also depends on contract agreement 

Questions 

� RFID Readers at Repair Facility (inbound / outbound)? 


� Sometimes trolleys from other Airlines 

are received and need to be sent back 

� Trolleys out of service longer 

Needs Added 

value 

� Automated cross-check: The ones that 

have been shipped have been correctly 

received at the Repair Facility and the 

ones that have been send back to the 

� Asset control 

Caterer have 

also been correctly 

received 


� Timestamp 

to indicate end of repair 

cycle. 



Current IT Support 


� Outbound dock is opened to outdoor 

conditions. 

� Lots of metal, frequencies (walkietalkies, 

etc.) around. 


etc. 

Required data description 

� End Repair Cycle 



5.6.4. Level 2 – Manage & Track the Maintenance Performance 

Measure, Analyse and Improve 


1. Produce statistics Repair Facility Airline/Repair Supplier 

2. Manage maintenance forecasts Repair Facility Airline/Repair Supplier 

3. Prepare predictive activities Repair Facility Airline/Repair Supplier 

4. Access repair history and analyse in detail Repair Facility Airline/Repair Supplier 

5. Identify trolley strength & weakness per type, per Repair Facility Airline/Repair Supplier 

lifecycle position 

6. Define performance improvement plan Repair Facility Airline/Repair Supplier 

7. Put the performance improvement plan in place Repair Facility Airline/Repair Supplier 

Document 

Comments 

Questions 



� Trolley specification & Historical data � To improve Preventive Maintenance 

Programme 


� Cost 

� Turnaround Time 

� Quality 


� Time and material per shop visit 

� Number of days per trolley from 

separation until return to normal operation 

� Number of flight cycles between 

separations based on U/S Tag. 

Constraints to be taken into account Note: 



� 

“Specification” is an initial part of 

“Procurement” and this process can be 

improved. New designs can be improved 

by use of historical data on the 

performance of existing designs. Early 

RFID systems (individual identification and 

automatic detection) demonstrated the 

possibility to provide data related to “Life 

Cycle Cost” issues, i.e. provide insight on

the true cost of owning one trolley type 

versus another. 



6. User Requirements 

6.1. Criteria used for User Requirements prioritization 

The following criteria shall be used to prioritize the user requirements for an implementation by phase. A first 

prioritization has been performed in this document. Further analysis, such as taking into account cost and 

return on investment shall be taken in a second step when evaluating the Business Case. 

Identified criteria: 

� Performance level, added value, return on investment 

� Complexity (implementation) 

� Cost (investment & operating) 

� Constraints (Regulation constraint – Third body involved, 

e.g. FAA, CAA…) 

� Technical requirements and Technology maturity 

Priority 1 

Priority 2 

Priority 3 

Priority 4 

Highest Priority: 

Readers at Inbound / Outbound docks Catering Facility and ability to record basic 

operational status of trolley (serviceable, unserviceable, condemned) 

Requirements 

defined as Priority 1* shall be implemented first, only if really required. 

High Priority: 

Readers 

at Repair Facility, Duty Free Supplier Bonded Facility and Warehouse 

Intermediate Priority: 

Is relevant to have but not as a Top priority, usually 

and/or 

specific constraint (certification is required, etc.) 

Low Priority: 

At 

maturity 

6.2. The track & trace approach 

The principle is to have a trolley & content traceability solution 

stores 

data, accessible to relevant stakeholder(s) at anytime. 

due to complexity, and/or cost, 

aligned with processes that captures and 

This will allow improvement in inventory control, asset management and resource planning to manage 

effectively 

and efficiently inflight activities. 

"Track" 

"Track" 

"Trace" 

"Trace" 

Track, Track, capture, capture, localise localise in in real real time 

time 

Reproduce Reproduce the the process process step step by 

by 

step 

step 

Attributable Attributable to 

to 

Data Data loading loading and and real 

real 

time time use use & & control 

control 

A A posteriori posteriori / / history 

history 

analysis 

analysis 





6.3. 

