Sustainability within Airports
David Delaney - Vice President Airport, Beumer Group
The IABSC had a fantastic turnout on September 10 for our monthly meeting, which was held through Zoom. Our first speaker was Mr. Andy Mena, the chair of our Government Relations committee. Andy shared some insight and a sneak preview on the soon to be released TSA PGDS 7.0.
Our key speaker for the event was Ms. Vandita Mudgal, Sustainability Manager with Hensel Phelps. Vandita gave an excellent overview of sustainability and the importance of sustainability to airports, including the baggage handling systems. Did you know the FAA has a specific guideline for sustainability in airports?
Some great interaction from the audience included a Q&A covering the following topics:
- Existing airports not currently going through new construction or renovation can still get sustainability certifications. A good example is EED for Operations and Maintenance.
- The extent to which airport involvement with the designers, contractors, and suppliers during the early phases of a project has a correlation on the sustainability results.
- How baggage handling systems can contribute up to 40% of a terminals operational load.
- The fact that it is generally the owners and operators of an airport driving sustainability goals. Airports are becoming much more focused on sustainability.
A copy of the presentations is stored on the IABSC members portal.
