Author: Никита Фансков

The invisible chaos behind the scenes of aviation kitchens

In the giant catering complexes of international airports, where tens of thousands of on-board rations are prepared and packaged daily, there is a complex ecosystem of kitchen equipment, whose turnover resembles a well-established but extremely fragile mechanism. Each pan, heating trolley, and serving tray, worth hundreds of dollars, runs a complex route from a centralized kitchen through storage areas, loading terminals, and all the way to the aircraft cabin, where it begins its return journey after use. Traditional accounting systems based on paper logs and manual checks have long been unable to cope with the scale of modern air transportation, creating control gaps that result in millions of losses for airlines.

Modern digital tracking systems for on-board kitchen equipment are complex technological complexes combining RFID tags, Bluetooth beacons, UWB locators and cloud-based analytical platforms. Unlike outdated accounting methods that require hours of inventory and are prone to human error, the new solutions offer continuous monitoring of each piece of kitchen equipment in real time, creating a digital twin of all airline equipment. When a heated trolley leaves the catering company's warehouse, the system not only records this event, but can also predict its further route, automatically detecting anomalies and potential losses.

The anatomy of Smart control: from Tag to Cloud

The heart of the modern on–board equipment control system is a network of sensors and identifiers that turn ordinary kitchen items into connected IoT devices. Each piece of equipment is equipped with a special tag capable of withstanding extreme temperatures of washing and disinfection, while maintaining the ability to transmit a signal at a distance of up to 100 meters. These tags, working in symbiosis with a network of receivers deployed throughout the airport – from the kitchen workshops to the apron areas – create a detailed digital map of movements with an accuracy of up to 30 centimeters, which is especially critical in conditions of limited space in cargo compartments and onboard kitchens.

Dubai International Airport, after implementing an RFID tracking system for 85,000 avionics, reported a 67% reduction in inventory losses in the first year of operation. But more importantly, the system made it possible to identify non–obvious bottlenecks in logistics chains where equipment was delayed for no apparent reason. Data analysis showed that about 15% of food carts spent an extra 2-3 hours in transit areas due to suboptimal return routes. After optimizing these processes, the airport was able to reduce the total fleet of equipment by 12%, saving more than $3 million annually on purchases of new inventory alone.

Passenger experience: invisible concern for comfort

For premium class passengers waiting for delicious meals on board, equipment monitoring systems become a guarantee that specially ordered gastronomic experiences will not turn into disappointment due to lost equipment on the way to the plane. Intelligent tracking systems allow catering services to track in real time that a specific caviar feeding kit or a special baby food heater has already been loaded on board and is in its proper place. This is especially critical for transit flights, where equipment can be overloaded several times between planes, creating potential points of failure in a complex logistics chain.

Qatar Airways was able to reduce the number of incidents with missing serving items in business class by 82% after the introduction of a precision tracking system for on-board equipment. The system, integrated with the flight attendants' mobile devices, warns staff in advance of any deviations from the loading plan, allowing them to quickly resolve problems before they become noticeable to passengers. As a result, the level of satisfaction with on-board meals increased by 18 percentage points according to annual surveys, which for the premium segment airline is directly converted into customer loyalty and repeat bookings.

Airport staff: from chaotic searches to transparent control

For catering staff and ground staff, equipment tracking systems become digital assistants, eliminating the endless search for a specific cart or serving set among thousands of similar ones. Mobile terminals with integrated navigation through the interior of the airport allow you to find the necessary equipment in minutes, rather than hours, as it used to be. This feature is especially valuable in the huge warehouse complexes of hub airports, where business class inventory alone can occupy several thousand square meters of shelving space.

At London Heathrow, the introduction of an equipment positioning system for 12,000 catering staff has reduced the average search time for a specific item from 47 to 6 minutes. But more importantly, the system automatically records who took specific equipment and when, creating a transparent system of responsibility. After the system was launched, the number of inventory damage cases decreased by 41%, as each employee now knew that their actions with the equipment were being recorded and could be analyzed later in the event of an incident.

