One of the most efficient ways to respond to the social and environmental needs of our society is to design transport infrastructure and urban spaces that incorporate all of the variables that contribute to inclusive and sustainable mobility; mobility, moreover, that not only corrects existing imbalances but also creates spaces that are more integrated and humane.

We begin this edition with a clear example of this approach: namely, the improvements being made to Avenida Alfonso Molina in A Coruña. The works form part of an action proposal drawn up by the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda, in line with the urban development policies of the EU, the 2030 Agenda and the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan.

All of these advances are made possible thanks to Ineco’s specialist teams and their outstanding technical and technological qualifications

2021 is the European Year of Rail, which celebrates a mode of transport that is sustainable, smart and safe. In a number of articles in this new edition, we highlight the benefits that railways bring for people, the economy and the climate. Cutting-edge satellite technology in pioneering innovation projects for railways in Europe, the modernisation of the Zaragoza-Teruel-Sagunto line (a key part of the Cantabrian-Mediterranean Corridor), the link between Sol and Gran Vía stations in Madrid serving 22,000 users per day, and the use of clean energy in level-crossing protection systems: all of these developments exemplify the tremendous technical and digital progress being made by a mode of transport that is on track for a bright future.

This drive to develop infrastructure that will help to bring about social and environmental improvements is also evident in the work carried out in the airport sector. The updating of the Master Plan for Simón Bolívar Airport in Santa Marta (Colombia) paves the way for a future expansion that will give a major boost to tourism and the economy in the north-eastern region of the country, while LEED Gold certification will make Kuwait International Airport a global benchmark for sustainability with regard to this type of transport infrastructure.

All of these advances are made possible thanks to Ineco’s specialist teams and their outstanding technical and technological qualifications. One such example is the group of cyber-security experts, whose continuous support plays a vital role in responding to the challenges of the digital environment. You can meet our cyber-security experts in this edition of ITRANSPORTE. These teams also represent an enormous social and human commitment. Ineco’s 2030 Agenda Commission, for example, focuses all of its talent on helping the company achieve the Sustainable Development Goals

Obtaining LEED certification for the new passenger terminal at Kuwait International Airport (KIA) was a project requirement proposed by the Kuwait Ministry of Public Works and designers Foster + Partners. This LEED certification is promoted by the US non-governmental organisation USGBC (United States Green Building Council), which awards the final certificate to the building upon completion of the independent review of the entire project documentation. The London-based architectural firm was commissioned to design the project in accordance with these sustainability strategies. Subsequently, the Turkish construction company Limak, winner of the construction competition, is executing the design in accordance with the best construction practices required by the certification.

The project aims to generate at least 10% of the energy consumed inside, and reduces overall consumption by 27% compared to a reference building

Ineco is providing project management services for the three work packages into which the project has been divided, aimed at significantly increasing the country’s passenger transit capacity, and establishing a new hub in the Persian Gulf. The project consists of a state-of-the-art infrastructure, which will set a new environmental benchmark for airport buildings. Its design responds to the local climate, one of the warmest inhabited environments on earth, and is inspired by local building shapes and materials.

The passenger terminal has a floor plan with three symmetrical wings, where each façade is 1.2 kilometres long, all extending from a spectacular 25-metre-high central space. The project aims to achieve LEED Gold certification for environmental design, and to being one of the largest passenger terminals in the world to do this.

Energy consumption is optimised through efficient mechanical systems, from lighting to air conditioning. Pictured here is a detail of the 8,000 skylights on the roof that maximise natural light. / PHOTO_MPW (MINISTRY OF PUBLIC WORKS)

LEED certification, which stands for Leader in Energy Efficiency and Sustainable Design, means that the building or project to which it refers is built according to eco-efficiency standards and meets sustainability requirements. This certification is voluntary and rewards the use of sustainable strategies in all the building’s construction processes, through a design aimed at maximising energy efficiency, water savings, waste reduction and the use of sustainable materials, as well as optimising the health and well-being of the terminal’s occupants and visitors.

INTEGRATED WATER CYCLE. In Terminal 2, potable water consumption will be reduced by 45% through the use of low-flow taps and the reuse of grey water.

Total potable water consumption will be reduced by 45% through the use of low-flow taps and the reuse of grey water.

The project has been designed to reduce its impact on the environment by minimising the ‘heat island effect’, which is a rise in temperature in cities caused by an increase in impermeable and heat-absorbing surfaces such as concrete and asphalt. This effect can be reduced by providing a green roof over the parking building and an oasis at the entrance to the terminal that welcomes passengers with a microclimate several degrees below the surrounding environment. All landscaped areas have been designed with native species and/or those adapted to Kuwait’s desert climate, incorporating light, heat-rejecting materials in the exterior cladding and canopies.

The building’s thermal envelope includes a roof structure with an air gap with high thermal inertia and a glazed façade that is shaded by a 60-metre cantilever. This reduces the thermal gains that must be abated by the air conditioning system, reducing energy consumption while improving the thermal comfort inside the terminal.

Natural light is maximised through the 8,000 skylights incorporated into the roof design, and energy consumption is optimised through efficient mechanical systems, from lighting to air conditioning.

The roof incorporates 81,444 photovoltaic panels with an installed peak power of 29.4 MWp that will generate 49.98 GWh annually, representing 10% of the total energy consumed by the building. This is the largest photovoltaic installation in an airport terminal.

Thanks to this and other energy efficiency measures, the project manages to reduce overall energy consumption by 27% compared to a reference building designed under the ASHRAE 90.1-2007 standard, according to energy calculations made by the US consultancy firm The Spinnaker Group.

