SSDA 2026: Future-ready terminal takes off

Upgrading the departures, security and arrivals areas within Manchester Airport’s existing four-storey Terminal 2 building, a reconfiguration scheme has created a single and seamless hub that extends into a recently built extension.  

Covering 71,000m², Terminal 2 comprises four structures (including the extension) separated by movement joints, with an existing space-frame roof spanning the central atrium and check-in hall. 

The project required major alterations to this complex building, including 3,800m² of internal floor infills, modifications to primary structural elements and the lateral stability system, as well as new external structures and bridges.

Structural steelwork provided the flexibility needed to undertake these interventions, while retaining the existing façades and roof. The new structure maintained the established column spacing and service strategies, created additional passenger capacity and avoided the need to strengthen the existing foundations. This allowed substantial changes to be made without imposing unnecessary additional loads or disrupting more of the terminal than required.

This selective approach not only reduced construction time and cost, but also delivered substantial embodied carbon savings.

Using steelwork also complemented the terminal’s original construction, allowing new members to be connected precisely to the retained frame. Components were fabricated to suit the surveyed conditions, transported in manageable sections and assembled within confined work areas. 

Understanding the existing structure was a significant challenge. The terminal had been modified throughout its life, but limited records were available to document every change. Structural analysis models were developed from archived information and supplemented by detailed surveys, creating a reliable picture of the building before the proposed interventions were assessed.

One of the most complex interventions was the creation of the “sky bar” beneath the glazed space-frame roof. A carefully sequenced arrangement of temporary and permanent steelwork allowed existing members to be removed and the new floorplate installed without compromising the structure above. The work demanded close control of temporary conditions as the load paths changed throughout construction.

Access to the site, due to its live environment, could have been problematic. However, to negate any issues, every item of internal steelwork was brought into the terminal without a single crane lift. Members were transported through the front doors on wheeled equipment, before being moved and lifted into position using rigging and winching. This unusual installation strategy responded to the restricted internal environment and enabled extensive steel alterations to proceed without interrupting the terminal’s operations.

The project also created new structures beyond the existing terminal. An external transfer facility on the airfield was connected to the main building via a double-storey steel bridge, alongside a new back-of-house vertical circulation core. These additions improve movement through the airport, while integrating with the reconfigured internal spaces and established terminal structure.

Reuse was an important part of the structural strategy. More than 75t of steelwork removed from the existing building was incorporated into the permanent structure, while other recovered members were repurposed as temporary works. The embodied carbon associated with modules A1-A5 was calculated at 137kgCO₂e/m².

Produced by BCSA and Steel for Life in association with Construction Management.