Warehouse logistics: from manual accounting to digital flow

На складах бортового оборудования, где хранятся тысячи наименований инвентаря общей стоимостью в десятки миллионов долларов, системы трекинга совершают настоящую революцию в методах управления. Умные стеллажи с RFID-антеннами автоматически фиксируют поступление и выдачу каждого предмета, исключая возможность «исчезновения» оборудования между инвентаризациями. Системы компьютерного зрения, дополняющие RFID-технологии, способны распознавать повреждения на ранней стадии – например, микротрещины в керамической посуде или деформацию металлических частей тележек, – что позволяет своевременно выводить такой инвентарь из оборота до того, как он станет причиной инцидента на борту.

Singapore-based catering company SATS, after implementing the smart warehouse system, was able to increase equipment turnover by 23% without expanding warehouse space. This was made possible by accurately analyzing the actual return dates of each type of inventory and optimizing its storage. By analyzing historical data, the system has learned to predict peak loads on specific types of equipment before holidays or major events, allowing resources to be redistributed between different airport warehouses in advance.

Traffic flows: synchronization of ground operations

Особая сложность в управлении бортовым кухонным оборудованием возникает на этапе транспортировки между кухней, складом и самолетом. Специализированные грузовики и тележки, курсирующие по перрону, часто становятся «черными ящиками», где теряется контроль над инвентарем. Современные системы трекинга решают эту проблему, устанавливая датчики не только на само оборудование, но и на транспортные средства, создавая полную цифровую цепочку перемещений. Когда тележка с подогревателями пищи покидает кухню, система автоматически проверяет соответствие списка загруженного оборудования заданию на рейс, сразу выявляя возможные ошибки.

At Frankfurt Airport, the introduction of such a system has reduced the number of errors when loading on-board equipment by 73%. Every truck heading to the plane is now equipped with a tablet that shows the driver in real time the list of inventory to be loaded and its exact location in the back. This is especially important in the maintenance of wide-body aircraft, where loading takes place through several doors at the same time, and any error in the distribution of equipment can lead to flight delays.

Boarding: precision precision before departure

The final and most crucial stage in the chain of movement of on–board kitchen equipment is its loading into the aircraft. Here, tracking systems are integrated with the aircraft's on-board systems, creating a digital twin of the entire loaded inventory. Flight attendants use their tablets to get an accurate layout of each piece of equipment in the kitchen areas, which is crucial for operational passenger service during the flight. If a cart was mistakenly loaded onto the wrong plane, the system will instantly detect this discrepancy and alert staff before the doors close.

Delta Airlines, after implementing the precision loading control system, was able to reduce the number of flight delays related to on-board power problems by 68%. The system automatically checks the loaded equipment against the menu of a particular flight, immediately identifying inconsistencies. For example, if pork carts were mistakenly loaded onto a flight with a majority of Muslim passengers, the system will give a signal before the plane departs from the gate, allowing you to quickly correct the situation and avoid a potential conflict on board.

The Future of smart control: from tracking to forecasting

The development of control systems for on-board kitchen equipment is moving towards the integration of artificial intelligence and predictive analytics. Modern systems are already beginning to not only record the current state, but also predict equipment wear, optimal routes for its movement, and even potential points of failure in logistics chains. In the future, this will lead to the creation of fully autonomous on-board inventory management systems, where most decisions will be made by algorithms based on the analysis of huge amounts of historical and real data.

Lufthansa Technik is already testing a system that, based on tracking data and usage analysis, can predict the need to repair or replace kitchen equipment before it fails. This is especially important for expensive specialized devices such as on-board ovens or coffee machines, the downtime of which can seriously affect the quality of service in the premium class. In the future, such systems will be able to automatically order spare parts or even new inventory, maintaining optimal inventory levels without excessive costs.

Conclusion: digital transparency as a competitive advantage

For modern airlines and airports, on–board kitchen equipment control systems are no longer just an accounting tool - they are becoming a strategic asset that affects key business indicators. Reducing losses of expensive inventory, optimizing logistics processes, preventing flight delays, and increasing passenger satisfaction are all directly translated into financial results and reputational benefits.

