Architects: Richard Rogers Partnership with Estudio Lamela
Credit: Manuel Renau, Copyright: N/A - received by PDF
authorisation from RRP Nov 2006
Madrid Barajas Airport - Building PR from Richard Rogers Partnership
New Terminal Area (NAT / T4) opened 4 February 2006
The new airport will be formally opened by the Spanish Prime Minister,
Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero on Saturday 4 February 2006
The New Terminal Area (NAT), designed by a consortium of Richard Rogers
Partnership, the Spanish practice Estudio Lamela and two engineering companies
TPS and Initec, will establish Madrid as a major European hub, and consolidate
its position as the focal connection between Europe and Latin America.
It is expected that the new terminal will accommodate between 65 and 70
million passengers per annum. Passenger numbers are expected to outstrip
Schiphol in the Netherlands, Europe’s second largest airport, in
five years time. With a total area of 1,200,000 sq m, the NAT is one of
the largest buildings in Europe and will have a significant urban, economic
and social impact on both Madrid and Spain itself.
Credit: Manuel Renau, Copyright: N/A - received by PDF
authorisation from RRP Nov 2006
Responding to the demands of 21st-century travel, the New Terminal at
Barajas will be efficient, economic and functional, accommodating anticipated
growth in passenger traffic, which could be up to 35 million per annum
in 2010 and 50 million in 2020, doubling the capacity of the old airport.
Credit: Manuel Renau, Copyright: N/A - received by PDF
authorisation from RRP Nov 2006
The design process has focused on delivering an improved passenger experience,
creating an attractive, peaceful atmosphere. This led to the utilisation
of materials and finishes which would convey a sense of calm. The simple
palette of materials and the use of a kit-of-parts approach to detailing
reinforce the simplicity of the architectural concept. Despite the size
of the building, it still allows passengers to easily orientate themselves
easily using the many visual references. A straightforward linear diagram
and a clear progression of spaces for departing and arriving passengers
contribute to the legibility and usability of the terminal for passengers
and workers alike.
Credit: Manuel Renau, Copyright: N/A - received by PDF
authorisation from RRP Nov 2006
Barajas Airport
: Photos
The Design Competition
Madrid Barajas Airport opened in 1933 and was subsequently extended several
times. By the early ‘90s, the existing airport had become over-stretched
and the need for a terminal, satellite, ancillary buildings and two new
runways in the north-west was identified. The client, the Spanish National
Airports Authority (AENA) initiated an international competition which
was won by a consortium of Richard Rogers Partnership, the Spanish practice
Estudio Lamela and two engineering companies TPS and Initec in 1997. The
design was chosen for it simplicity, adaptability and flexibility, allowing
for future changes and extensions.
Credit: Manuel Renau, Copyright: N/A - received by PDF
authorisation from RRP Nov 2006
Aims of the Design
The design selected by AENA has four basic principles:
Integration into the landscape
Airport terminals are normally surrounded by secondary elements (car parks,
power plants etc.) that obscure orientation through the airport. In this
design, such structures are integrated into the main building, taking
into account the topography of the local area. The canyons – large
courtyards full of daylight - establish a sequence that incorporates the
landscape into the interior space.
Credit: Manuel Renau, Copyright: N/A - received by PDF
authorisation from RRP Nov 2006
Energy
Despite the extreme heat of summer in Madrid, the design team were committed
to the use of passive environmental systems wherever possible, while maximising
transparency and views towards the aircraft and the mountains beyond.
The building benefits from a north-south orientation with the primary
facades facing east and west – the optimum layout for protecting
the building against solar gain. The facades are protected by a combination
of deep roof overhangs and external shading. A low energy displacement
ventilation system is used in the pier, and elsewhere a more conventional
high velocity system is used. Given the multi-level section, a strategy
was also needed to bring natural light down into the lower levels. The
solution is a series of light-filled ‘canyons’. The canyons
are spectacular full-height spaces, spanned by bridges in which arriving
and departing passengers, though segregated, can share the drama of the
imposing space.
Spatial Clarity
Barajas is a model of legibility, with a straightforward linear diagram
and a clear progression of spaces for departing and arriving passengers.
The accommodation is distributed over six floors; three above ground for
check-in, security, boarding and baggage reclaim, and three underground
levels for maintenance, baggage processing and transferring passengers
between buildings. The flow of passengers starts in the forecourt and
goes through the check-in counters and the security control until the
boarding lounge.
Flexibility
The layout proposed is adaptable to all activities at the airport, maintaining
a strong architectural identity through all stages of the project, with
a view to the need for potential extensions of the buildings.
