Transportation

American Airlines is in involved in a $1.3-billion redevelopment of its John F. Kennedy International Airport terminal. Featuring three concourses on three levels with 55 gates and a passenger check-in the size of a football stadium, the facility will be JFK's largest terminal upon completion. The new building will include a new international arrivals facility that will be able to process up to 2,400 people an hour. The terminal will be able to accommodate up to 14 million passengers annually when the project is completed in September 2006.

Toyota announced that it will manufacture completed Tacoma trucks as well as truck beds at its $140-million Tijuana plant currently under construction. Slated to open in 2005, the facility will have the capacity to build 20,000 trucks and 170,000 truck beds annually, and will employ 460 workers. Located on 700 acres in eastern Tijuana, the facility will be the first automobile manufacturing plant in Baja California.

United Parcel Service has completed its new world-class central hub facility at the Louisville International Airport, a $1-billion, seven-year project that more than doubles the size of the company's existing facility. Totalling over 4 million sf, the expansion enables UPS to process approximately 300,000 packages per hour, a 50% productivity improvement. The terminal's infrastructure can support an increase to 500,000 packages per hour. The facility now includes 44 airplane loading docks and more than 17,000 conveyor belts.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), an agency created last year to manage airline security, is seeking 400,000 sf of office space by the end of August 2002 for its headquarters. Sites under consideration are in D.C. and Northern Virginia, where there are limited options for such a large space. The relocation could happen by the end of 2002. The TSA currently employs 3,000 personnel, a figure expected to increase with federal budget reallocations.

San Diego State University is working with the Metropolitan Transit Development Board (MTDB) to build an underground trolley station. A 5.9-mile extension tunnel from Mission Valley to La Mesa is included in the $435-million project, which is being funded by MTDB. The cost of the under-campus station and tunnel is $84.3 million. Developed by Clark Construction Group of Bethesda, the tunnel has been under construction since June of 2001 and is approximately halfway completed. Construction of the trolley station is ongoing.  

The program for Ford Motor Company's Premier Automotive Group Headquarters Facility consists of a five-story 250,000-sf office tower, 30,000-sf design center, and a four-story parking structure. The facility consolidates the North American Headquarters for Ford's five luxury automotive brands, while maintaining individual brand identity. The project, built as a "green" facility, incorporates sustainable features. The LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) 2.0 guideline was used with the following results:

The Indianapolis Airport Authority has selected Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum (HOK) as Master Designer for a new $939-million terminal at Indianapolis International Airport. The new terminal will be built in the midfield of the airport between the two main runways. The project is scheduled for completion in July 2007. HOK will provide a comprehensive design solution for the entire development, with a primary focus on developing a unique and compelling gateway experience for the Indianapolis air traveler. The project represents the first U.S.

Atlantic Southeast Airlines (ASA) is planning to build a 7,500-sf aviation maintenance training center on land adjacent to its 60,000-sf Middle Georgia Regional Airport maintenance headquarters in Macon. The training center will feature a 3,000-sf equipment and parts storage facility, office space, three classrooms, and general support space. ASA, a subsidiary of Delta Air Lines, expects to begin construction this summer.

Toyota is planning to build a plant in Tijuana to manufacture its Tacoma pickup truck beds. Located on 700 acres in eastern Tijuana, the plant will produce 160,000 truck beds annually. Construction is slated to begin in spring of 2002 with production to begin at the plant in 2004.   

Japan-based Toyota Motor Corp. is considering sites in Georgia, Tennessee, or Alabama for a plant manufacturing 4.7-liter V8 gasoline engines. To be completed by 2004, the plant will produce 100,000 to 150,000 new engines per year and cost approximately $266 million.

Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport is building a new $4.4-million Airport Technical Support Campus facility. The 55,000-sf office will house 250 employees and will accommodate personnel (project management teams, contractors, subcontractors) involved in construction projects for the airport such as the planned fifth runway. The single story structure can be expanded to 94,000-sf. Completion is anticipated in July 2001.

National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) dedicated its new $2.3 million, 354-seat conference center in May 2000. The 12,518-sf facility--built in what was an abandoned theater--will be the new site for NTSB proceedings and hearings on civil aviation accidents. Special features include a stage with movable panels; two 9' x 12' dual rear projection screens capable of displaying traditional visuals, videotapes, DVDs, and live video; a six-zone distributed sound system accommodating 34 microphone inputs; and easy access for the media.

The National Fire and Protection Agency (NFPA) has partnered with Western Fire Chiefs Association (WFCA) and the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO) to build a set of Consensus Codes--a new set of codes for the built environment. Their goal is to provide safety officials with a new consistent and compatible set of codes by the year 2003. As part of the Consensus Code project NFPA also plans to devise a NFPA Building Code.