Indoors Navigation, with its unique experience in developing precision positioning systems for complex infrastructure facilities, offers the aviation sector comprehensive solutions that combine high tracking accuracy with deep analytics and ease of integration into existing processes. In an industry where every minute of downtime results in thousands of dollars in losses, and a lost serving set can ruin a passenger's experience of the entire flight, digital transparency in flight equipment management is becoming not a luxury, but a necessity.

Когда каждый предмет бортового инвентаря – от дорогой кофемашины до простой ложки – становится видимым и управляемым на всем пути от кухни до салона самолета и обратно, это меняет саму философию авиационного кейтеринга. Больше нет необходимости держать избыточные запасы оборудования «на всякий случай» – система точно знает, где находится каждый предмет и когда он будет доступен для следующего использования. Нет нужды тратить сотни человеко-часов на ручные проверки и инвентаризации – вся информация доступна в реальном времени. И самое главное – появляется возможность принимать управленческие решения, основанные не на догадках, а на точных данных, собранных со всей цепочки движения бортового оборудования. В этом и заключается подлинная ценность цифровой трансформации в авиационном кейтеринге – она превращает сложный, запутанный процесс в прозрачную, эффективную и предсказуемую систему.

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In huge office centers, where hundreds of employees move between floors every day, in multi–tiered hospital complexes with their endless corridors, on industrial sites the size of a small city - everywhere there is an invisible problem that has not been solved effectively for a long time. It's about accurately recording and tracking the movement of equipment, people, and assets within large enclosed spaces where traditional GPS/GLONASS technologies are powerless. Modern internal positioning systems have become the missing link that turns chaotic traffic into orderly data that brings real economic benefits.

When walls stop being an obstacle: indoor tracking technologies

Modern internal accounting systems are complex ecosystems that combine Bluetooth Low Energy technologies, ultrasonic sensors, RFID tags, and computer vision. Unlike the primitive accounting systems of the past, which required manual data entry or periodic inventories, the new solutions offer continuous monitoring in real time. In bank offices and depositories, this means instant detection of the movement of valuable assets, in hospitals – the ability to quickly find expensive medical equipment, and in warehouses – optimization of logistics flows without stopping work processes.

The transformation that has taken place in transport hubs is particularly significant. Major airports such as Дубай или СингапурFor several years now, internal positioning systems have been used to track trolleys, loading equipment and luggage, which cannot be said about Russian ones. Accuracy of up to tens of centimeters allows you not only to know where an object is located, but also to analyze its movement patterns, identifying bottlenecks in logistics and saving millions on process optimization. When every extra meter of baggage cart travel, multiplied by thousands of flights, turns into significant costs, such systems pay off in an amazingly short time. And such systems pay off even faster when frequent losses of carts and containers of on-board kitchen equipment, which are not cheap at all, are stopped by service companies at different airports.

Office spaces: from chaos to transparency

Modern business centers, especially those owned by large IT companies, have long ceased to be just spaces with workplaces. These are complex organisms with hundreds of laptops, servers, mobile devices, and other valuable equipment circulating daily. Internal accounting systems have transformed the management of these assets from a headache for administrators into a transparent and automated process. Now you don't have to spend hours searching for a specific device – just open a special dashboard where the location of each asset is displayed in real time with the history of its movements and the user's data who took it last.

An interesting case demonstrates one of the campuses Google in California, where the introduction of an equipment tracking system allowed reduce equipment losses by 40% already in the first year of use. But more importantly, it has become possible to analyze exactly how the equipment is used, which rooms are most in demand, and how space can be optimized to improve work efficiency. When it comes to tens of thousands of square meters of office space, such data becomes invaluable for making managerial decisions.

Medicine under control: when every minute counts

In medical institutions, internal accounting systems are no longer just a convenient tool – in some cases, they literally save lives. Modern hospitals are equipped with a huge amount of specialized equipment, which often costs hundreds of thousands of dollars. When a critical ventilator or a valuable drug is urgently needed, and the staff spends precious minutes searching for it throughout the building, an accurate positioning system becomes not a luxury, but a necessity.