Structured of required data 

Trolley Trolley 

Identification 

Identification 


Contents 

Contents 


Status Status 

Date / Time recor recorded ded 

Date / Time reco recorded rded 

each time there iis 

s a 

each time there iis 

s a 

status change 

status change 

Specific Specific tto 

tto 

o 

Food Food Trol Trolley Trol Trolley ley ley 

• • Unique Unique Trolley Trolley IDentifier IDentifier UITD 

UITD 

•Trolley •Trolley Owner 

Owner 

• • Trolley Trolley Operational Operational Airline 

Airline 

• • Owner Owner Part Part Number 

Number 

• • Manufacturer Manufacturer Part Part Number 

Number 

• • Manufacturer Manufacturer Serial Serial Number 

Number 

Detailed Detailed Contents 

Contents 

• • Item Item number number / / Quantity 

Quantity 

recorded recorded as as items items placed placed in 

in 

trolley 

trolley 

Operational Operational Status 

Status 

• • Serviceable 

Serviceable 

- - Washed Washed / / Not Not Washed 

Washed 

- - Assigned Assigned to to flight 

flight 

number number / / date: 

date: 

�� Ready 

Ready 

�� Not Not Ready 

Ready 

- - Not Not assigned assigned to to flight 

flight 

number number / / date 

date 

• • Unserviceable Unserviceable (U/S) 

(U/S) 

• • Condemned 

Condemned 

Temperature Temperature Sensor 

Sensor 

• • Recorded Recorded Temperature 

Temperature 

inside inside food food trolley trolley at 

at 

regular regular intervals 

intervals 

AND 


Information 

Information 

Location Status 

• Catering 

- Kitchen: 

�� Inbound docks 

�� Cleaning Area 

�� Equipment Store 

�� Staging Area: 

�� Chiller 

�� Ambient 

�� Outbound docks 

- Commissary 

- Bonded Facility: 

�� Inbound docks 

�� Outbound docks 

Specific Specific to to 

Duty Duty Free Free 


www.iata.org/stbsupportportal 

45 IATA Simplifying the Business 


•Trolley •Trolley Type 

Type 

(KSSU, (KSSU, ATLAS, ATLAS, other) 

other) 

• • Trolley Trolley Usage 

Usage 

(Food, (Food, Bar, Bar, Duty Duty Free, Free, Other) 

Other) 

• • Service Service Date 

Date 

•Purchase •Purchase Price 

Price 

• • Type Type of of Repairs Repairs & & Costs: 

Costs: 

- - Labour 

Labour 

- - Spare Spare parts 

parts 

-Materials 

-Materials 

• • Total Total Owner Owne rshi shi p p Cost 

Cost 

• • Number Number of of fl f ight lig ht cycles 

cycles 

• • Number Number of of repair repair cycles 

cycles 

• • Acceptable Acceptable Substitutions 

Substitutions 

• Trucks 

• Airline 

- Repair Facility 

- Warehouse 

- Aircraft 

• Duty Free Supplier 

Facility 

- Inbound docks 

- Outbound docks 

• Repair Supplier 

- Inbound docks 

- Outbound docks 

Open Open / / Close Close Tracking 

Tracking 

• • Seal Seal Number 

Number 

• • Date Date / / Time Time recorded recorded each 

each 

time time trolley trolley is is opened opened / / closed 

closed 

Data definition: 

� Unique Trolley Identifier - UTID: a way to uniquely identify a trolley 

� Trolley Usage: note that sometimes a duty free trolley will be used for food if short trolleys 

� Substitutes: trolleys capable of making up for the shortage of a trolley originally intended.

Trolley Operational Status - Tree Analysis Description 

Serviceable 

Serviceable 

Not Not washed 

washed 

Washed 

Washed 

Not Not assigned 

assigned 

Assigned 

Assigned 

Not Not ready ready 

Ready Ready 



6.4. Operational user requirements 

Main assumptions: 

� An RFID tag is installed on each trolley 

� Readers are installed at Inbound / Outbound docks of each Catering Facility 

� The User Requirements UR 03 to UR09 can be implemented by the Airlines and integrated with their legacy systems. The project focuses on identifying and 

developing common Technical Hardware and Software as well as common data capture and Interface. 

# Description Added Value 

Manage Catering Equipment Asset 

Trolley 

Content 

Type 

UR 01 Identify each trolley as a unique asset � Track & trace each asset ALL 

UR 02 

Record chronological trolley data / 

information (date, time, location status, 

operational status) 

UR 03 Use chronological trolley data / information 

UR 04 

UR 05 

UR 06 

Use U/S trolley status information (date, 

location, type of damages, frequencies) 

