26 FACILITIES November | December 2026 AirportImprovement.com LAS | SLC Some within the industry estimate that about 25% of U.S. airports currently use cleaning robots. However, not as many are taking the next steps. “Very few airports are connecting robots and sensors to real- time operational data yet,” says Ferris. “That integration is the opportunity.” For SiteIQ, the opportunity is not simply collecting more information. It is making systems work together. “When you connect all of the known data, you get a better result for the operation, the staff and the passenger,” Ferris explains. That integration can change how facilities departments deploy equipment and employees. For example, an airport in Colorado could leverage weather data to indicate, or even anticipate, when passengers will track snow and ice melting materials into its ticketing lobby. Staff could program autonomous floor scrubbers on a route covering the first 50 feet of the terminal entrances. Real-time flight and gate information could identify an empty holdroom and flag an opportunity for a robot vacuum to work without navigating a crowd. SLC is exploring an even more advanced application. An automated gate porter currently in development intends to use artificial intelligence to recognize and collect common items such coffee cups, without spilling. Connected to flight information, the unit could identify an open gate and move there without waiting for personnel to assign the route. “It will intuitively go to that gate when it knows that there’s a free spot,” explains Arnold. “We won’t even have to tell it to go there.” MORE THAN A CONSULTANT A trusted partner, passionate about aviation, dedicated to the industry, and committed to your airport ENGINEERS & PLANNERS 407-599-1122 www.avconinc.com Salt Lake City Int’l leverages autonomous equipment to help clean its 90 acres of flooring.
View this content as a flipbook by clicking here.