The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, after the introduction of the medical equipment tracking system, she reported on reducing the search time for equipment by 65%. But more importantly, it has become possible to analyze the routes of movement of equipment and personnel, identifying non–obvious logistical problems. It turned out that some devices were idle in some wings of the hospital, while in others they were sorely lacking – simply because no one was systematically tracking these movements. Now hospital logistics has become the subject of precise calculations rather than random decisions.

Industry and warehouses: logistics without blind spots

In industrial enterprises and large warehouse complexes, internal accounting systems have revolutionized asset management. When it comes to thousands of pieces of equipment, tools and materials scattered over an area of several hectares, manual accounting becomes not only ineffective, it turns into fiction. Modern solutions allow not only to know the exact location of each facility, but also to automatically account for its movement between areas of responsibility, control access, and even predict the need for maintenance.

Company Boeing At its factory in Everett, it has implemented a tracking system for more than 50,000 tools and fixtures. The results exceeded expectations: the search time for the necessary tool was reduced from 30-40 minutes to 2-3, and losses of expensive equipment decreased by 75%. On an industrial scale, where every minute of downtime costs a lot of money, such systems quickly recoup all the costs of implementation, becoming an integral part of the production process.

Education and Science: when every device is important

В университетских кампусах и научно-исследовательских центрах системы внутреннего учета решают сразу несколько важных задач. Дорогостоящее лабораторное оборудование, которое раньше могло «потеряться» между кафедрами или даже зданиями, теперь находится под постоянным контролем. Библиотечные фонды, особенно редкие издания, получают дополнительную защиту от несанкционированного выноса. Даже обычные проекторы и ноутбуки, которые раньше часто исчезали из аудиторий, теперь можно быстро найти с точностью до конкретной комнаты.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology after the implementation of the equipment tracking system, he reported on cost reduction to replace lost equipment by 60%. But more importantly, it has become possible to analyze the actual load of equipment and optimize its use between different departments. When an expensive scientific device worth hundreds of thousands of dollars is not idle, but is effectively used by different research groups, this directly affects the productivity of the entire institution.

The future of internal accounting: from control to forecasting

Modern systems of internal positioning and equipment accounting are no longer just tracking tools – they are turning into complex analytical platforms. Machine learning allows you not only to fix the current position of an object, but also to predict its movements, identify anomalies in use, and offer space and logistics optimization. Some advanced solutions have already implemented integration with enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, which creates a single digital environment for managing all the assets of the organization.

Indoors Navigation is at the forefront of these technologies, offering solutions that combine high positioning accuracy with deep analytics and ease of integration into existing infrastructure. In a world where resource efficiency is becoming a key competitive advantage, internal accounting systems are no longer optional – they are becoming an essential element of the modern business environment, an invisible skeleton that supports and organizes complex organizational structures.

Когда каждый актив, каждый прибор, каждое устройство в большом комплексе становится видимым и управляемым, это меняет саму философию работы с ресурсами. Больше нет необходимости покупать избыточное оборудование «на всякий случай» – теперь можно точно знать, что есть, где находится и как используется. Нет нужды тратить рабочее время сотрудников на бесконечные поиски – вся информация доступна в несколько кликов. И самое главное – появляется возможность принимать управленческие решения, основанные не на догадках, а на точных данных, собранных в режиме реального времени за счет платформы Индорс Навигейшн. В этом и заключается настоящая ценность современных систем внутреннего учета и позиционирования.

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In the labyrinths of modern cities, where concrete jungles absorb satellite signals and glass skyscrapers distort radio waves, a new era of spatial orientation is being born. Quantum navigation, this amazing synthesis of quantum physics and engineering genius, promises to turn our ideas about how we find our way in the most difficult conditions – especially where traditional technologies are powerlessly silenced: inside buildings, underground, in the depths of the ocean.

Imagine a device capable of sensing motion with an accuracy that surpasses all known analogues. In his heart beats the rhythm of atoms cooled to almost absolute zero, trapped in laser beams. Deprived of the usual heat fuss, these atoms become incredibly sensitive to the slightest changes in the surrounding space. When such a device moves, the quantum states of the atoms change in a special way, allowing the position to be calculated with an accuracy that seems fantastic.

