Arup and Mott MacDonald deliver Hong Kong Airport expansion
A joint venture between Arup and Mott MacDonald has successfully supported the Hong Kong International Airport develop its Midfield Concourse development, by providing multidisciplinary design and construction support to the project. The Midfield Concourse is now fully operational.
Hong Kong International Airport began its commercial operations in 1998. In 2015, the airport served more than 68.4 million passengers, which pass through the airport's two main terminals. In 2011, the airport announced an expansion plan – the Midfield Concourse – which aimed to cater for an additional 10 million passengers annually as well as support the arrival of A380s. The expansion, located west of Terminal 1 and between the two existing runways, was designed to have a floor space of 105,000m2. In addition, it will support 20 aircraft parking stands. Passengers will be shuttled from the new concourse to Terminal 1 through an underground automated people mover.
The expansion, after five years of development, was recently brought into full operation. As part of the development, the joint venture of Mott MacDonald and Arup provided full multidisciplinary design and construction support to the project. The support included MEP, airport systems, façade, sustainability, APM, fire, baggage handling system, acoustics, logistics and project management, among others. One of the aims of the initial project was to create a range of sustainability features for the expansion. At completion, the building has 35 green features, including low-energy lighting systems, high performance glazing panels, solar shading, and north-facing skylights - to maximise natural lighting while reducing solar heat gain and saving on air-conditioning. In addition, the building leverages 1,200m² of solar panels on its roof to offset energy costs and provide additional sustainability.
Ian Taylor, Arup Director for Aviation in East Asia remarks that the firm is “proud” of its delivery of the midfield expansion. He adds that the expansion, thereby, helps “our client achieve an important milestone as part of their visionary development plan, to strengthen Hong Kong’s position as a leading regional and international aviation hub.”
David Mepham, Mott MacDonald Director for Buildings and Aviation, says that: “The Midfield Concourse’s timely opening is the result of a collaborative effort of client, contractor, lead design consultants and their sub-consultants, and demonstrates our technical expertise in delivering a large capital works programme.”
Mott MacDonald and Arup have worked together on similar projects before, including the international passenger terminal at Hong Kong International Airport which was completed in 1998, and Terminal 5 at Heathrow International Airport which was completed in 2008.
