Malaysia Airports’ ongoing efforts to elevate service level and enhance airport experience has resulted in improved customer satisfaction
SEPANG - Since the launch of the #1improvement1week campaign in February 2018, Malaysia Airports have implemented a series of 30 rapid improvement initiatives at its airports nationwide. Out of these 30 initiatives, 13 were for facilities upgrade, 9 for service enhancements and 8 for improving wayfinding at the terminals. Being the flagship airport and the country’s premier gateway into the nation, most were centred in KL International Airport and numbered 19 initiatives altogether.
According to Malaysia Airports acting group chief executive officer Raja Azmi Raja Nazuddin, “As outlined in our five-year business plan, elevating airport experience is one of our strategic priorities. Airports 4.0 is one of our main initiatives in this area where we aim to transform into a service leader through the digitalisation of the airport environment. However, we also believe that every little thing matters and that’s why we initiated these series of quick wins to enhance customer experience. For this purpose, we are guided by the feedback received from the Airports Council International (ACI) Airport Service Quality (ASQ) survey, as well as feedback received through our various feedback management channels. I am happy to see that the preliminary ASQ results for KUL show that the overall satisfaction score has increased from 4.65 in 2017 to 4.71 in July 2018.”
Some of the specific initiatives implemented include improvements to washroom facilities where the ASQ score for washroom cleanliness increased from 4.28 in 2017 to 4.44 in July 2018. 31 washrooms in KLIA Main Terminal have been completely refurbished providing airport users with new facilities such as built-in bidets, jet hand dryers, diaper change facilities, anti-slip mats, scenting machines and more cubicles to keep the washrooms clean and dry. Work on the ongoing washroom refurbishment will continue up to 2019.
Among other facilities upgrades were the availability of free Airport WiFi at the KLIA Main Terminal and the implementation of self-baggage drop (SBD) facility at the klia2 terminal. The SBD facility has reduced check-in processing time to less than 50 seconds per passenger and has resulted in an increase of the ASQ survey score for check-in waiting time from 4.19 in 2017 to 4.41 in July 2018.
Services and wayfinding improvement initiatives include the installation of counter guiding system at the check-in counters, availability of security screening guide videos, the launch of the MYairports mobile app at KLIA and more visible wayfinding signage. Most of the service improvements were aimed at reducing wait time at the airport and making it easier for airport users to navigate their way around the airport. The ASQ score for ease of wayfinding at the airport has also increased from 4.28 in 2017 to 4.44 in July 2018.
Meanwhile, there were a total of 11 improvement initiatives at airports nationwide other than KLIA. Major improvements include the availability of the Airport CARE Ambassadors at Kota Kinabalu, Penang and Kuching International Airports, food court refurbishment, cashless convenience and high speed WiFi at Kuching International Airport, as well as the installation of seats with USB charging ports in Langkawi International Airport and Miri Airport. Passengers at Miri Airport also now enjoy a much larger car park with an additional 237 parking bays.
“With these initiatives resulting in positive results, Malaysia Airports will continue its improvement journey by taking pain points and turning them into joyful experiences for passengers. In fact, upon receiving encouraging feedback on any of our facilities, we will take one step further to implement it for the benefit of more passengers. One such example is investing in more counters with the SBD facility which is now becoming very popular. We will be installing 15 more counters with SBD facility by year end,” said Azmi with much enthusiasm.