General Description of the Proposal
The NAT (T4) at the International Madrid-Barajas Airport is located three
kilometres north of the old Barajas terminals TI, T2 and T3. The original
design concept has been adhered to and the final building responds to
the complex and extensive requirements of the specification, organising
activity within three buildings:
• A car park measuring 310,000 sq m, with capacity for 9,000 spaces.
• A Terminal Building is separated from the car park by forecourts,
which act as a transport exchange for buses, taxis, metro, trains and
private vehicles. It will serve international flights and Shengen flights
(flights within European Union countries). With nearly 500,000 sq m (distributed
over six levels), it has 174 check-in counters, 38 stands for planes and
airport walkways located in the boarding pier that measures 1.2 km.
• The Satellite Building located between the new runways (2 km from
the main terminal building), houses all international non-Shengen flights
from the NAT. There will also be a flexible area which will serve all
flight routes: non¬¬-Shengen, international, national and Shengen
(complementing the terminal building). The building is almost 300,000
sq m and 26 stands for airplanes. If the air traffic continues its increase,
there is the possibility to build a second satellite.
The car park building is composed of six modules, functionally independent,
but that appear as one unit by means of exterior cladding and a garden
roof of 56,000 sq m. Direct access to the car park from the road is made
through one of the six guarded level-crossings, where every vehicle is
automatically assigned a car park space. From the car park the terminal
building is entered by means of a connecting pedestrian walkway. Both
buildings, the car park and the terminal, are separated by the forecourts.
The forecourts are made of a series of roads and aprons at different levels,
all covered by the extension of the wavy roof of the Terminal.
The Terminal Building is characterised by three lineal modules (Check-in
spine, Processing spine, Pier), and serves different functions according
to the passengers flow (arrivals or departures). Reception of passengers,
check-in counters, control and boarding for departure flights; disembark,
luggage collection and departure of passengers from the building for arrival
flights.
These modules are separated from each other by light-filled canyons that
provide natural illumination to the lower levels of the building. This
contributes to the environmental strategy – reducing the energy consumption.
In addition, this also reduces the maintenance and upkeep costs. In these
spaces, the vertical movement of passengers takes place, via stairs, ramps
or lifts. These are a very important element for the orientation of the
passenger as they indicate the sequence of actions that the passenger
needs to carry out when arriving or departing.
There are several factors which led to the need for a remote Satellite
building. It was necessary to create a building that could for security
reasons separate the passenger flows in non-Shengen flights. In order
to do this, the pier of the Satellite has been provided with an elevated
spine (level +2) where the flow of non-¬Shengen and international
arrivals can be isolated.
The Terminal and Satellite buildings are separated due to aeronautical
reasons, responding to the layout of the two new runways, aircraft taxi
lanes and aircraft stands. The two buildings are connected by a tunnel
that runs under the runways. The tunnel has two levels with three chambers
in each level. The upper level has two side areas of approximately 10
metres width for the circulation of authorised vehicles and a central
space of 13 metres, where the Automatic People Mover (APM). The lower
section, with three spaces of identical dimensions, is totally devoted
to the automatic baggage handling system (SATE).
Regardless of the type of flight, all the passengers who use the NAT Barajas
have to go through the Terminal building as all checking-in and luggage
collection are concentrated in here. The use of the APM systems (lifts,
escalators and travelators) together with SATE allows the simultaneous
movement of both, luggage and passengers. In this way the Satellite building
is mainly reserved for the security controls of the international flights
and for the boarding/disembark of this kind of flight. There is direct
access to the Satellite from the exterior roads but it is reserved for
authorised staff, not for airport users.
The New Barajas will have the capacity to move 18,000 at peak periods.
Despite the size of the project, the design of the NAT Barajas offers
a functional and comfortable area for the passenger, an urban and architectural
space with human scale both externally and internally and a harmony with
the surroundings, minimising the environmental impact.
Key Characteristics of the Project
Architecturally, the project intends to demonstrate:
• The idea that an airport can not only service significant volumes
of air traffic but also form part of an integrated piece of urban development,
associated with the interchange of passengers between various modes of
transport – planes, trains, metro, bus, taxi and car.
• An architectural solution which passengers can easily read, simplifying
the travel process.
• That the main building reflects the sequential character of the
passenger processing through the separation of the different functional
volumes or modules.
• Each longitudinal block is separated from the next by means of
the light-filled canyons. These canyons represent the separation between
the different stages in the processing of the passengers, providing clear
means of orientation and introducing natural light into the interior of
the building, improving the quality and perception of the space.
