Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) has deployed an automated telephonic flight information system that is natural, friendly and interactive. The conversational tone of the solution has ensured excellent user uptake and acceptance, says Acsa group IT manager Wimpie van Aswegen.
"Acsa first implemented its automated flight information service with Intelleca Voice & Mobile in 2001 on an application service provision (ASP) basis," says Van Aswegen. "The service enables Acsa customers to access and obtain audio information on flight arrivals and departures from the company`s Web site using a telephone and spoken voice commands. Customer response to the service was so positive that when the opportunity came round to deploy an on-premise enhanced solution, it was the logical next step for us to take."
Acsa receives more than 50 000 flight enquiries every month at Johannesburg International Airport (JIA) alone. To efficiently process them, the company launched one of the first speech recognition telephone systems to be used by an airports authority anywhere in the world. The service enables users to find out the times of departure and arrival of any flight, local or international, to or from JIA just by making a call.
Acsa`s speech-enabled solution was developed by Intelleca Voice & Mobile, using VoiceGenie`s VoiceXML platform for advanced speech solutions, a software system that allows callers access to Web-based information using an ordinary telephone or cellphone, and ScanSoft`s SpeechWorks speech recognition.
The Acsa speech service has a 95% call resolution rate, significantly higher than the average for traditional touch-tone based IVR solutions of around 15% to 40%. Calls that are unresolved are transferred to an Acsa agent. Thereafter such calls are analysed by Intelleca, as part of its continuous improvement programme to find further automation opportunities.
The solution uses the power of speech to simulate real-world interaction with callers. The new system has created an unprecedented level of realism for callers, many of whom have commented that they had no idea they were not talking to a real person when they contacted Acsa`s flight information desk.
"We wanted a system that was as human as possible so that people would actually use it," says Van Aswegen. "Callers don`t know they`re getting information from the Web, and often they don`t even realise they are not communicating with a live person."
Intelleca`s system specifically supports South African English, and has been developed using the company`s South African English acoustic model. The acoustic model is the first to be developed using a country`s local speech science skills in co-operation with Scansoft, using its SpeechWorks tool set.
"We`re thrilled to see the ease with which the public is interacting with the Acsa system," says Michael Renzon, Intelleca Voice & Mobile MD. "These solutions require the underlying robustness and accuracy levels of a locally developed engine that can understand local accents and respond using natural speech."
Renzon says Intelleca`s approach is solutions-based. "We worked closely with Acsa to first understand its business requirements and then built a solution that would best meet those requirements. Our partnerships with leading international suppliers VoiceGenie and ScanSoft and our strong team of local speech skills ensure we can provide user-friendly, efficient speech-enabled solutions for the South African market."
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