Linfair Engineering, a systems integrator based in Hong Kong, and Avitech AG Germany, it’s ATM systems software partner, have successfully completed final acceptance and commissioning into operational use of the Tower Information Management System (TIMS) procured by North China Air Traffic Management Bureau (NCATMB) for the Beijing Capital Airport main control tower. 

Linfair and Avitech installed TIMS™ in close cooperation with NCATMB and with skilful engineering from all parties. TIMS was delivered with even more functionality than specified. On the 29^th of April 2006 the site acceptance test was formally finalized and the complex integration project successfully completed. TIMS is the Avitech Integrated Tower Information Management System software now in its fourth engineering generation. Earlier versions of TIMS™ have been installed in the German DFS international and domestic towers and control centres since 1993.

This was a complex engineering program, completed over 12 months, seamlessly integrating the tower controller and supervisor working positions into a common user environment.  NCATMB wanted to maximise use of available tower space and provide easy information access for all tower users in English and Chinese language as required. The solution also resulted in the reduction of the number of controller working displays and controller input devices.

“We knew it would be a challenge since we needed to integrate several external stand-alone systems developed by different companies and in addition support the multilingual requirement from the client. Requirements were bound to change during the project and thanks to great effort and flexibility from Avitech AG and our team we stood by the client all the way to the finish line”, says the Linfair vice president Kelvin Lin.

The system provides a common Message Oriented Middleware (MOM) interface to airfield data systems and sensors for real time airport weather, status and flight information (including runway layout and usage, met, braking action, approach and airfield light monitoring, CCTV, ATIS, RVR, FDPS, stand management, message annotation etc). This technology can, in the future, be used to rapidly deploy and integrate new airport sensors and information as it becomes available and ultimately to link the second control tower, currently under construction, serving the new 3^rd runway.

With single click/touch dual displays, that use input device sharing technology to reduce tower desk top clutter (mouse, keyboard, controllers etc), the system can easily be configured. The displays are 21 “ high resolution LCD which can be used in a multiple screen windowing or fixed default configuration according to operator preferences, regulations or preferred NCATMB procedures. Remote user displays can be deployed over the network (e.g.  Area Control Centres (ACC), CAAC HQ’s, Meteorological Office, Training Centres, etc) and configured to provide maintenance support; monitor and statistics logging; simulation and controller worker familiarisation; ACC, Tower and approach co-ordination; AIP maps and chart storage and distribution etc. and centralised regional airfield monitoring,)

TIMS™ is a Linux operating system based solution with very high availability using dual servers, databases, LANs and routers with no single point of failure. TIMS communicates over a dual Gigabit LAN which handles the CCTV streaming video and all tower data. The integrated stand-alone systems are fully redundant in the sense that any system can be taken out of the TIMS environment and revert back to the original non integrated status for offline maintenance, upgrading and external systems replacement.

 In short the TIMS™ provides the environment to integrate, retrofit, upgrade or expand small, medium and large towers, without risk to operational serviceability.  TIMS™ is the ideal solution for improving control tower safety, performance, efficiency and working environments and being highly configurable avoids the costly alternative of external systems replacement and tower redesign.