Manchester Airport is marking one year of construction on the biggest investment project in its history by releasing stunning images showing the work completed so far.
The North’s global gateway is spending £1bn on transforming the airport, that will see Terminal 2 become 150% bigger than it currently is and become the focal point of the airport’s operations.
The programme got under way a year ago after a visit by the Secretary of State for Transport, Chris Grayling. Since then, the airport’s skyline has changed dramatically as the first pier has been built and over 70% of the steelwork has been erected on the terminal extension.
It’s one of the biggest construction programmes in the North of England and there are currently 1,200 people working on site, including 80 apprentices, in trades ranging from plumbing and scaffolding to quantity surveying and civil engineering.
Since the first spade went in the ground, £185m has been spent with SMEs in the supply chain within a 35-mile radius of the airport.
Andrew Cowan, CEO of Manchester Airport, said: “This is the largest investment ever made in the airport and will transform the experience for our passengers and airlines alike, as well as creating job and training opportunities for local people and boosting businesses working on the scheme in the process.
“I’m excited to see the first pier open to passengers in just eight months’ time and to press ahead with the rest of the scheme, especially the new terminal building, which is in course to be open to passengers by mid-2020.”
The first pier is set to open to passengers in April 2019, at 216m long if it was stood upright it would be the tallest building in Manchester. The terminal extension is on course to open in 2020.
To enable the new pier and terminal extension to be constructed, work has also been progressing on the airfield. In the first phase of airfield works, the apron has been extended to the west; including new taxiways and apron reconfiguration to allow the pier and additional aircraft stands to be used.
The second phase, which began in June 2018 involves a new taxiway, increasing the capacity of existing taxiways, new aircraft stands and AGL replacement and installation and is part of the reconfiguration of the airfield that will help to feed the redeveloped Terminal 2.
These phases of the works will see 148,000m2 of new taxiway and apron, 95,000m3 of concrete poured and 25miles of cabling installed with the aim of all excavated material being diverted from landfill throughout. The work is due to be completed by July 2020.
Looking further ahead, after the terminal extension the next pier is scheduled to open in 2022 and the refurbishment of the existing Terminal 2 building will also be completed that year. Terminal 1 is currently scheduled to close by 2023 with the third pier set to open in 2024. Once completed, Terminal 2 will have capacity to handle over 35 million passengers a year.
Bryan Glass, Laing O’Rourke Project Director, said: “We’re on schedule to deliver the transformation of Terminal 2 and that certainty of delivery has been driven by our offsite construction approach, with elements of the project manufactured offsite and assembled by our expert project team and technicians. There’s no room for complacency of course! Our team is focused on the next milestone – hand over of the first pier in January 2019.”
