Phase one of the Houston Airport System’s (HAS) fully expanded SmartRestroom solution is live at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, making it the first airport to implement the solution facility-wide in its ongoing effort to elevate the passenger experience.

HAS was the first airport system to adopt the Infax SmartRestroom pilot earlier this year. The decision to expand the pilot into a full system was fueled by the valuable data received from both passive restroom monitoring and direct passenger feedback.

“Our passengers’ comfort is our priority and they have made it clear how important clean restrooms are,” said Airport Director Mario Diaz. “Through the use of 'smart' restroom technology, we are able to respond quickly and gather information that helps us predict their needs across all of our service points to deliver on a better travel experience.”

The first phase of the SmartRestroom system includes 50 restrooms split between Bush Airport and William P. Hobby Airport. Each restroom location includes passenger counting, predictive analytics, real time alerting, staff location monitoring, iPads on the custodial carts and customer feedback survey tablets for passengers to use upon exiting the restroom. The airports also received Business Intelligence platforms for customer feedback and real-time restroom analytics.

“We’re not just cleaning a restroom,” said HAS Chief Operating Officer Jesus Saenz. “It’s dozens of restrooms over a large geographical area serving tens of millions of people. The Infax SmartRestroom technology provides us the information we need to advance our approach to maintenance using predictive analytics. With the new technology, we are communicating with our passengers, keeping ahead of the demand curve and delivering a better experience to a more satisfied passenger base.”

Phase one of Hobby Airport’s installation will go live on Nov. 16, with phase two of the dual-airport project beginning in 2018. This will include system installation in Bush Airport’s remaining restrooms and the installation of additional survey tablets in strategic areas, such as concessions and TSA checkpoints.

According to internationally recognized airport rating service Skytrax, Hobby Airport has achieved a 4-star rating while Bush Airport has a 3-star rating. With an airport-wide SmartRestroom solution, the Houston Airport System hopes to become the first airport operator with two 4-star airports.