Dallas Ft. Worth International Airport, Dallas, Texas
Automated People Mover Project
With the planned addition of the Automated People Mover at Dallas Ft. Worth International Airport, came a massive aircraft parking redesign project. The APM, whose routing mimics the outline of the terminal buildings, affected each and every aircraft parking position at DFW airport. The APM quideway columns were the main ramp level obstruction and the obvious design constraint. The intent of the design was to keep each gate in service for as long as possible and at the same time ensure that the relocated positions provided maximum post construction flexibility. The first phase of work at each gate was to relocate each aircraft parking position, passenger boarding bridge and associated appurtenances to their final location and configure an interim walkway to connect the final bridge location with the existing terminal gate opening to continue gate service until the terminal building improvements could be finished. The second phase of work started once the terminal building improvements were completed. Then the gate was taken out of service, for a minimal length of time, to install the final walkway from the newly upgraded terminal to the passenger boarding bridge. At this point, the gate was ready for service again. There were several design challenges throughout the course of the project. One of the more formidable tasks was to minimize the amount of new bridges necessary by reusing and relocating as many of the existing bridges as possible. Since some of the existing bridges reached 30 years in age, and could not be designed with original design limits and criteria, a field survey of their limitations was performed. From this data the bridge relocation synopsis was formed. Another challenge was to design new aircraft parking while not gravely disrupting aircraft at adjacent gates or ground service operations.
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Tri-Cities Airport, Pasco, Washington
Boarding and Improvement Project
Before the Boarding and Improvement Project was implemented, passengers at Tri-Cities Airport were forced to walk across the ramp area in the elements and up an unenclosed airstair to board the aircraft. The goal of the project was to increase passenger comfort, better accommodate disabled passengers and make the airport more desirable to the airlines. Several options were discussed and Ramp Engineering provided a computer enhanced rendering of the proposed walkway and jet bridge to the client. The Port of Pasco chose to move forward with a ramp level walkway design. This required fewer modifications to the existing building and was most cost effective. The design criterion was to utilize a single passenger boarding bridge to serve two separate aircraft parking positions. The aircraft fleet mix ranged from a regional jet to a 757-200. With a change in aircraft parking positions came modifications to the existing concrete parking pads. A blast analysis and a Part 77 study were performed to ensure the validity of the new parking positions. Four large triple-glazed windows were incorporated into the walkway design for aesthetics and the walkway and bridge were painted to match the building. The project has been constructed and has been in use since September 2001. The Port of Pasco has repeatedly reported positive feedback from its passengers.
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Newark International Airport, Newark , New Jersey
Concourse C3 Project
Concourse C3 was an intense design process, as Ramp Engineering's services were procured after the start of construction, meaning many of the design constraints had already been established. The goal was to have 12 wide body and 19 narrow body aircraft gates at this concourse, with a fleet mix ranging from EMB 145 to 777-200. The jet bridge rotunda locations were basically set and the fuel pit locations had already been designed by another sub-consultant. When Ramp Engineering joined the design team, the design changed radically to meet the operational needs of the client. The first design phase was a spatial analysis to illustrate the proposed parking configuration for C3. After acceptance of the spatial analysis a gate by gate, aircraft by aircraft parking simulation was performed. Since the finished floor elevation of terminal level was 16.0' above the apron, gating the aircraft within ADA slope required the use of the largest 3 tunnel apron drive bridge available. At some gates, small portions of fixed walkway were implemented so that slope could be maintained at acceptable ADA standards. Since the fuel pit locations had already been designed, and equipment ordered by the contractor, minimizing the number of new fuel pits required posed the most time consuming design challenge in the aircraft parking design. During the determination of the final parking positions, an investigation was completed into how the ground service equipment (GSE) would dynamically move around the aircraft and to ensure adequate space for all the GSE operators. Ramp was tasked with verifying the new C3 taxilanes, their respective separation distances and object free areas associated with these taxilanes.
On the north side of the concourse is a bi-directional taxilane. The owner requested that all positions accessible from this taxilane have the capability of bi-directional ingress and egress. There were frequent meetings with the client to monitor the design, and subsequently the construction progress. Also, on the north side of the new concourse was the existing Continental Express commuter operation that was to be transitioned over to mainline gates when the new concourse opened. Slope calculations were performed for each and every aircraft at the C3 Concourse and submitted to the Port Authority for approval. Due to a portion of the construction being behind schedule, the taxilane along the west side of the concourse was rerouted closer to the concourse and one of the gate leads changed in the interim until the final taxilane routing could be installed. There were several other similar issues that required similar rerouting and troubleshooting.
Slight modifications were also made to the aircraft layout plan (ALP) after the final submittal to accommodate architectural and structural changes made during the construction phase, but otherwise the plan was installed with no post facto modifications.
14 of the 19 gates opened early in December 2001 and Ramp Engineering was on hand before the inaugural flight to test aircraft and bridges at each gate. The Terminal Operations and Global Gateway staff were pleased with the design and operational capabilities of the new concourse layout.
Continental Express Relocation Project
A separate design was completed for the transition of Continental Express from a remote busing operation to mainline gates. This design was driven by the C3 construction schedule. After intense evaluation of gating techniques at other airports, the owner made a determination that the regional jets would be mated to bridges and the propeller aircraft would be parked in the gate area, but not mated to bridges. The design process for relocating the Embraer 145 aircraft included recommending new apron drive bridges to replace the existing Wollard fixed bridges, fueling compatibility and ground service equipment positioning. Included in the Continental Express commuter fleet were ATR-42 aircraft. In the plan to relocate the ATR-42 aircraft Ramp designed and located shut down boxes on the taxilane. From there the aircraft were pushed tail in and parked near the terminal for rear door passenger loading. Ramp's field personnel completed all the necessary tasks to install the new design.