Use chronological transfers of 

responsibilities 

Record time spent by trolley in each 

Catering Zone 

� Statistics & History flow 

analysis 


analysis 

� Plan maintenance 

requirements 


analysis 

� Process visibility for further 

improvement 

UR 07 Calculate Trolley life expectation � Plan future needs & 

replacement 

UR 08 Analyse Trolley cycle � Process visibility ALL 

UR 09 

Dashboard consultation for performance 

analysis 

� Performance Tracking & 

Optimization 


ALL 

ALL 

ALL 

- 

ALL 

ALL 

ALL 

Prerequisites Impact if not implemented Priori 

ty 

Mandatory No project 1 

Tracking & Tracing 

solution in place 















Low Visibility, poor 

performance improvement 















1 

1 

1 

1 

4 

1 

1 

1


Trolley 

Content 

Type 


ty 

UR 10 

Plan Equipment Retirement 

Identify trolleys scheduled for retirement 

Determine Catering Equipment 

Requirements 

� Ability to build accurate 

replacement planning 

ALL 

1 

UR 

11a 

Develop 

Catering Equipment Allotment 

Plan 

Ensure Daily Catering Equipment 

Requirements 

� Anticipate and 

optimize 

operations 

ALL 

1 

Trolley flow expectation arriving/leaving � Prevent flow disruption 

UR 12 Catering Facility (weekly & daily basis) per 

type, airline, contents 

Alarm Notification when available trolley 

� Reduce overstock to an 

optimized level (cost savings) 

ALL 1 

UR 13 

volume is below defined availability 

threshold, taking 

into account acceptable 

substitution 


� Prevent lack of trolley ALL 1 

UR 14 

Assign trolley from proper airline to a 

specific flight number / date in the system 

� Process conformance 

� Product compliance 

Except DF System No project 

1 

UR 15 

Write flight number / date to trolley RFID 

Tag 

� Track & trace each asse t Except DF 

1* 


3 

UR 16 

Assign contents to a trolley (already 

assigned to a flight number/ date) by item 

and quantity in the system and confirm 

against airline specifications 


� Labour saving (eliminate 

final 

check) 

� Invoice error reduction 

Except DF 

Manufacturer to tag 

bar items 

Caterer to tag meals 

/ special meals 

No contents tracking 

www.iata.org/stbsupportportal 48 IATA Simplifying the Business


Trolley 

Content 

Type 


ty 

UR 17 * Write contents to trolley RFID Tag Except DF 

Extra large Tag 

Memory 

UR 18 

Assign trolley to a staging area zone in the 

system 


� Preserve Quality 

Except DF No alarm if in wrong zone 

UR 19 

Automatically prepare Customs Docs and 

Catering Manifest by using data 

recorded 

in the system 

Re-build Duty Free Trolleys 

� Labour savings 


E xcept DF 

UR 20 

Assign Duty 

Free trolley from proper airline 

to a specific flight number / date in the 

system 



DF 

Readers at Duty 

Free Supplier 

Bonded Facility 

and 

system 

access (read 

and write) 

No inventory data and 

trolley status 

from Duty 

Free Supplier Bonded 

Facility 

UR 21 

Write flight number / date to Duty Free 

trolley RFID Tag 

� Track & trace each asset 

DF 

UR 22 

Assign Duty Free contents to a Duty Free 

trolley (already assigned to a flight 

number/date) by item and quantity in the 

system and confirm against airline 

specifications 



� Labour saving (eliminate final 

check) 


DF 


Duty Free items 

No Duty Free contents 

tracking 

UR 23* 

Write contents to Duty Free trolley RFID 

Tag* 

DF 

Extra large Tag 

Memory 

UR 24 

Automatically prepare Customs Docs and 

Catering Manifest by using data recorded 

in the system 

� Labour savings 


DF 

UR 25 

Timestamp to indicate when Duty Free 

Building ends 

� Turnaround Time Management DF 

No Turnaround Time 

Management 

* 

User requirement w as reviewed and discussed by Task Force and ultimately not included as a requirement for inflight services 


4 

3 

1 

1* 

3 

3 

3


Trolley 

Content 

Type 


ty 

Return Duty Free Trolleys to Caterer 

Facility 

� Facilitate duty free trolley 

2 

UR 26 

Identify duty free trolleys for a specific 

airline and flight number / date 

sorting to ensure all duty 

free 

trolleys are picked up for 

loading onto appropriate trucks 

for a specific Caterer Facility 

(i.e. also specific airline) 

� Visibility and product 

compliance 

DF 

Readers at Duty 

Free Supplier 

Bonded 

Facility and 

system 

access 

( Read only) 

