De Boer responds to further airport challenge

Accommodation specialist De Boer has demonstrated its remarkable versatility by building one of its Alu Hall temporary structures for client British Airways inside Heathrow’s new Terminal 5 building.

Aluminium-framed structure
The clearspan, aluminium-framed structure is providing storage space for vital equipment needed as part of the airline’s efforts to train nearly 7,000 of its staff ahead of the terminal opening for business in March 2008. 

Innovative storage for equipment
The temporary facility, created near to T5’s customer services centre, allows for items such as clothing, baggage and protective equipment to be stored securely. It is due to remain in place inside the terminal until immediately prior to the facility opens to the public. 

A quick and efficient response
British Airways Operations Manager Anne Lahiffe, who is co-ordinating the airline’s staff familiarisation programme within the new terminal, said: “We have been working with De Boer as a result of their previous contracts with BAA. The company has responded quickly and efficiently to our requests, which reflect the tight timeframe we have faced.” 

Huge building project
The opening of Terminal 5 will mark the completion of a huge building project that has involved an estimated 60,000 staff. The new facilities, including taxiways and aircraft stands, are equivalent in size to London’s Hyde Park. Once open, the terminal will provide 11 miles of baggage conveyor belt and will offer capacity for handling 35 million passengers a year. 

Temporary restaurant assignment
De Boer is no stranger to working at T5. Its many previous airport assignments have included the creation of a 1,000-seater restaurant area for contractors working on the new terminal. The assignment, for airports operator BAA, involved special modifications to De Boer’s Alu Hall structures, to enable the facilities to be created beneath an arrivals-level car park. A subsequent contract has seen the erection of a further structure, to create changing facilities alongside the temporary restaurant. 

A growing airports portfolio
Elsewhere, the company has worked at major airports including Qatar’s Doha International and Amsterdam’s Schiphol, and has tackled assignments at UK airports such as Glasgow Prestwick International, Cardiff International and historic Farnborough Airport in Hampshire. Structures supplied by De Boer have accommodated a diverse range of facilities including baggage-handling halls, temporary aircraft hangars, public foyers and flight catering kitchens.

Short- and medium-term facilities
De Boer Director of Business Continuity Mical de Boer said: “De Boer’s reputation within the airports sector continues to grow rapidly. As many international, national and regional airports expand, their owners and operators have discovered the benefits of using temporary structures as short- and medium-term facilities, whether for public areas, baggage handling, staff accommodation or for storing the aircraft themselves.” 

Business continuity expertise
He added: “De Boer’s structures offer versatile, high-quality accommodation, backed up by a team of professionals that has experience of completing facilities at very short notice. This combination of outstanding equipment and expertise has also enabled De Boer to become a leading provider of business continuity facilities in the UK.”