Airport’s acoustical performance achieved with metal ceilings
by Jonathan McGaha | March 31, 2009 12:00 am
Plans have been in the works for more than 30 years to overhaul and redesign the Indianapolis Airport to create a state-of-the-art terminal that is timeless in design and flexible enough to grow and change. In November 2008, Indianapolis unveiled the largest development initiative in its history. Designed by HOK Inc., St. Louis, the curved roof of the new Indianapolis International Airport acts as a symbolic gateway to the region.
The new airport is the first airport built from the ground up since 9/11 and features a modern facility equipped with the latest design, security and sustainable features. It is designed to meet LEED Silver. Situated 16 miles (26 km) outside the city center, the new dual-level terminal sits midfield between the two main runways. The building features 40 gates equipped to meet the needs of narrow and widebody aircraft and includes all ticketing and check-in activity, as well as security, baggage claim, and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection facilities.
Hunter Douglas Contract Ceilings, Norcross, Ga., supplied 55 linear miles (88 km) of 300C metal ceiling panels that were installed in the concourse, security screening checkpoint areas, public corridors, baggage claim areas and between the girders of the pedestrian bridge art installation. The panels are made of more than 70 percent recycled material,have no VOCs and were specified to meet the needs of the space.
“This product provides a durable, acoustical solution with easy access to the plenum without tools,” said Mary Inchauste, AIA, LEED AP, IIDA, an architect with Indianapolis-based AeroDesign Group, the architect of record. “Even during construction, this proved to be invaluable as the various trades worked to install electrical, lighting, public address systems, fire protection and security systems by easily removing the panels.”
The baggage claim area features the most traditional application of the 12-inch- (305-mm-) wide ceiling panels installed in a uniform design. The area above the ceiling houses the complex conveyor systems for outbound traffic. In the concourses, an independent suspended “cloud” of ceilings was installed between each structural column and truss bay with a segmented curve application. The factory cut openings accommodated 6-inch- (152-mm-) wide linear lighting, while a segmented joint pattern creates a monolithic appearance. A simple installation of the ceiling panels integrates the lighting and support structures in the public corridors, providing easy access and good acoustical performance. At the security screening checkpoints, the structure was a concave slope with the highest point in one corner and the lowest in the opposite diagonal corner, making it difficult to use a straight flat panel material. Instead, the ceiling panels were installed as a series of “piano keys,” parallel to the floor and sloping front to back, changing slope to meet the ceiling’s curves.
The large panel sizes created fewer seams and joints, giving the project a clean appearance. The maximum panel length was 19 2/3 feet (6 m), and the maximum width was 11 3/4 inches (300 mm). This allowed the panels to span a greater distance.
The Indianapolis Airport Authority is the owner. Turner/Trotter, a joint venture between Turner Construction Co. and Trotter Construction Co., both of Indianapolis, was the construction manager. The general contractor was a joint venture between Hunt Construction Group and Smoot Construction Co., both of Indianapolis. Perry Acoustics Inc., Mooresville, Ind., installed the Hunter Douglas ceiling panels.
Hunter Douglas Contract Ceilings
Source URL: https://www.metalarchitecture.com/projects/airports-acoustical-performance-achieved-with-metal-ceilings/