No inventory data and 

trolley status from Duty 

Free 

Supplier Bonded 

Facility 

UR 27 

Identify duty free trolleys leaving the Duty 

Free Supplier Bonded Facility 

Move Trolleys to Staging Area 

� Real time inventory control DF 

2 

UR 28 Identify trolleys entering the Staging Area � Real-time inventory control ALL 4 

UR 29 

Consult for a specific flight number/date 

trolley readiness status (ready, not ready) 



ALL 

3 

UR 30 Ensure all trolleys are ready for a specific flight number/date 



ALL 

3 

UR 31 

Monitor and record temperature inside 

trolley and trigger alarm before cold chain 

is broken 

� Increase food safety 

� Save contents 

FOOD 

RFID tag inside 

trolley or 

temperature probe 

linked 

to RFID tag 

No cold chain monitoring 

4 

UR 32 

Monitor trolley location and trigger alarm if 

in the wrong zone of the staging area 

Prepare and Load Trolleys onto Trucks 


� Preserve Quality 

Except DF 

Readers in staging 

area 

No zone control 

4 

UR 33 

Facilitate trolley sorting to ensure all 

trolleys are picked up for loading onto 


� Visibility and product 

ALL 

1 



Trolley 

Content 

Type 


ty 

appropriate truck for a specific flight 

number/date 

compliance 

UR 34 

Identify trolleys leaving Catering Facility 

and timestamp to stop catering cycle 

� Real time inventory control ALL 

1 

UR 35 



is broken 

Deliver Trolleys to Aircraft 



FOOD 


trolley or 


linked to RFID tag 


4 

UR 36 Identify in which aircraft trolleys are loaded � Real time inventory control ALL 

Readers on aircraft 

doors and / or 

portable readers and 

/ or readers in trucks 

No confirmation 

that 

trolleys were loaded on 

aircraft 

3 

Readers 

on aircraft 

4 

UR 37 

Provide trolley content verification on 

board 



� Product shrinkage 

reduction 

ALL 

doors and/or 


system on board to 

access data (Read 

only) 

No content verification on 

board 

UR 38 

Identify where items are located in each 

galley on board 

� Improve customer service 

� Facilitate cabin crew work 

ALL 

4 

UR 39 



is broken 

Operate Onboard Aircraft 



FOOD 


trolley or 


linked to RFID tag 


4 

UR 40 

Record door opening / closing date for 

Duty Free trolleys 

� Operation tracking for 

shrinkage control 

DF 

3 

UR 41 

Write on RFID Tag status U/S to identify 

U/S trolleys and record date � Ensure U/S trolleys 

are not put ALL 



No change of operational 

status 

4 



UR 42 

UR 43 

UR 44 

UR 45 

UR 46 

Ensure that U/S ID can only be cancelled 

by Maintenance staff 

Offload Trolleys from Aircraft 

back into operation until 

repaired 

� Cabin crew frustration 

reduction 

� Safety improvement 

� Eliminate paper U/S tag and 

labour to fill out 

� Ensure U/S trolleys are not 

used for operations again prior 

to being repaired 

Identify from which aircraft trolleys are off � Real time inventory control 

loaded � Automatic ID of U/S trolleys 

Receive Trolleys 

Identify trolleys entering the Catering 

Facility and timestamp to begin catering 

cycle 

Identify leftover contents of duty free 

trolleys entering the Catering Facility 

Identify leftover contents of bar trolleys 

entering the Catering Facility 

� Real time inventory control 

� Calculation of number of cycles 

� Improve Duty Free Supplier 

workload planning 

� Allow for product 

sales analysis 

� Product shrinkage reduction 

� Facilitate product sales 

reconciliation 

� Improve workload planning 


Trolley 

Content 

Type 

ALL 

ALL 

ALL 

DF 

Bar 


ty 


system 

on board to 

access data (read & 

write) 



