Best Practices

SMART Best Practice Guideline Specification Sheets (a.k.a., SMART Sheets), are developed to specify/document best practices for various aspects of airport technology applications.  

SMART Sheets may be used by airport owners to develop more effective technology procurement specifications, as well as by technology solution providers to better develop/implement solutions that meet airport business needs.  

SMART Sheets are short (i.e., 1-2 page), concise, stand-alone, modular documents; avoiding the cumbersome nature of large standards/guidelines addressing a large scope.  The short nature of SMART Sheets facilitate their development, rollout, and adoption; providing airport owners and solution providers timely guidance as technology rapidly evolves.

SMART Sheets are developed by the SMART Best Practice Committees and submitted to SMART’s Board of Directors for review and approval.  SMART Sheets may be revised/updated as needed, based on industry feedback and technology evolution.  

SMART prepares and publishes articles on select airport use-cases of technologies improving their capacity, safety, and customer level of service.  These SMART Best Practice Use-Case Articles are developed to educate airports on examples of proven solutions to be replicated.

These articles are prepared by SMART Best Practice Committees, and reviewed and approved by the SMART CEO and corresponding airport showcased, and the corresponding technology solution provider.  These articles are distributed freely via SMART’s website and LinkedIn site.

SMART Best Practice Webinars are offered on an ongoing basis to share newly developed best practices with airport owners and their solution providers, contributing to the mission of SMART helping airports improve various technology applications.  

Webinars include introduction of newly developed best practices, documented as SMART sheets by SMART Best Practice Committees; introduction of new state-of-the-art technology offerings; review of airport use-case studies and lessons learned from a technology application; and review of academia research theses for airport technology applications.

SMART Best Practice Webinars are hosted via Zoom and offered free of charge to SMART members.  Presenting a SMART webinar by a SMART professional member involves a fee to the presenter.  SMART airports, government, academia, and sponsoring associates, are able to present webinars for free.  Webinars are recorded and distributed to SMART members.  SMART webinars are reviewed and approved for quality assurance, by SMART’s CEO, prior to webinar delivery.

The SMART blog provides a mechanism to our members for industry technology news and answers to question on best practices.  Our blog can be accessed from this website's menu.

The SMART Use Cases Journal is published once per year to showcase a collection of airport industry leading technology applications from around the globe.  The purpose for the Journal is to highlight successful examples from across the industry, for airports to follow and leverage to improve their respective enterprises.  

The journal is published in January to launch the new year and in time for SMART's February annual AIRPORTECH Symposium.  The Journal is published electronically and limited hardcopy prints.  The Journal is distributed freely to SMART members.  Hardcopies may be distributed at the annual SMART Symposium. 

SMART hosts its primary annual educational symposium -- AIRPORTECH --during the first week of February, showcasing state-of-the-art technology solutions for airports, airport proven use-cases with lessons learned, and best practices published by SMART’s committees.  

AIRPORTECH includes an awards banquet recognizing select airports with industry leading examples of technology applications.  

Moreover, AIRPORTECH hosts annual face-to-face SMART Committee meetings, including a special meeting between the SMART Board of Directors and its Advisory Committee, consisting of airport technology innovation directors, providing input on needed areas of technology best practice research and development.

In order to assist airports achieve successful and sustainable technology implementations, SMART offers airport owners, airlines, government agencies, and technology solution providers with tailored best practice training workshops, and best practice guidance and certification oversight for projects and programs.