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As the first and last impression visitors have of the city, the Edmonton International Airport has a duty to project a positive image to the millions of passengers that fly into and out of its gates every year. The Combined Office/Control Tower development, a branch of the airport's Expansion 2012 program, responded to the consistent growth the facility has experienced in recent years. It deftly succeeded in creating a new landmark for the gateway to the city, and efficiently accommodates a multitude of functions within a dynamically designed building.
DIALOG's job was to integrate a cutting-edge NAV Canada air traffic control tower with an expanded retail component and new administrative offices. The complexity of intermingling office spaces with a control tower — which requires clear and unobstructed views of the runways — led to a unique design solution. The office floor plates needed to be structurally shaped to minimize these impacts, resulting in an aerodynamic and elongated form built atop the existing terminal building.
The silvery facade of the building sports rifts that draw parallels to the rich landscape of the region. Prairie grasses, windswept fields, snow drifts, and hoodoo erosion are some of the images that come to mind when presented with the undulating rows of zinc cladding. The building envelope has more than visual flair — it also provides solar shading on the south and west facades while permitting maximum light penetration on the north side. Behind these futuristic walls is a skeletal system of structural steel and steel plate shear walls. Concrete construction was ruled out as an option, since the continuous pours needed would have impeded activities at the airport.
When the $70 million project made its big debut in 2013, the reaction was one of unanimous acclaim. DIALOG went on to win several awards for the design, including the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction Engineering Award of Excellence, the Award of Excellence for Building Engineering at the Consulting Engineers of Alberta Showcase Awards, and the 2015 Canadian Consulting Engineering Award of Excellence.
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