Excellence Awards 2022: the winners

Below you can find all the winners from the 2022 Excellence Awards which celebrate the greatest achievements and innovations in the industry. The programme provides a platform to recognise the people and companies that are driving change.

Our programme is designed to highlight excellence within the sector by looking at a range of corporate activities including deals, business projects and company initiatives, both internal and in the community.

You will also soon be able to download our full Awards & Rankings Report which includes all of this year’s rankings, as well as the awards winners, shortlists and company profiles.

Business Expansion is one of our largest categories and looks at the core functions of business operations within the sector.

This consists of any projects that have expanded the company’s footprint in the sector, including: contract wins; launching in new territories; launching new product lines; the acquisition and expansion of facilities and real estate; acquisition of new machinery or other assets; improved logistics; partnerships; and significant staff increases.

View is this year’s winner in the Business Expansion category. During the research period the company secured contracts worth billions due to the exciting and interactive way in which it applied AI to airport infrastructure.

Their View Smart Windows technology, which is the centrepiece of their portfolio, can regulate the amount of natural light in a terminal and reduce heat and glare.

Shortlist

• Alaska Airlines
• Brussels Airport
• IATA
• London Luton Airport
• Raytheon Technologies
• Secom
• The Avion Group
• Václav Havel Airport
• View

Diversity is a subject that should be at the forefront of every modern company’s recruitment strategy and should not be considered as simply an exercise in virtue signalling. The more diverse a workforce, the more representative it is of wider society, which brings clear benefits to any corporation attempting to gain greater insight into the views of its customer base. In addition, more diverse companies have greater appeal to candidates in the jobs market, increasing a company’s chances of hiring the best talent.

In this category we consider any internal company project to improve diversity in the workforce, this can include changes to hiring policies; graduate and apprenticeship schemes; work groups and societies; and subconscious bias training. In addition we look at external company policies and practices aimed at making their products and services more accessible and inclusive.

Kansas City Airport is the winner in our Diversity category with the airport authority chosen because of the priority it has put on accessibility and inclusivity in the design of its new terminal from the very beginning of the design and construction process.

The new facility features a Multi-Sensory Room for people with sensory processing disorders like autism and dementia, a dedicated Meditation Room where passengers can relax after a stressful flight and an Airplane Simulation Room designed to help people with air travel anxiety.

Shortlist

• Changi Airport Group
• Santiago International Airport
• Kansas City Airport
• Mineta San José International Airport

The Environmental category aims to highlight companies that are undertaking projects that reduce their impact on the natural environment or contribute to its general health. With the effects of climate change becoming ever more obvious, corporations have a responsibility to update and change their practices to prevent further damage being caused.

This category includes any projects that have led or will lead to a significant reduction in a company’s environmental impact and carbon footprint. This can include changes to materials and manufacturing, supply chain reviews; reduction in energy use or switches to renewables; recycling initiatives; and carbon offsetting. The category also includes projects that contribute to the environment such as tree planting schemes and river cleaning.

Eve UAM is the winner in our Environmental category due to the partnerships it has set up with prime movers in the financial sector with the aim of establishing a fully-fledged network of eVTOL operators.

The project could finally bring eVTOL travel into the mainstream, and turn Eve UAM into a market leader.

Shortlist

• AF-KLM
• Clean Planet Energy
• Electric Aviation Group
• Eni
• ETH Zurich
• Eve UAM
• ExxonMobil
• Fulcrum BioEnergy
• Honeywell
• Johnson Matthey
• LanzaJet
• Manchester Airports Group
• Marquis

Financing recognises companies and institutions that have raised significant capital during the research period whether it be through corporate finance, the capital markets or fund raising.

This includes any significant raising of finance by a company within the sector, this can include corporate lending, funding rounds and equity and debt capital markets issues including share offers and bond issues. We will be specifically looking at high value deals; novel structures; and companies using (for them) new forms of financing such as high-yield bonds.

Electra.aero is this year’s winner in the Financing category.

The company has banked on hybrid power for its eSTOL vehicles, which has been received well by investors as the aircraft manufacturer performed well in its Series A funding round securing funding from Lockheed Martin’s venture capital arm.

Electra’s eSTOL aircraft feature distributed electric propulsion technology and can carry up to 9 passengers or 1,800 pounds of cargo.

Shortlist

• British Airways
• Electra.aero
• Fiji Airports
• Schiphol
• Volocopter

Innovation is the category with one of the widest scopes within the Excellence Rankings as it looks at novel new approaches in every area, from the fruits of research and development to novel new business practices. What all the ranked entities have in common is the demonstration of new concepts not just within their own business but in the sector as a whole.

The category includes any projects that demonstrate an innovative approach to the market. The category crosses over with many of our other categories and can include new products, novel product features, new business practices, new marketing and sales strategies and more.

