From today until 15 November, start-ups from around the world are invited to propose, in Italian or English, ideas and projects to redefine the use of airport infrastructure by passengers, especially pertinent in light of the radical changes which occurred during the pandemic.

The six start-ups chosen by ADR will have the opportunity to work on their projects directly from the Innovation Hub of Aeroporti di Roma, the first industrial incubator in Italy, which will be operational at Fiumicino Terminal 1 at the start of 2022. This will be an ecosystem of about six hundred square meters dedicated to creating new synergies, with the mission of generating value by identifying the "start-uppers" of the future that will develop solutions that can redefine the paradigms of the industry.

“With the launch of the first Call for Ideas, we complete the first phase of our Open Innovation strategy. A strategy based on the desire to create an ecosystem of cooperation to achieve the energy and digital transition objectives of the Fiumicino and Ciampino Airports”, commented Emanuele Calà, Vice President Innovation & Quality of Aeroporti di Roma. "Today, we are ready to work with start-ups by investing in their ideas, not only in economic terms, but above all in terms of know-how and skills, promoting and encouraging the development and growth of new companies and entrepreneurs, generating a phenomenon of synergy throughout the entire national airport system.”

The innovation model proposed by Aeroporti di Roma, in fact, aims to be inclusive in every way. It involves start-ups, universities and SMEs, aims to review business processes and work profiles, enhancing the cultural component.

The “Call For Ideas” launched today proposes six different areas of work, six challenges for the innovators of the future: improving flight punctuality and increasing airport capacity; creation of "data driven" systems for planning and real-time management of airport spaces; projects aimed at reducing energy consumption and increasing the use of renewable energy; identification of new services dedicated to enriching the "Passenger Digital Experience"; automation of processes and controls within the airport; solutions dedicated to Omnichannel Commerce.

During the five-month incubation period, the selected start-ups will have the opportunity to collaborate with the Innovation Cabin Crew team – a group of 30 innovators within Aeroporti di Roma – meaning they will have constant support to grow their projects, which the economic investment of ADR also guarantees.

Aeroporti di Roma will guarantee an overall minimum financial support of 390,000 euros to the startups, with the possibility of increasing it during the programme, according to the effectiveness of the projects. This further demonstrates how initiatives linked to innovation are, together with sustainability, a core topic of ADR’s corporate strategy and vision.

ADR began implementing its Open Innovation strategy in 2020 by organising of a Hackathon in collaboration with the BEST association of the University of Tor Vergata. It then created the Innovation Cabin Crew within the company and developed national partnerships with players of the caliber of ENI and ENEL and international partnerships, such as one with Aena, with which ADR created the Airports for Innovation network.

You can participate in the Call for Ideas by selecting the scope of the project on the ADR site - www.adr.it, "Innovation" section, and submitting your project within the portal.