Demand pressure is the expected change in demand for a specific type of airport business, caused by disruption or by passengers spending longer than usual in the terminal. The important word is specific. Demand pressure is not one number for the whole airport. It is scored for a business type, because the same event lands differently on different businesses.
Take one evening of weather disruption. A cafe past security feels it within the hour: more people, more hot drinks, longer sittings. An airport hotel may see nothing for four hours and then a queue at the front desk when the last rotation is canceled. A duty-free store may get more browsers and fewer buyers, because passengers who have lost their slot are watching a board, not shopping. One event, three different demand pressures, on three different clocks.
Disruption also does not always mean more demand. A cancellation removes passengers from the terminal. Arrivals-side businesses can go quiet on exactly the day departures gets busy.
Why it matters for airport businesses
This is the score you staff and stock against. MEDIUM against HIGH for tomorrow evening is the difference between one person on the late shift and two, and between a normal pastry order and an extra tray. For a transfer operator it decides how many drivers stay on rotation past the usual wind-down.
How DwellTime uses it
Demand pressure is the only score tied to a business type, an airport cafe for example. The same signal for a hotel or a taxi operator would carry a different business type and, often, a different level. Each score is paired with suggested actions written in plain operational language.
Related terms
See how the same signal reads for different businesses in the use cases.