arwe modernizes Europe's biggest car rental centre at Munich Airport for future growth

At Munich Airport arwe Service GmbH has comprehensively modernized and expanded the car rental centre which they have already operated continuously for over 20 years. After a full renovation Europe's biggest and most up to date car rental centre with a capacity of more than 850,000 rental cars per year was completed. This corresponds to a volume of up to 400 vehicles per hour which arwe handles with their highly efficient Turnaround-Management.

With the service model of an overlap-free and centralized Turnaround-Management arwe Service GmbH revolutionized the rental car segment in Germany. In 1992 the medium-sized enterprise developed the concept of the "Car Rental Centre". This totally new concept centralizes all services for all car rental companies located at the airport. For this the complete turnaround process was concentrated – vehicle return at one designated return ares, centralized acceptance of vehicles by the teams at arwe and the efficient resupply of the rental cars. Also part of turnaround process are collecting vehicle data, determination and documentation of damages, queuing vehicle for cleaning, control of tyre air pressure as well as fueling up the rental cars.

For the customer this concept of a centralized service centre means that all vehicles of all rental car companies are picked up and returned at one central point. The advantages of this approach are obvious: On one hand it simplifies orientation of the customers, reduces driving times and distances and thus reliably increases the level of comfort. On the other hand the automated and process-controlled cycles ensures quick re- letting as well as highest degree of cleaning for the rental car companies. The sustainable improvement of traffic flow at the airport and enhanced customer satisfaction are the direct result!

The dimensions of volume and the capacity fluctuations throughout the course of the day make in-depth planning and controlling as well as continuous supervision essential. To accomplish this special, digital measurement devices and controlling tools are employed which - in combination with the count specifications of the rental car companies - flow into the logistical planning process. This avoids glitches and interruptions which might impede the rental car cycle of the whole airport.

In Munich the Service Centre was fully equipped with new and state-of-the art systems: Aside of the complete full renovation of the washing lines and putting four new high-performance washing lines into operation also the interior cleaning lines were comprehensively modernized and enhanced. Structural features at Munich Airport have additionally delivered impulses for developing novel technical solutions: A 50m elevated conveyor – a patented world's first – was developed just like another technological innovation: an automated air pressure measurement system. The elaborate modernization of the Munich Service Centre will further increase efficiency and quality of the services – and this pays off in greater customer satisfaction.

This model of a car rental centre has by now successfully established itself throughout Germany and can also be applied at major airports in other European countries: arwe currently also operates car rental centres in Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Berlin, Stuttgart and Nice.