• A relaxed and bright atmosphere inside the building, reflecting
the surrounding environment. The wavy roof of bamboo accompanies passengers
throughout their journey through the interior of the building. The outward
appearance is also light and transparent, creating a strong visual connection
between the outside and the inside.
• Easy access to the airport development as well as a good internal
connections with the vehicle car parks and public transport, both in departures
and arrivals.
• Flexible and modular construction, with the potential to grow in
both directions: longitudinal and transversal. Good quality/price relation,
the repetitive modular systems allowing the inclusion of singular elements
with special designs.
• The provision of an easy adjustment to future aeronautical developments.
• Low energy consumption as well as the possibility to use new clean
alternative energies when possible.
Madrid Buildings
Comments / photos for the Barajas Airport Architecture page welcome:
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A 21st-century Airport
The new generation of terminals must offer airline companies the best
base for operations and make it possible for them to exploit the potential
of air alliances. Likewise, they should satisfy the new demands of users
for environmental quality, passenger service and connection with other
means of transport.
The New Terminal Building should quickly adapt to economic and social
changes and have the capacity to implement new technologies, whilst respecting
the environment.
NAT Barajas will:
• Create a high quality gateway into Spain – and Europe –
through its design and functionality.
• Operate as an important European hub that provides connections
between flights, minimising waiting times.
• Compete with other terminal buildings at hub airports, such as
Charles de Gaulle, Schiphol, Frankfurt, Heathrow, or new generation airports
such as, Chep Lap Kok, Kuala Lumpur, Kansai and Denver among others.
• Adapt to potential changes in the handling of operations and, in
particular, to create a cost efficient management of the planned infrastructures.
As a 21st-century airport, the New Terminal at Barajas will be efficient,
simple, economic and functional, accommodating anticipated growth in passenger
traffic, which could be up to 35 million per annum in 2010 and 50 million
in 2020, double the capacity of the old airport.
The new NAT is located only three kilometres from the old terminals and,
after public transportation links have been completed, will be only 15
minutes by underground from the city centre (*), enhancing Madrid’s
prominence as a major cosmopolitan centre and prime transport hub. When
the new Barajas Airport is fully operational, there will be a workforce
of 20,000 on site each day.
(*) The works for the connection with the Metro network have not yet been
carried out, but the new buildings already have the necessary station
and services.
Barajas
Airport architects: Richard Rogers Partnership
Madrid Barajas Airport: New Terminal Area (NAT / T4) – facts +
figures
Name New Terminal Area of Madrid-Barajas Airport
Location Madrid – Barajas (Spain)
Client AENA (Aeropuertos Españoles y Navegación Aérea)
Dates Tender, 1997
Design, 1998 – 1999
Operation, 2006
Full operation, 2010
Built area Terminal 470,000 sq m
Satellite 290,000 sq m
Car Park 309,000 sq m
Access roads 64,000 sq m
TOTAL 1,100,000 sq m approx
Project Architecture: Richard Rogers Partnership + Estudio Lamela
Engineering: INITEC + TPS
Construction management
AENA
External collaborating firms
Anthony Hunt (Main structure design)
OTEP Internacional (Structural engineering)
HCA (Structural engineering)
ARUP Façades (Main façade design)
Warrington Fire Research (Fire engineering)
Hanscomb y Gabinete de Ingeniería (Quantity surveyor)
Sandy Brown (Acoustics consultant)
Jonathan Speirs (Lighting consultant)
OVE ARUP (Natural lighting consultant)
Biosca & Botey (Natural lighting consultant)
dosAdos (Landscape consultant)
3DD (Models)
J. Queipo (Models)
Contractors Terminal: JV Ferrovial, FCC, ACS, NECSO, SACYR
Satellite: Dragados, OHL
Car Park: Dragados
Costs Terminal: 670 million euros
Satellite: 400 million euros
Car Park: 168 million euros
Total 1,238 million euros**
Total Plan Barajas 6,000 million euros***
** Construction costs for the buildings (structure, finishes, services);
the expenses for the infrastructures and access roads outside of the buildings
are not included.
*** This includes all the external
Madrid Barajas Airport - text + images from Richard Rogers Partnership
World Architecture : e-architect
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Madrid Airport
: RIBA European Awards 2006
Barajas Airport
architects: Estudio Lamela Arquitectos
Barajas Airport Building : Photos from RRP
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Barajas Airport Madrid -
page : adrian welch / isabelle lomholt