Aviramp is the winner in our Innovation category following the creation of the world’s-first passenger ramp for aircraft that can be used by disabled people.

The company specialises in various types of mobile ramps both manual and remotely driven.

Many of the remotely driven ones feature solar panels and solar regulators which make them an environmentally friendly choice. Electric chest packs are used to manoeuvre the ramp when approaching an aircraft.

Shortlist

• Alaska Airlines
• Aviramp
• Edmonton Airport
• Fintraffic
• Google
• Heathrow Airport
• Houston Airport System
• LTTS
• Microsoft
• Pangiam

The Investments category looks at any significant financial investments into a company or its assets, specifically those investments that facilitate expansion of a company’s operations. This can be an investment by the company itself into its operations or by an outside investor be that another company, financial institution, private equity or venture capital firm.

GMR is the winner in our Investments category following the significant funds it has invested in development projects in India.

The multinational is investing $2.7bn in the development of new airport infrastructure. Notable projects include Indira Gandhi International Airport, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport and Bidar Airport.

Shortlist

• Elevate Holdings
• GMR
• John F. Kennedy International Airport
• Kansai Airports
• London City Airport
• London Stansted Airport
• Los Angeles International Airport
• Malaysia Airports
• Oakland International Airport
• Perth Airport
• Pittsburgh International Airport
• Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
• US Transportation Security Administration (TSA)

This category includes organisations that have expanded their business operations by entering into significant mergers and acquisitions deals within the sector.

The category specifically looks at the acquisitions of whole businesses or stakes rather than asset transactions and deals must have been closed during the research period.

Arlandastad Group is the winner in the M&A category. The property developer has acquired a 90.1% Stake of Stockholm Skavsta Flygplats.

The acquisition is significant because of the growth potential of Stockholm Skavsta and the investor’s clear intention to develop the airport.

Shortlist

• Airports Group Europe
• Alliance Ground International
• Arlandastad Group
• Menzies Aviation
• Mumbai International Airport
• Ross Aviation
• T Map Mobility

The Product Launches category recognises companies that have launched notable new products or services into the market. This can include physical products, software as well as the launch of services and concepts.

We are specifically looking at novelty, including companies launching products into new areas or innovation in the product’s design, manufacture or marketing.

Thales is the winner in the Product Launches category. The company has released a new baggage handling technology that will eliminate the need for passengers to remove belongings from luggage.

HELIXVIEW, as the device is called, boasts an EDS CB C3-compliant scanner with 3D imaging reconstruction and uses AI to identify possible threats. The device is also light and compact which enables airport authorities to make the most of their available space.

Shortlist

• ACI World
• Changi Airport Group
• DUBZ
• Etihad Airways
• Huawei
• Idemia
• SITA
• Supernal
• Thales
• Urban-Air Port

This category includes organisations that have demonstrated a commitment to the research and development of new products and/or new processes. This can include discovering or creating a unique material, transferring a research or technology development to practice, improving the performance of an existing product or creating a new simulation or design tools.

The category also includes companies that have made significant investments into their R&D processes.

Volocopter is the winner of our Research and Development award. The company has been selected for its efforts in developing eVTOL air taxi technology. The company is an industry leader and has greatly contributed to the commercialisation of UAM.

In a test flight conducted at Gimpo International Airport the company’s 2X aircraft flew a distance of 3km and attained a maximum elevation of 50m at a speed of 45 km/h.

Shortlist

• AGS Airports
• Cologne Bonn Airport
• Malaysia Airports
• Microsoft
• NTT
• Thales
• Volocopter

The Safety category includes companies and institutions that have demonstrated best practice in health and safety including compliance to standards and any initiatives taken to improve workplace safety through the introduction of new guidelines, policies or equipment.

It also includes projects and initiatives by companies to improve health and safety in other public environments other than their own workspaces.

XpresSpa Group is the winner of the Safety category due to the introduction of its biosurveillance programme, which stands apart from its competitors with its holistic approach.

First introduced in September 2021, the programme monitors flights from around the globe to track new COVID variants.

Shortlist

• Airbus
• BAE Systems
• Cubic
• General Dynamics

The Social category includes companies and institutions that have undertaken projects that have had a tangible positive impact on the communities where they operate. This can include anything from charity initiatives; sponsorship; community outreach; local business support and education initiatives.

Gerald R Ford International Airport is the winner of the Social category following the launch of an SME support scheme at a difficult time for the airport industry.

The programme provides much needed finances to companies developing and marketing air travel technology solutions.

The programme has been realised with support from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and Southwest Airlines.

Shortlist

• Schiphol
• Air Traffic Control the Netherlands
• Dublin Airport
• Gerald R Ford International Airport Authority