Total potable water consumption will be reduced by 45% through the use of low-flow taps and the reuse of grey water collected from sinks for toilet flushing. Water from the toilets is treated and reused to irrigate the landscaped areas, thus completing the integral water cycle and reducing by 100% the potable water needed for irrigation. Materials in Terminal 2 have been specifically selected so that a significant proportion of them contain recycled or rapidly renewable materials from regional suppliers, aiming to reduce the use of finite resources by 20% and minimising transport distances. To ensure a healthy indoor environment, building materials such as paints, sealants and adhesives have been specifically selected with a low level of VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds), while air conditioning systems have been designed to increase outdoor air ventilation rates by 30%.

View of the floor plan of the new terminal divided into three packages.

Finally, construction sites often produce large amounts of solid waste, increasing the burden on dwindling landfills and causing soil, water and air pollution. In the construction of Terminal 2, the aim is to recycle, reuse or donate at least 75% of the waste produced on site.

The deployment of Ineco’s integrated project management team to take operational readiness activation and transfer (ORAT) for the expansion of Kuwait International Airport (KIA) has begun. In the picture, from left to right, the first arrivals in October, engineers Ángel Toro, Stephen Manjai and Samuel Machín.

The expansion includes a new 700,000 m² terminal building, extensions to both runways and a new control tower.

The expansion includes, among other works, the construction of a new 700,000 m² terminal building (the main purpose of this contract, and whose construction began in 2017), the extension of the two runways, the construction of a new third runway, a new control tower, and the construction of the associated infrastructure on the land and air sides of the airport. This award will enable Ineco to participate in one of the most emblematic airport projects in the Middle East. Ineco, the leader of the consortium, together with its local partners, the Kuwaiti firms KUD (Kuwait United Development) specialising in project management, and the engineering and architecture firm Dar al Jazera Consultants, will coordinate the work of the many consultants and contractors from various countries involved in the works, which will increase the airport’s capacity to 25 million passengers, which in a second phase that is being considered would raise capacity to 50 million in its final stage.

For Ignacio Alejandre, ORAT project manager, “the contract is a major challenge for Ineco. Its complexity and scope will demand the best of the team on the ground and support from all areas of the company.” Ineco previously worked at this airport between 2011 and 2016, carrying out project management tasks and updating the 2010 Master Plan for the Kuwait Civil Aviation Authority.

Project head Angel Toro stresses that “in terms of airports, this is one of the most ambitious projects underway in the world today. It will be a highly motivating challenge for a team of between 40 and 50 people, and will enable Ineco to be a key player in the development of this airport.”

Division of the works into three main packages

Due to the large number and magnitude of the planned works, the Kuwaiti Ministry of Public Works has divided the works into three main packages, which will be tendered separately: the first package includes the new main terminal building, a central plant building for power and chilled water, another for the water supply and an utility tunnel that will connect the terminal building with the future cargo area of the airport. The second is a car park with 5,200 spaces (a total area 325,000 m²), landscaping, an underground sewage treatment plant, the new access roads and four storm water storage tanks. The third package includes the main apron, new taxiways, several tunnels that will connect the new terminal with the rest of the facilities and a consolidation centre between the landside and airside, which will include waste management facilities, storage dedicated for the retail shops and facilities for the Ministry of the Interior and Custom Control.

The expansion includes, among other works, the construction of a new 700,000 m² terminal building, the extension of the two runways and a new control tower, which will increase the capacity to 25 million passengers

Under this contract, with a completion time of 50 months, Ineco will also provide ORAT (Operational Readiness and Airport Transfer) services for the last two years, which include the planning, validation and execution of live exams called ‘trials’ of all the systems and procedures for the terminal prior to its commissioning, as well as personnel training, to ensure that the opening of the new facilities goes smoothly. The company has extensive experience in ORAT in major airports in Spain – Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga, Valencia, Alicante, etc. – and other countries – Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates), Newark (USA), etc.

Signing of the contract by the Spanish commercial attaché in Kuwait, Francisco J. Medina, on behalf of Ineco.

Kuwait International Airport, which went into operation in 1961, is located in Farwaniyah, 16 kilometres south of the capital, Kuwait City. It has two parallel runways of 3,400 and 3,500 metres in length and 11 aircraft parking aprons and two control towers: a main tower, located between the two runways, and an apron movement control tower. The main passenger terminal shaped like an airplane was designed in 1979 by the famous Japanese architect Kenzo Tange. The airport also has other terminal buildings serving Kuwait Airways and Jazeera Airways. The airport also houses a military base, a general aviation terminal opened in 2008 and a restricted access terminal reserved for the Head of State, the Emir of Kuwait.

Last October, a delegation led by Awatef Al Ghunaim, Kuwaiti under-secretary of Public Works, visited Ineco’s headquarters in Madrid as part of its official visit to Spain. In 2014, the governments of both countries signed an infrastructure collaboration agreement.

During the visit, the secretary of State for Infrastructure of the Spanish Ministry of Public Works, Julio Gómez-Pomar, and the Kuwaiti under-secretary, signed an addendum to the agreement appointing Ineco to provide technical assistance to the construction of the new airport terminal building at the Kuwait International Airport (KIA). During the last five years the company has carried out the Master Plan update and the project management of the enlargement works at the airport (see ITRANSPORTE 49).

In the picture, under-secretary Awatef Al Ghunaim with Jesús Silva, President of Ineco.