new airports coming in 2015 - from building to environment

new airports coming in 2015 – from building to environment
(above) moshe safdie’s jewel airport expansion in singapore
image © moshe safdie

airports have traditionally been built as functional conduits connecting travelers to planes. as the first structures experienced by many travelers, they are also windows into a culture’s intended representation to the rest of the world. they are, however, at the mercy of the high level of functionality demanded of them. every year the number of global travelers rises dramatically, rendering older airports extremely inefficient if not almost entirely incapable of accommodating the number of pedestrian and aircraft traffic as well as the changing and new demands of the citizens. in 2015, we can already see trends in airport and terminal designs as we prepare to move the expected 3.6 billion air passengers of 2016 (with china alone accounting for nearly 25% of the rising numbers) in a comfortable, efficient, and stress-less environment.

central lobby
see full article
image © moshe safdie

we can already see similarities in the cutting-edge designs of air travel infrastructure. as pointed out by cnn, angela gittens, director general of airports council international, states that passengers are now ‘looking for a greater sense of orientation, control, safety, visibility and openness.’ david stewart, head of development at the international air transport association (IATA) has found that travelers are ‘craving a sense of place’. what we expect of an airport has changed. anyone who’s traveled has surely experienced delays or cancellations resulting in seemingly interminable layovers spent crouched sideways on an uninviting grey plastic bench with each seats indentation digging into your ribs, or nestled against a wall on a concrete floor in the middle of a busy hallway attempting to salvage what’s left of your phone’s remaining battery on the only outlet available in a 30 foot radius. we’ve all had to rush through confusing hallways, unexpected additional security lines, disorganized transportation between terminals in dated, (sometimes) odorous, and crowded spaces. we want our airports to be comfortable, spacious and visually stunning.  after all, they are a representation of your local culture as they are the first thing a visitor experiences, especially given the rising number of air travelers expected. london heathrow now contains ‘plane food’, a restaurant serving gordon ramsey’s delicacies; while one can enjoy carles gaig’s catalan cuisine at porta gaigin in barcelona. we are seeing an injection of local flavor and culture being introduced into what was previously the international sterility of all airports.

given the new characteristics and the desperate retrofitting being adopted all over the world, it can be safe to say that the airport is an infrastructure swiftly moving from a ‘building’ to an ‘environment’, an extension and representation of place, both out of desire and necessity.

ADPI’s chongqing jiangbei international airport integrates improved circulation and organization within a veritable park-like setting
image courtesy ADPI

the airport of the future features dramatic parametrically-derived canopies draped over incredibly large open spaces wrapped in glass- but most noticable is the integration of green space. moshe safdie’s jewel airport expansion in singapore is arguable leading this front, with an almost jurrasic ambiance covered in a glass roof dipping into a 40′ waterfall equipped with awe-inspiring LED lights. expansive glass surfaces, now made possible due to the improvements in efficient low-e glass, illuminate massive spaces with natural light as they benefit from thermal efficiency. lobbies turn into green houses with improved air qualities and pant life that is already proven to relax people in what is typically a very frantic and stressful environment.

grimshaw’spulkovo airport in russia features a faceted sky-lit roof over a large open space walled in with glass- an architectonic expression of place flooded with natural light
see full article
photo by yuri molodkovets

ADPI was recently commissioned to design terminal 3 of the chongqing jiangbei international airport as well as a new master plan, which as can be seen also integrates the structure within a lush green park setting with a large central hall space under an organically informed roof.

a collaboration between grimshaw architects, haptic architects and nordic office of architecture– istanbul’s new airport scheduled to open in 2019 similarly features an impressive partially sky-lit canopy hovering over a micro-climate of interior space integrating trees and sunlight.
see full article
image by MIR

the new mexico city airport, currently at the forefront of airport zeitgeist utilizes a curved transparent canopy enclosing a large techno-museum of exhibition space, greenery, and flashing lights.
image courtesy of foster and partners

airports are also adopting efficient transportation as a new standard. you will be hard pressed to find a new airport that does not contain convenient transport options directly to the center of the nearest city. designers have finally been catching on to the fact that the greatest airport in the world is nothing if you can’t easily get to the nearby city, or inversely back to the airport for departure.

green space is integrated into the airport functions in the new mexico airport designed by norman foster and fernando romero
see full article
image courtesy of foster and partners

shigeru ban, in the plans fora passenger terminal at mount fuji shizuoka airport continues the theme of large vaulted glass ceilings- in this case manifested with his signature interlocking wooden tendril structure.
see full article
image by shigeru ban

studiofuksas‘ shenzhen bao’an international airport features a large open perforated canopy that wraps around the entire structure
see full article
image courtesy of studiofuksas

retrofit solutions for creating comfort in notoriously uncomfortable buildings, the sleep box by arch group may become a thing of the past with the new comforts of the future airport.
image courtesy of arch group