Airport configurations require both airside and landside infrastructure that supports the mobility of passengers and services. This entails a complex, yet synchronized network of structures.
Airport development and expansion involves the construction of roadways, tramways, and surface facilities such as car parks, hotels, and maintenance facilities. This network is normally composed of access ramps, embankments, bridges, tunnels, and footpaths. And so, it is only logical that Terre Armée, a world leader in transportation infrastructure would offer an array of solutions for building these structures.
Design engineers for airport infrastructure are regularly challenged with finding technical, yet economical and sustainable solutions that can overcome difficult constraints, such as:
- Demanding scheduling of works
- Restrictive rights-of-way
- Low overhead clearances
- Narrow travel lanes and pathways
- Complex alignments and geometry
- The capacity for structures to carry heavy loading
Terre Armée’s portfolio of retaining wall solutions and precast arches and boxes meet these challenges.
Reinforced Earth® MSE walls, Terre Armée’s flagship solution is the engineer’s first choice for landside vertical grade separations and bridge abutments as has been demonstrated on hundreds of airport projects worldwide. Where reinforced soil slopes or embankments are required, then our slope solution is recommended.
Airside infrastructure is also addressed in the Terre Armée offer with solutions for structures at, below, and above the runway grade. These structures include:
- Tramway and people-mover guideways
- Taxiway bridges and underpasses
- Retaining walls for elevated aircraft parking aprons
- Retaining walls for elevated runways and extensions
- Utility tunnels and escape tunnels
- Runway and taxiway subgrade stabilization
Terre Armée solutions for the tramways, bridges, and underpasses follow in the footsteps of those structures built on the landside, although extreme loading for aircraft and accommodation for complex utility locations often needs to be factored into our designs.
Runway extensions can entail building massive MSE structures in challenging terrain, even water. In the USA, Terre Armée (The Reinforced Earth Company USA) has designed and furnished MSE walls supporting elevated runway extensions up to heights of 46m.
Benefits
Pre-sequenced design approach
Pre-sequenced design approach
From the foundation works to top-out works, our pre-engineered and prefabricated materials are bundled to provide builders with a clear path for rapid installation and quick in-service use for operations and passengers.
Meeting airport construction complexities
Meeting airport construction complexities
Our engineers apply their skills and experience that are common to their everyday road, bridge, and heavy commercial site works projects with added awareness and special attention given to aesthetics and functionality.
Minimal footprint and intrusions
Minimal footprint and intrusions
Using innovative techniques such as narrow back-to-back walls, TerraLink® shored MSE, TechSpan® precast arches and TechBox® precast boxes, Terre Armée solutions minimize land use and the need for onsite production, formworks and scaffolding.
Related applications
Coastal protection and restoration
