Every customer experience is powered by technology that passengers rarely see. From booking and check-in to baggage handling and flight operations, organizations need modern, resilient platforms to keep critical services running smoothly.
TEKsystems Global Services delivers these platforms to businesses around the globe, helping modernize complex technology environments, improve operational performance and deliver better customer journeys – whatever their destination.
For most travellers, baggage only becomes part of the story when something goes wrong. A delayed suitcase, missed connection or lack of real-time updates can quickly turn a routine trip into one that’s memorable for all the wrong reasons.
When you are a leading global airline operating 4,500 flights a day, like our customer, making sure every bag’s journey is as smooth as its owner’s is a major challenge.
This airline wanted to give both passengers and employees a more reliable picture of where baggage was, where it needed to go next and what was happening at any given moment. But its existing baggage tracking environment was holding that ambition back.
Critical baggage-related data was spread across multiple systems, leaving operational teams dealing with blind spots and outdated information. They needed a solution that gave them faster access to these insights to help them scale without adding unnecessary cost or complexity.
The goal was clear: build a modern, cloud-based platform that could process large volumes of diverse data, support real-time decision-making and reduce the risk of misrouted or lost bags. But just as importantly, the airline needed to keep things moving. With thousands of flights en route every day, any modernization effort had to be delivered with minimal downtime and little impact on day-to-day operations or the passenger experience.
To help the airline achieve its vision, TEKsystems Global Services and its experienced team of cloud experts came on board. Working with the airline to design and deliver a cloud-native solution to its large-scale baggage challenges, the team built a new system that brought together microservices, modern data architecture and automated delivery practices.
Designed to ingest information from internal and external sources for maximum visibility, the new platform processed tens of thousands of events per second and shared critical updates with the people and systems that needed them most.
Behind the scenes, that meant refactoring, rewriting and integrating baggage operations systems that had to work together with speed and resilience. By using a microservices factory model, the team was able to fast-track development, cutting delivery from months to weeks. Automated delivery pipelines also enabled the airline to release new functionality on a weekly basis rather than quarterly, with security, quality and agility built into the process from the start.
The upgrade transformed how the airline uses its baggage data, unlocking enormous value for employees and customers alike. Instead of treating it as a back-office operational asset, the airline can now use baggage data as a live source of insight for staff and passengers. Updates are delivered to relevant stakeholders at the right time, helping operational teams make smarter, more informed decisions and giving travellers greater confidence in their journey.
As the platform has matured, its impact has become crystal clear. Weekly production releases empower the airline to introduce new capabilities faster. A more resilient architecture reduces defects and technical debt. Real-time baggage data limits rerouting expenses, contributing to millions of dollars in annual savings.
And for passengers, the improvement is simple but powerful: fewer moments of bag panic and a smoother experience from check-in to baggage claim.
In aviation, even the smallest moments can shape a passenger's perception of a journey. By building a modern foundation for baggage operations, the airline is better positioned to adapt, innovate and meet evolving expectations. It's the kind of transformation TEKsystems Global Services helps organizations achieve every day.
Author: John Makin
Director of Solutions EMEA, TEKsystems Global Services
*Find out more about TEKsystems Global Services' engagement in the IATA's Strategic Partnerships Program on the partners directory.
