News releases 2014

Atkins-designed US airport rescue and firefighting station earns LEED Gold certification - 03 June 2014

A critical Atkins-designed safety building at a leading US international airport has earned Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification for sustainable design and construction from the US Green Building Council (USGBC) and Green Building Certification Institute. The $15.7 million, 31,000 square foot aircraft rescue and firefighting facility (ARFF) at the Southwest Florida International Airport is the first public/government building in Lee County, Florida to receive a LEED Gold rating and was completed in June 2013.

"This is one of the nation's first structures to be developed under the updated FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) guidelines for ARFF building design," said Atkins' project manager, Darin Larson. "It's also one of the most efficient of this type of building ever constructed. The airport will gain long-term benefits through reductions in operating and maintenance costs."

Atkins' project-related services included site selection, planning and design, ARFF programming, architectural planning and design, environmental consultation and construction administration for the new facility - which accommodates the specialised emergency equipment and personnel who respond to airport ground emergencies.

Key sustainability features of the new structure include energy-efficient lighting and mechanical systems, low-flow water fixtures, a rainwater reclamation system for landscape irrigation, reflective building materials and specialised daylighting elements. Separating and recycling waste during the construction process also helped the facility earn its LEED Gold certification.

The USGBC's LEED rating system is an internationally recognised green building program that helps building owners and operators identify and implement practical and measurable solutions in sustainable building design, construction, operation and maintenance.

Southwest Florida International Airport is one of the top 50 US airports in terms of passenger traffic, serving more than 7.6 million passengers in 2013.

Ends

For more information:

Jeff Berg
PR manager, North America

+1 (407) 647 7275
jeff.berg@atkinsglobal.com

Jane Sheils
Group PR manager

 +44 1372 75 2350
jane.sheils@atkinsglobal.com

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Notes to editors:

Atkins ( www.atkinsglobal.com ) is one of the world's leading design, engineering and project management consultancies*, employing some 17,400 people across the UK, North America, Middle East, Asia Pacific and Europe. Our people's breadth and depth of expertise and drive to ask why has allowed us to plan, design and enable some of the world's most complex and time critical projects.

*14th largest global design firm (Engineering News-Record 2013) and the third largest multidisciplinary consultancy in Europe (Svensk Teknik och Design 2013).

Recent projects:

Atkins is working across urban regeneration, master planning, national energy programmes, major transport schemes, water and environment projects - applying smart design solutions on projects including:

  • Central Planning Office - helping to co-ordinate Qatar's National 2030 Vision for world class transport infrastructure, which will bring major benefits to the economy;
  • The London 2012 Games infrastructure transformation - as technical advisor to London's boroughs as the Olympic Park moves into its legacy configuration as a follow-on role to our work as the Games' official engineering and design provider;
  • 's peaceful nuclear new build programme - providing technical assurance to lenders backing the United Arab Emirates' most ambitious energy infrastructure projects;
  • North Sea and Gulf of Mexico oil and gas platforms - extending the operational life of critical oil and gas platforms to allow cost-efficient and safe recovery of fuel sources from mature fields;
  • offshore wind alliance - provision of expert engineering and design support for the UK's biggest offshore wind alliance with Scottish and Southern Energy;
  • - designing the Central London twin tunnels and station architecture for Europe's biggest civil engineering scheme which will see tunnels passing beneath 470 listed buildings and critical infrastructure;
  • Railway - providing multidisciplinary design expertise on the 1,200 km Rail network which will passenger and freight transport in the ;
  • Denmark - providing signalling expertise on the first countrywide installation of an train control and management system in Denmark;
  • Hong Kong-- Bridge - lead consultant on this integral part of the new Hong Kong link road scheme which will significantly boost land connectivity in the region;
  • Sixth Form College - design of the energy consumption College in the UK which aims to reduce operational energy use by more than 60% compared to previous designs;
  • UK National Composites Centre - providing technical expertise to bring the latest lightweight carbon fibre materials to all engineering sectors, helping to develop innovative applications and reduce costs and carbon;
  • US Environmental Protection Agency - providing technical assessment and analysis of national water-related resources and ecological systems in North America.
  • Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) broadband - providing technical, commercial and procurement support to help deliver broadband to one of Europe's most remote regions.
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