Airside Operations Building: Improving Safety at YVR

Since its completion, the Airside Operations Building (AOB) has improved safety and efficiency of operations and emergency services to Vancouver International Airport. Previously spread around the airport, the new integrated facility has merged airside operations, maintenance and support teams into one building. Located centrally in the airfield, the building is highly visible at both domestic and international terminals.

“Every aircraft that lands at YVR sees this building. We didn’t want it to look like the terminals. We wanted it to have its own identity,” says YVR’s in-house architect Nancy Stern. “The design speaks to aviation…very sleek and contemporary. It’s a beautiful building with its unique shape …using durable, robust and attractive materials to define the differences between the service bay area versus the offices above.”

The project uses numerous sustainable technologies including a geothermal field, wind turbine, photovoltaic solar panels, rainwater harvesting, in-slab radiant heating and solar water heating. As the greenest building at YVR to date, the expected energy savings is 48 per cent compared to the average energy consumption of other conventional buildings. In addition, the building houses a seven bay fire hall for the airfield fire trucks, complete with chemical loading facilities. Built to post-disaster standards, the building will provide YVR with the ability to maintain operations in a post-disaster scenario, with all critical systems on a standby generator.

Read more at REMI Network