Keeping the Terminal's Lifeblood Pumping

Yet baggage accounts for over 30% of the terminal's floor area and requires a significant investment, for example £250m at Heathrow Terminal 5.

T5 has 16000m of conveyor equipment and 8000m of DCV track.
Hong Kong airport boasts 24,000m of conveyor equipment.
But why should a passenger care anyway? The process is simple – he drops his bags off at check-in, gets to his destination and collects them again at baggage reclaim. But what about the lost bag or delayed flight? On the other side of that wall is a maelstrom of activity, a complex system that could potentially destroy that dream holiday or deal-clinching trip.

And what about the airlines themselves? Flights with extremely tight turnaround times rely on a seamless, efficient baggage system or risk incurring huge financial penalties for delayed flights or lost bags. Add to this the airport’s own expansion requirements and the drive to higher customer performance levels and we can start to understand why the baggage hall is one of the most important design components of the terminal.

With baggage, like an ATC Tower computer crash, having such potential to inconvenience a passenger, it is essential to get this crucial element right. So what do the various parties involved in an airport need from their system?

In general terms, the key issues relative to system performance are Speed, Precision, Efficiency, Durability and Manageability to achieve the optimum in system times. In baggage terms this could be defined as the following:

• Reliability
• Capacity
• Redundancy
• Security
• Availability
• Cost

So where does the architect fit in to all of this? Success is not achieved simply through the application of the latest technology and effective engineering systems. Although he works in parallel with the desires above to ensure that the bear minimum is fulfilled, the architect pushes the boundaries in other ways to provide a world-class facility. He brings his understanding of complex processes and introduces design clarity to ensure successful delivery and improve areas not usually considered by other parties. He appreciates the importance of good design standards, the quality of environment and the coordination and communication of these plans before the project goes to site.

Design Standards

Everyone involved in the delivery of a baggage project of course has their own individual standards but as architects we champion all of them, whether they be spatial, structural or services, by looking holistically across the scheme. We would never claim to understand them better but we do ensure they are championed and challenged as a collective. There is always room for improvement and previous solutions are rigorously reviewed. This attention to detail is where cost savings can be made.

As terminals develop and grow, what once may have been adequate space to house the baggage facility is soon consumed. If it is impossible to expand the area, the architect has to find every possible nook and cranny and discover new ways of adhering to the standards in order to maintain an efficient and quality system.

Budgets have to be met and the architect is aware of this factor but he will also seek to use the highest quality and most appropriate materials in all areas of the airport even back of house. In the long term this is a better investment and also enhances the baggage hall environment, an important factor we will look at next.

Environment

Being honest working in a baggage facility isn’t the most glamorous of occupations, however as has been clearly stated it is a massively important job. Therefore, providing accommodation and facilities to a standard that we ourselves would be happy with is essential. This can be done by maximising daylight, acoustically resolving areas of noise, ensuring artificial light is appropriate and considering heating, ventilation and the fire strategy. Providing employees with a safe and quality environment, even down to the specification of tables and chairs or colour finishes on walls, raises work standards as they respect and respond to their surroundings.

It can be a battle to persuade Project Managers that these are costs worth incurring when budgets are tight and these are areas of an airport the general public aren’t even going to see. But a baggage hall facility is just as much about the people as the equipment and technology.

Coordination & Communication

Baggage, like the rest of an airport, is constantly moving and changing with the advent of new technology. Whatever the current trends they all need to be coordinated within the design and an architect needs to understand all these issues.

He needs to ensure that the baggage designers understand what implications they have on the building and similarly communicate to other consultants what effect the building has on the system. By having the ability to think three dimensionally and put all the effort into the design and delivery of a system before it goes to site, an architect is able to add value to the project by making savings in time and cost. In addition, by understanding the constraints of space he can assist in designing a layout that makes the most efficient use of the floor area and has the flexibility to absorb changes.

We would not suggest that we could design a baggage system single handed but we do possess the understanding of what is required of the system and what the constraints it has on its environment.

Conclusion

To ensure the delivery of a baggage facility of the highest order, aside from the latest technology and equipment these 4 key points should be understood:

1. When master planning an airport or extending a terminal, its importance is such that baggage must be high in the priority as early as possible
   
   
2. Comprehensive design co-ordination ensures effective delivery and makes savings in time and costs
   
   
3. A high quality environment improves staff welfare, productivity and efficiency
   
   
4. By challenging design standards, quality is at the least maintained and potentially improved