portable readers 

and/or readers on 

trucks 


duty free items 


bar items 

No confirmation that 

trolleys were offloaded 

from aircraft 

1 

3 

1 

3 

4


UR 47 

UR 48 

UR 49 

UR 50 

UR 51 

Identify 

U/S trolleys entering the Catering 

Facility 

Identify repaired trolleys entering the 

Catering Facility 

Clean Food Trolleys 

Ship Duty Free Trolleys to Duty Free 

Supplier’s Bonded Facility 

Identify Duty Free trolleys leaving the 

Catering Facility for Duty Free Supplier 

Bonded Facility. Timestamp 

in the system 

to show start of Duty Free cycle 


� Labour saving 


� Ensure U/S trolleys are 

segregated 

� Improve repair facility workload 

planning 


� Turnaround time management 


� Turnaround Time Management 

Identify 

the Duty Free trolleys entering the � Real time inventory control 

Duty Free Supplier Bonded Facility 


Inspect Trolleys 

Declare trolleys as U/S 


� Ensure U/S trolleys are 


Trolley 

Content 

Type 

ALL 

ALL 

DF 

DF 


ty 

Caterer to tag meals 

/ special 

meals 

Readers 

at duty free 

supplier 

bonded 

facility 

and access to 

system 

to access 

data 

ALL In system 

No 

inventory control and 

trolley 

status from Duty 

Free 

Supplier Bond 

Facility 

No U/S trolley tracking and 

no accurate asset 

management 

4 

1 

2 

2 

1


UR 52 

UR 53 

UR 54 

UR 55 

UR 56 

UR 57 

Store Food Trolleys 

Ship U/S Trolleys to Repair Facility 

Identify U/s trolleys leaving the Catering 

Facility for Repair Facility and timestamp to 

segregated 


� Turnaround Time Management 

start repair cycle � Improve repair facility workload 

planning 

Identify U/S trolleys 

arriving at Repair � Real time inventory control 

Facility � Turnaround time management 

Repair U/S Trolleys 

Record actions performed 

in the system 

on each trolley 

� Enable lifecycle cost analysis 

� Improve trolley specification for 

future 


Record material/spares used on each 

trolley in the system � Improve trolley specification for 

future 

Record release to service for each trolley 

in the system and cancel U/S Tag status 

on RFID Tag 

Return Repaired Trolleys 

Identify repaired trolleys leaving the Repair 

Facility and timestamp to end repair cycle 


� Improve trolley specification for 

future 


� Turnaround time management 


54 IATA Simplifying the Business 

Trolley 

Content 

Type 

ALL 

ALL 

ALL 

ALL 

ALL 

ALL 


ty 

Readers (handheld) 

at repair facility 


at 

repair facility and 

system access (read 

& write) 


at repair facility and 

access to system to 

input/access data 

No 

inventory control and 

trolley status from Repair 

Facility 

No inventory control and 

trolley 

status from Repair 

Facility 

1 

2 

2 

2 

2 

2


55 IATA Simplifying the Business

6.5. Technical requirements 

The technica l potential solution(s) shall 

take into account existing constraints. 

Durability Climate conditions 

From dock to cleaning � Thermic shock from –40 to 110 degree Celsius 

At Outdoor conditions � -40 to +45 degree Celsius 

� 0 to 100% humidity 

� Sun, rain, snow, dust 

At Cleaning area � Water / Vapour 

� Chemicals 

At Drying area � Airflow 

� Heat 

On board Aircraft � Cabin Pressure cycle 

Reading Capacity 

At Docks � Be robust to anti-collision: high volume of trolleys to identify, 

with multiple items in each trolley 

� Mounted to protect tags on trolleys as they are banged around, 

tipped over and so forth 

Reading Interferences 

At Docks � Be capable of metal mounting 

� Be robust to interference and not cause interference to others 

(lots of radio frequencies such as Walky talkies, other RF 

technology in use) 

� Be robust to anti-collision between readers 

� Be able to read trolley while moving 

Read Range In Locations 

� Read distance long enough to be read across each dock door 

Safety / Security Placement of Reader to prevent damage 

� In floor, or 

� Above doors 

Safety Radio Frequency Band 

� Power emitted by reader should comply with local health and 

safety legislation 

Standard Common platform 

� Worldwide Standard or Recommended Practice is required 

Certification On board Aircraft 

� Certification for any equipment boarded on aircraft to be 

obtained 

Regulations Radio Frequency Band 

� Radio frequencies shall be in line with regulation requirements 

Other Constraints 

Liquid spills � Tags shall withstand conditions that are hot, cold, sticky 

www.iata.org/stbsupportportal © INTERNATIONAL AIR TRANSPORT 56 ASSOCIATION IATA Simplifying 2007 

the Business

Security Data Access 

� Segregation of data by user 

� Secure read/write capability for RFID Tag – authorised write 

Time to respond Wake – Sleep / Read cycle 

� Tag shall wake, respond within 0.5 second 

Life of Tag 

� Tags shall be capable of use for a period of a least 7 years 

without maintenance

INFLIGHT CATERING Process Analysis and User ... - IATA

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