Bristol Airport has held a ‘topping out’ ceremony for its west terminal extension, following completion of the steelwork for the £24 million (€31m) structure.
Robert Sinclair, CEO Bristol Airport, and Martyn Osborne, Balfour Beatty Managing Director for South West and Wales, at the topping out ceremony for the airport’s £24 million (€31m) west terminal extension.
The extension is the airport’s single biggest investment since the terminal building opened in March 2000. It will transform the security search experience for passengers, while also creating an enlarged baggage reclaim area, customs facilities, arrivals retail, and meet and greet area.
The new security search facility will include 10 customer channels, a dedicated Fast Track zone, an enlarged preparation area for passengers to create a more comfortable and relaxed environment, and significantly longer 21m security lanes. This combination of design, space and new technology is intended to deliver an industry-leading passenger experience.
The 9,000sqm facility will open in three phases following a 14-month construction. Phase one will open in summer 2016, closely followed by phases two and three, with the project completed before the end of 2016.
“Feedback on the east terminal extension – which enhanced and extended the departure lounge when it opened last summer – has been very positive,” Robert Sinclair, CEO Bristol Airport, explains. “On completion, the west terminal extension will address other key stages of the airport journey – security search – as well as enhancing the baggage reclaim and meeters and greeters space. By the end of next year, we will have transformed the passenger experience, providing another powerful reason for people across the South West and Wales to choose to fly from Bristol.”
Guests from the design team – architects, structural engineers, M&E engineers – and main contractor, Balfour Beatty, joined Bristol Airport’s senior management team at the topping out ceremony. Martyn Osborne, Balfour Beatty Managing Director for South West and Wales, comments: “Balfour Beatty is dedicated to delivering first-class projects and we are delighted to be working with Bristol Airport on the west terminal extension. This topping out ceremony marks a significant milestone in the development and provides an opportunity to showcase the progress of the terminal as well as recognise the hard work and collaboration of all of the teams involved.”
Bristol Airport handled 6.76 million passengers last year, and planning permission is in place to develop facilities to handle 10 million passengers. The west terminal extension is a major component of this development, and will take investment since 2010 to more than £120 million (€160m).
