The air transport industry is a strategic sector that favours the economic and foreign trade relations of countries and the mobility of their inhabitants. Good airport infrastructures favour not only the transport of goods but also the transport of passengers, both national and foreign, with all that this entails to promote economic activity, leisure and tourism.
Air transport is the most recent mode of transport. Its most significant advantage over other modes of transport is its speed, while the main disadvantage is its high cost. Therefore, this mode of transport is particularly suitable for transporting perishable or high-value goods over long distances. Advances in aviation technology and sustainable fuels enable a significant increase in air freight. However, the big niche market for air transport remains passenger transport.
Two aeronautical infrastructures are indispensable for air transport to be carried out safely: airports and navigation systems.
Building airports
Air transport’s basic and essential infrastructure is airports,, which provide all the necessary infrastructure to enable passengers and cargo to be transferred from the ground to aircraft and airlines to take off and land. Airports are made up of a set of structures: runways, aprons, hangars, boarding bridges, cargo and passenger terminals and ground transport interchanges, which allow the air transport of goods and passengers and provide both aircraft and passengers with all the services necessary for developing the activity.
In an airport, there are two areas: the air side, where the focus is on the aircraft, and everything is designed and built according to what they need, and the landside, focused on passengers and their needs, with a border between the two areas, which are the terminal buildings
On the air side of the airport is the movement area,which is made up of the manoeuvring area, which is part of the airfield used for take-off, landing and taxiing of aircraft and includes runways, taxiways, taxiways and aprons, and the parking aprons, which is the area used for parking aircraft to facilitate the boarding and disembarking of passengers or cargo, refuelling or maintenance.
On the landside of an airport, we find the terminal building, whose primary mission is to facilitate the modal interchange between land and air transport, which is organised in two different flows, departures and arrivals. In addition, on the landside are the airport access infrastructures, car parks, control towers, industrial zones, etc.
Finally, for an airport to operate, it is essential to have rescue and fire-fighting services for rapid action in the event of accidents These services are located on the airside, in places that are easily accessible to the entire airport, as regulations establish minimum times to reach the ends of the runways.
Sustainable and efficient maintenance is crucial to keep infrastructures up to date all year round, especially with the high international standards. Conacon Sando applies its expertise in this area to the maintenance of runways, car parks, hangars, boarding bridges, cargo and passenger terminals and ground transport interchanges.
The air transport sector is one of the most dynamic from a design, engineering, construction and maintenance perspective, as the demand for services has been growing in recent years due to globalisation, among other causes, and not without its challenges in terms of sustainability.
The evolution of the industry and the demands of the market are posing challenges already arising in the design of infrastructures where technology, new, more efficient and sustainable materials, versatility, natural light and ventilation play a fundamental role.
In this area of infrastructure, Sando Construcción has developed projects that have been decisive for the country’s economic and social growth. Building airports requires highly trained and experienced personnel. At Sando Construcción, we have both thanks to the experience we have acquired over the years in constructing airport terminals, airfields, runways, aprons, etc., such as the extension of the second runway at Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport or Terminal 3 and the second runway at Malaga Airport, among others.
