BLIP Systems

BLIP Systems, a company established in 2003 as a spin-off from Aalborg University, was founded by a group of individuals including Professor Gert Frølund and then-student Martin Hannibal. The company initially focused on leveraging Bluetooth and later Wi-Fi technology for location analytics and has since been integrated into the Gentrack group, a specialist in software solutions for airports and utilities. This acquisition by the UK-based company enhances its offerings by incorporating BlipTrack, a significant data platform developed by BLIP Systems.

The core of BLIP Systems' business revolves around its BlipTrack technology, which analyzes and understands the movement of people and vehicles in physical spaces. It captures data from mobile devices' Wi-Fi and Bluetooth signals, providing real-time insights into flow patterns, queue times, and dwell times. This service is primarily aimed at the airport industry, where it helps operators manage passenger flow, reduce congestion at security checks and border control, and optimize resource allocation. Beyond airports, the technology has applications in other environments like ski resorts, amusement parks, and road traffic management. The business model appears to be centered on providing a comprehensive data and analytics solution to these large-scale infrastructure operators, helping them improve operational efficiency and enhance the customer experience.

The BlipTrack solution provides detailed dashboards and reporting tools that allow clients to visualize and act upon the collected data. By understanding how people move through their facilities, clients can make informed decisions to deploy staff more effectively, adjust layouts, and ultimately improve service levels. For instance, an airport can predict and mitigate bottlenecks, leading to shorter wait times for passengers. The technology functions by detecting MAC addresses from discoverable devices, which are then anonymized to ensure privacy while still providing valuable aggregate data on movement and queuing.

Keywords: location analytics, passenger flow management, queue management, airport technology, traffic data, data analytics, BlipTrack, operational efficiency, people counting, crowd analysis