New Mexico City International Airport / Nuevo Aeropuerto de la Ciudad de México

CONCEPT
The proposal for the Project of the New International Airport Mexico City is generated from a central idea: translate the challenge of building on a poor and unstable soil in a theme on which build a project that is not only viable Urban, Sustainable, Economic and logistic terms but which also becomes an emblem that represents to the world Mexico for simplicity, intelligence and beauty of its architecture.

NAICM is accessible, clear and dynamic; in its form and materiality the past and future Mexico merge. The Integrity of its image, internal and external, is expressed from the strength, color and texture of its base that blend with the earth up to the lightness, fluidity and lightness of its cover that meets the air.

In the interior, the spaces are monumental; modularly designed and true to the scale of the Great City of Mexico. The logic of the space follows a free configuration, independent and super-adaptable, housed under membrane modular elements, creating the intensity that characterizes the major transportation hubs of our-time that have transcended to become compact cities.

Beyond being a perfect transportation machine, the NAICM is a social, cultural and technological expression. An airport designed for the future in a site with deep historical resonances to recover the cultural and environmental value of Valley of Mexico.

From the base to the roof, the materiality of the project arises from the construction needs, the base of the Terminal, and the Satellite is stone. The buildings float on the site through a post-tensioned slab that eliminates the need for excavation and deep piles. This in turn results in a reduction of 36 months in the execution of the work.

Logically the efficiency of the foundations depends largely on the optimization of the structure weight. Therefore the design is based on a light from a steel frame covered by a textile structure sandwich, which section consists of two layers of PTFE and a nanogel filled polycarbonate interlayer. This "Umbrella" is an prefabricated element which is instrumental not only to reduce the time of construction (which is the basis from which the project is generated), but it also has two key sustainable features. It filters the light in for 90% of the day reducing dependence on artificial light and collects rainwater to supply the airport and mechanical demand.

The large stepped roof defines the project from the air and land. Unlike most existing airports where facades are horizontal and characterless, the roof is also NAICM’s facade. From the land side it appears as narrow and low profile on the Welcome square; from this point it spreads and rises reaching almost 1 Km in width on the air side.

The Satellite and boarding gates, follow the same construction and materiality principles of the Terminal. It is estimated that the foundation and structure construction work could be completed in 17 months, resulting in savings of up to 15% of total project cost and allowing operability within less than 48 months.

STRUCTURE
The structural frame of the “umbrellas” measures 36m x 36m for the terminals and 18m x 18m for the boarding gates. Its height from the ground varies to approximately 47m.

Since the structure of all the racks is identical there is the possibility of large prefabrication are. Loads are also scattered over a large area, resulting in an economical foundation.

The umbrella structure is designed to withstand wind loads and seismic loads. Coatings on the PTFE and material combinations allow maintaining moderate temperatures and low noise levels without resorting to conventional sound insulation and air conditioning.

SUSTAINABILITY
The proposed design of the new international airport in Mexico City is based on the highest standards in sustainability, energy consumption and efficient use of water. The design aims to make the best use of the context of the site using the strategies of demand reduction.

• The high-performance membrane provides uniform glare free natural light, reducing lighting energy costs by 90%.
• Preconditioning the air through underground tubes provides a zero-water, maintenance-free medium to reduce heating and cooling loads and a reduction ventilation air energy consumption of 50%.
• The use of underfloor heating and cooling systems separates the conditioning systems from the fresh air system, reducing energy by 13% while improving the thermal comfort and minimizing space requirements HVAC distribution.
• The rainwater collection and reuse strategy contributes to 85% of the cooling tower water.
• Natural wetland feature design ensures that 100% of water rain deviates from the municipal drainage system, but also provides free cleaning for the water and a mean of infiltration back to the natural water table.
• Cooling displacement ventilation strategy reduces consumption of 30% compared to a traditional delivery system, while also offering a better thermal comfort and air quality.
• The climate sensitive strategies implemented allow for a reduction of 46% in energy costs compared to the ASHREA 2007 90.1 energy efficiency standards.
• The design strategy implements a PV area of 65,000 m2 to achieve zero net carbon emissions.
• The power consumption of the aircrafts will be minimized using fixed electric units (GPU) and pre conditioned air (PCA) to reduce aircrafts use of power units.

The proposed design meets the net zero energy and net zero carbon targets through the use of renewable resources and clean energy.

The design of the International Airport of Mexico City proposes to achieve LEED Platinum certification. The design aims at maximizing the benefits of the site and aggressively reduces energy and water demand while providing superior comfort and thermal environmental quality interior.

PROJECT TEAM
JAHN – Design Architect
Francisco Gonzalez-Pulido, Sergio Valentini, Sanaz Saeedi, Maria Villarreal, Jon Gately, Matthew Stymiest, Phil Stott, Bryan Howard, Joe Madon, Noah Cahan, Sandy Gorshow, Carl D’Silva, Joseph Billeaud, Benjamin Blocher, Joakim Wadenholt, Hyeonji Im, Edward Eichten, Jacqueline Villa, Jason Kocher, Patrick Brown, Christelle Calderon, Stephanie Pelzer

ADG – Associate Architect
Alonso De Garay, Jorge Guendulain

LOGUER – Associate Architect
Francisco Lopez Guerra

GDU – Landscape
Mario Schjetnan

WSP GROUP – Building Services and Airport Planning
Wayne Gaw, Alan Shepherd, Greg Ballentine, Charles Chaloeicheep, Hiroki Takeshita, Paul Tétreault, Gavin Wickens, Greame Power-Hosming

WERNER SOBEK – Structure and Facades
Werner Sobek, Roland Bechmann, Angelika Schmid

POSTENSA – Geotechnical
Pablo Cortina

TURNER & TOWNSEND – Cost and Scheduling
Tina Millan, Greg Curran, Haneef Ahmed, David Fox

RWDI – Wind Analysis
Greg Thompson

L-PLAN – Lighting Design
Michael Rohde, Reinhard Germer

AIK – Art Light Concept
Yann Kersalé, Philippe Stanfield Pinel

LERCH BATES – Transportation and Maintenance Access
Kevin Thompson, Eric Rupe

BNP – Baggage Handling
Damien Breier, Felix Rosbergen

IO-CONSULTANTS – Logistics
Torsten Brendel, Rupert Hoecherl

JHP – Retail
Steve Collis

BULLSIGNS – Signage
Andrew Elliot

LEA + ELLIOTT – APM
David Casselman, Craig Elliott

MOBILITY IN CHAIN – Roadway Masterplan
Pablo Forti, Francesco Maria Cerroni