This is not science fiction – in the laboratories of Imperial College London, prototypes of quantum accelerometers have already been created, whose measurement accuracy exceeds conventional sensors by thousands of times. Unlike our usual navigation systems, which depend on the vagaries of satellite communications, these devices operate on the principle of an autonomous inertial system, where each subsequent position calculation follows from the previous one with minimal error.

Why is GPS not enough?

Modern navigation technologies, including GPS and GLONASS, have fundamental limitations.:

• They do not work indoors, underground or underwater.
• Accuracy decreases in urban canyons (up to 5-10 meters)
• Depend on satellite infrastructure

Квантовая навигация обещает революцию в определении местоположения с точностью до сантиметров в любых условиях. Особенно это актуально для indoor-навигации — позиционирования внутри зданий, где традиционные системы бессильны.

How does quantum navigation work?

В основе лежат атомные часы и квантовые акселерометры, которые:

• Acceleration is measured using lasers that cool atoms to temperatures close to absolute zero.
• Changes in the quantum states of atoms are detected
• Allows you to calculate the position without external reference points

Пример: Квантовый акселерометр Imperial College London показывает точность в 1000 раз выше обычных MEMS-датчиков в смартфонах.

Unlike GPS, quantum systems:

• They do not require external signals
• Работают по принципу инерциальной навигации
• Накопление ошибки всего 1 км за 3 дня (против 1 км/час у классических систем)

How does quantum navigation work?

Особую поэзию квантовая навигация обретает в контексте навигации внутри помещений – той самой «проблемы последнего метра», которая годами не давала покоя разработчикам. В то время как обычные системы спотыкаются о бетонные стены и металлические конструкции, квантовые сенсоры, подобно тонким камертонам, продолжают вести свою невидимую симфонию позиционирования.

Решение «проблемы последнего метра» в торговых центрах и аэропортах позволит максимально быстро находить нудные помещения.

The use of this technology to help visually impaired people, for whom independent navigation in complex spaces has always been a serious challenge, is especially touching.

В лондонском аэропорту Хитроу тестируют систему, сокращающую время поиска выхода на 37%.

Medical Applications.

• Navigation of surgical robots with an accuracy of 0.1 mm
• A search system for expensive medical equipment that works even in hospital basements.
• For patients with cognitive impairments, this technology can be a real salvation, allowing staff to instantly find those who get lost in the labyrinths of hospital corridors.

Current developments and prospects

Today, quantum navigation devices still resemble bulky laboratory installations, and their cost is comparable to the price of a luxury car. But the history of technology teaches us that the journey from the first bulky computers to modern smartphones can be surprisingly fast. Already, companies like ColdQuanta are working to reduce the size of quantum sensors, trying to fit revolutionary technologies into a case comparable in size to a shoe box.

Military applications

Experts predict that by 2030 we may see the first commercial samples that are compact enough and affordable for mass use. When this happens, navigation inside buildings will cease to be a headache for architects and developers, becoming an inconspicuous but flawlessly working service, as natural as electric lighting in our homes.

• Navigation of submarines without surfacing
• Positioning in the conditions of electronic warfare
• Work in areas of complete absence of signals

Hybrid solutions with shared use:

1. Quantum sensors
2. Bluetooth beacons
3. Computer vision
4. Computer vision

Architecture example:

Implementation issues

• High cost (from $50,000 per sensor)
• Large dimensions of the equipment
• The need for complex calibration

Quantum navigation opens up new horizons for indoor positioning, offering solutions where traditional technologies are powerless. Company Today, Indoors Navigation is already developing hybrid systems that combine quantum principles with proven methods.

Like many great technologies, quantum navigation is likely to become noticeable only when it completely disappears into our daily lives, becoming an invisible thread that gently leads us through the complexities of the modern world. And then, looking back, we may wonder how we could have done without this amazing synthesis of quantum physics and engineering.

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