Kingspan : Innovative Architecture—City of Abu Dhabi

Midfield Terminal at Abu Dhabi International Airport is set to open in 2019. Construction began on this project, designed by Kohn Pederson Fox Associates (KPF), over 6 years ago. When complete, the Midfield Terminal will be one of the largest buildings in the world, at 700,000m². At its largest point, the terminal's roof span will be almost twice the size of Heathrow's Terminal 5's.
The standout architectural feature of the Midfield Terminal is its curved roof, which has been designed to flow effortlessly into 18 steel arches. The curvature of the roof will produce a wave-like ripple effect, which in-turn will give the impression that the roof is floating, rather than standing on its arches.
The terminal's roof-covering 300,000m² in total-will be a massive undertaking. To save time, it will be manufactured on-site using Kingspan's KingZip SF, a mechanically zipped roofing system. KingZip SF can be formed on-site into straight, tapered, or curved sheets, which will accommodate the terminals complex roof geometry.
Incredibly, the Midfield Terminal will expend 115,000m² of external glazing, 275,000m² of aluminum cladding, 325,000m² of stone flooring, 600,000m of concrete and 69,000 tonnes of structural steel in its production. Moreover, 7,425 piles will be created in setting its foundation.
In Oct 2017, Awaidah Murshed al- Marrar, the airport operator's chairman, told local media that the Midlfield Terminal was 86% completed.
In 2016, Abu Dhabi airport handled 24.5 million passengers. In 2019, when the Midfield Terminal opens, the airport will have an updated capacity of 45 million. This gargantuan increase in capacity will have an irrevocable impact upon the city of Abu Dhabi, where architectural innovation is already beginning to take off.