{"id":1487,"date":"2016-02-02T19:54:19","date_gmt":"2016-02-02T18:54:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.revistaitransporte.com\/todo-bajo-control\/?lang=en"},"modified":"2016-02-26T11:40:24","modified_gmt":"2016-02-26T10:40:24","slug":"all-under-control","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.revistaitransporte.com\/all-under-control\/","title":{"rendered":"All under control"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bruce Fairbanks<\/h2>
His work is characterised by the search for architectural expressiveness through the meticulous integration of functional elements and construction systems from the start of the design process. In Spain, he has designed the control towers for the airports of Madrid, M\u00e1laga, Barcelona and Santiago de Compostela, amongst others. He has also designed five control towers in Algeria, and the control tower for Bogot\u00e1 airport.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

“To create a unique symbol for each place”<\/h2>\n

Bruce Fairbanks, founder of Fairbanks Arquitectos, has accumulated extensive experience in the design of airport buildings since 1996 when he won the tender for the construction of the Madrid-Barajas control tower.<\/span><\/p>\n

Presently in the world of airports there is a trend to promote the control tower as a symbol, an image that represents the airport and a reference point for the arrival in, and departure from the city where it is located. This trend has created increased interest in architectural execution in the design of control towers in addition to their functional requirements. It is precisely the individuality of these requirements that significantly affects the type of building, such that throughout history there are various examples of \u201ctypes\u201d of tower designs, which, once designed, were repeated in various airports: one notable case is the leoh Ming Pei control tower. It was designed between 1962 and 1965 with the objective implementation in 70 airports, although in the end 16 were built. The concept of locating in upper levels strictly that which was necessary was developed, putting the maximum amount of functions in the base building, which was adapted to the specific characteristics of each location. As such, the tower could be prefabricated and repeated with standardised equipment, giving the airport network an image of safety since a controller could work in any location without having to adapt. The tower was designed with 5 standardised heights (18-46 m) in accordance with visibility requirements in each location. The control tower\u2019s cab is pentagonal so there are no parallel fa\u00e7ades and so as to avoid reflections. In Spain, in the 1970s, Juan Montero Romero, an aeronautical engineer, built a tower, which was repeated in several cities: M\u00e1laga, Alicante, Valencia, etc.<\/p>\n

To create a landmark, the architect must find within the functionality the characteristics that distinguish one tower from others<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Converting control towers into airport landmarks and reference points for cities is a challenge in the work of an architect: creating a symbol, always unique for each location, which meets all of the requirements for the optimal functioning of the tower. The location, the height of the control room, its form and the layout of its structural elements are some of the first elements to define. Control towers typically have a base building and a shaft that supports the upper floors, which are designed to adapt to the control operations. Given the form, with an upper part and a lower part and the height of the type of building, in my opinion it is essential to incorporate the construction process into the design of the tower, and this is what I have done in those which I have designed. This design comes from an analysis of the functional aspects, the programme and the location. To create a landmark, the architect must find within the functionality the characteristics that can distinguish one tower from others and strengthen them to create a unique tower with its own character in each case.<\/p>\n

Analysis of four cases<\/h4>\n

The following examples of control towers show diferente conceptual approaches to design this building type and the elements that diversify its design.<\/p>\n