During the past two decades, Dubai has emerged to become a global business hub and a regional leader through its innovative iconic projects and competitive business culture. As such, Dubai Airport’s around-the-clock operation welcomes thousands of travellers daily and provides them with an exclusive experience that is renowned internationally. In a special focus on airports, this article takes a close look at a project that is a proud feather in Habtoor Engineering Enterprises’ (HEE) cap: the Dubai International Airport.

During the past two decades, Dubai has emerged as a global business hub and a regional leader through its innovative and iconic projects and competitive business culture. As such, Dubai International’s around-the-clock operation welcomes thousands of travellers daily and provides them with an exclusive experience that is renowned internationally. In a special focus on airports, this article takes a close look at a project that is a proud feather in Habtoor Engineering Enterprises’ (HEE) cap: the Dubai International.

Dubai International is one of the HEE’s most prestigious and iconic assignments. Being part of a joint venture including Murray & Roberts and Takenaka (collectively HMRT), HEE has been involved in the building of each phase of the project. Murray & Roberts is a South African construction firm, while Takenaka is a Japanese company that brings with it expertise in specialized systems.

The team’s first project on the airport was the construction of the Sheikh Rashid Terminal, also known as Concourse 1. Various other projects were also executed at the airport, including the iconic Dubai Flower Centre, the Airport Expo Centre and Chalets for the Dubai Air Show, among others.

Recently HMRT completed the construction of the Dubai Airports’ eagerly awaited Terminal 3 along with its airside facility, popularly known as Concourse 2 (also known as Package AX059). This US$ 5.2 Billion project is the new exclusive home of Emirates Airlines, giving its travellers a new meaning to world-class experience; an unparalleled experience indeed. A joint venture including Dar Al Handasa and Airport de Paris served as the project consultants. HMRT was commissioned to manage the fit out, final finishes, services and special air systems of the entire project. Furthermore, the joint venture was also responsible for managing all Health & Safety requirements across the project, and to ensure that all subcontractors completed the job as per the Dubai Airports’ standards.

The Dubai International’s Terminal 3 project stretches over a massive 1.5 million sqm. According to Project Director Bruce Neave, “Managing work over such a large area was a huge challenge. For easier management, we had split the area into 8 geographical zones, with one construction manager assigned to each zone.”

The project area includes the three-level parking area leading to Terminal 3, and an underground walk leading to the kilometre-long Concourse 2, which is shaped like a blue cigar with triangles along both the sides. A ten-level structure, this concourse is synonymous with world-class luxury, boasting 2 hotel levels, the Emirates Airlines lounge level, arrival and departure levels, as well as a huge sump on the lower most level that guards the entire building against flooding. The facility comprises 28 gates, five of which are capable of boarding the twin deck A380.

The construction phases of Dubai International’s Terminal 3 project were extremely high on safety. Operations Manager David Heron states, “The project had at a stage reached a milestone of 32 million man-hours without any lost time accidents taking place. After this milestone, they subsequently hit 22 million again. This is a huge achievement. For the last 8 months of the project, we had close to 22,000 people on the job, with 16,000 people working exclusively on EX059”.

The new facility also includes 72 kilometres of baggage handling systems, implemented by Siemens, and two train tunnels which will shuttle passengers between Concourse 3 and a future extension. Once operational, the Dubai Metro will also intertwine with this iconic project, saving passengers time and allowing them to easily commute to and from the airport.

The interiors work of Terminal 3 was carried out with the utmost detail and supervision. Subcontractor Dar Al Rokham was responsible for the 258,000 sqm of granite, whereas the biggest subcontractor assigned to the project, Thermo, handled almost 50% of the task, in addition to MEP installations and specialist work.

“One of the toughest challenges on the job was that of finding subcontractors who were capable of executing such a large job. A number of the subcontractors had never handled a job of this size before, and many of them had to be hand-held and guided every step of the way,” notes Ghassan Otaibi, the Construction Manager of the wet trades and finishing for the Apron level and the car park.

Another challenge was obtaining materials on time. Due to the sheer volume of materials required on site, all at specific times during the project, it was quite difficult to ensure that all requirements were available when needed. Some of those were air freighted in to avoid any delays. Bruce Neave’s philosophy of “Get on and do it” was constant motivation for the team during the three year project and constantly ensured that tasks were attended to and completed thoroughly.

Launched as per schedule on October 14, 2008, the Dubai International’s Terminal 3 opened its doors to thousands of travellers coming into this vibrant city. The launch was flawlessly executed by Dubai Airports and Emirates and after months of smooth operation, the opening is regarded the world over as the most successful for a facility of its size. The world’s largest airport terminal building got off to a smooth start and has succeeded in fulfilling what it aimed to at the early stages of its conception; a spectacular and breathtaking experience for any traveller walking through its doors and into the realm of luxury travel.