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Concourse C2
Continental Airlines selected Ramp Engineering to redesign their C2 Terminal building to accommodate the maximum number of regional jet aircraft using passenger loading bridges. Through the development of an airport layout plan, the final number of parking positions was determined to be 24. Once the plan was approved by the client, the passenger loading bridges were located in reference to the aircraft. At this point, the main challenge facing the design team was to arrive at a design for fixed walkways that would not only fit each position, but allow enough room to accommodate the adjacent aircraft, and still be ADA compatible. Ramp's design experience was put to the test and the design team responded by thinking outside the box, creating custom designs for the fixed walkways to accommodate the passenger loading bridges. All removal and installation of ramp markings for the new design was completed by Ramp Engineering.
Concourse A2
Originally, Continental Airlines had 5 mainline gates within their leasehold at Concourse A2. Their challenge to Ramp Engineering was to increase this number to 6 positions with a set fleet mix. Ramp rose to the challenge and fulfilled the task by recommending an old bridge position be rehabilitated and fitted with a new 3 tunnel apron drive bridge. The design also required replacing two of the existing bridges with new, larger bridges, the addition of several fuel hydrant pit sets and some new concrete. The installation of these modifications was completed by Ramp Engineering, Inc.
On-going Services Agreement
Ramp Engineering entered into an on-going services agreement with Continental Airlines for design and installation services at the beginning of 2000. During these past years, Ramp Engineering has provided a wide spectrum of services under this contract. Ramp maintains a current master Autocad file of all ramp markings, a master adjacency list and a fleet mix schedule for the Terminal Operations Department. A Douglas supertug parking area was re-designed and is currently in use. A Jeppesen drawing was compiled by Ramp to update the manual when the C3 Concourse opened. Aircraft parking locations to maximize surface exposure for the new radiant energy de-icing facility was designed for aircraft up to the 757s. Ramp Engineering continues to provide survey, removal and installation services as needed for Continental Airlines at Newark. Other tasks include: consultation for NFPA and ADA code issues, analyses to determine the impact of new equipment (which could possibly affect aircraft parking), gate modifications to accommodate new aircraft types to the existing fleet mix, and general troubleshooting.
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Albany International Airport, Albany, New York
Southwest Airlines Arrival Project
Ramp Engineering participated in several projects for various clients at Albany International Airport to accommodate the arrival of Southwest Airlines. These projects initially included preliminary on-site inspections and various as-built surveys of existing conditions. Subsequently, ramp studies were necessary to determine maximum efficient usage of parking space for jet and propeller commuter aircraft, as well as narrow and wide body mainline aircraft. It was also necessary to study the impact of simultaneous servicing operations of adjacent aircraft and ground service vehicles at numerous gates at the A, B and C Concourses. Several studies involved recommendations for lease modifications to enhance and maximize the allowable ramp parking space. New taxilanes were redesigned in some instances to allow for smoother ingress and egress of aircraft. The survey coordination of data for upload to the surveyor was generated and provided so as to ensure accurate survey layout and installation of the ramp markings by Ramp's personnel.
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Port Columbus International Airport, Columbus, Ohio
B Concourse Bridge and Walkway Project
Ramp Engineering designed aircraft parking for commuter jets at the B Concourse in anticipation of America West's commitment to bring more regional jet service to the East Coast. These designs included studies for determination of specialized passenger boarding bridge types, walkway systems and their bridge compatibility for commuter type aircraft. In addition, various scenarios using a combination of existing bridges and new walkway/bridge systems were designed and considered for 12 gated commuter aircraft parking positions in two phases. Relocation of several boarding bridges to different gates was investigated with suggestions and recommendations concerning aircraft types that could be safely parked in the proposed scenarios. Ramp participated in preliminary on-site inspections and presentations of different design options. Additional tasks included researching and compiling cost and procurement information regarding potential bridge and walkway system manufacturers, and relaying this product information to the client. Phase I of this project is complete and in use by America West. Subsequently, Ramp Engineering, Inc. was awarded a 3 year “on-call” services agreement from CRAA.
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Dayton International Airport, Dayton, Ohio
Concourse C Redesign
The project consisted of an on-site inspection and as-built survey of existing conditions for the design of an aircraft parking layout for both narrow body and wide body types for 8 gated positions at the C Concourse using a combination of existing and new boarding bridges. This design involved determining the most efficient use of the ramp space and advising of any potential impact to adjacent aircraft, taxilanes and ground service equipment. The client furnished a fixed aircraft mix to be accommodated. The task of generating survey coordinates for the new design for upload to the surveyor for accurate survey stakeout and installation of ramp markings was also within the scope of this project. This design was installed by Ramp Engineering's personnel and is currently in use.
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Sanford International Airport, Sanford, Florida
Gates 6 through 12 Redesign
The project scope included a preliminary onsite inspection and complete as-built survey of existing conditions of the ramp area for the redesign of 7 gates (gates 6 through 12) using existing boarding bridges for a varied mix of aircraft, including both narrow and wide body types. The design included the potential impact of alternate aircraft types that may ultimately need to be accommodated, in this case, several regularly scheduled international arrivals utilizing A330/300 aircraft with simultaneous servicing operations. Various studies were conducted during the design phase to explore combinations of aircraft types that could be serviced simultaneously, while maximizing the ramp space and taking into consideration safe and adequate areas for service vehicles. The design options were accepted by the client and subsequently installed by Ramp Engineering. In addition to Ramp's original scope, the client requested a design to accommodate multiple 737-200 aircraft in a limited use scenario for short range international charters.
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