Bermuda International Airport

The L.F. Wade International airport is the world’s gateway to Bermuda, and the redevelopment of its existing Passenger Terminal Building (PTB) was a high priority for the small island country. Because the current terminal is prone to flooding, it is susceptible to damage from major Atlantic storms, which could seriously impact Bermuda’s vital tourism industry.

The PTB redevelopment was undertaken as a P3 project. HH Angus provided mechanical engineering and vertical transportation design for all systems serving the airside and the PTB, working with a local affiliate to deliver contract administration services during construction.

The vertical transportation scope for the project included five new machine-room-less (MRL) traction passenger elevators and four escalators.

Some of the interesting challenges of the project included its profile as an international project on an island; adapting to local authorities having jurisdiction; resistance to hurricanes; flood mitigation; and the island’s water strategy–Bermuda's building code requires that all rainwater be captured and re-used, and the new PTB represents the largest roof area in the country. Also, salt-laden air and accelerated corrosion require the use of non-traditional materials as compared, for example, to similar buildings in Canada.

Among the features of the engineering design, the high water table easily allowed for geo-thermal heat rejection for the cooling plant.