Waterproofing of Dubai international airport
The Waterproofing for the new extension at Dubai International Airport is being supplied by SealEco. The deciding factors for choosing the Elastoseal membrane were the longevity of the membrane, the speed of installation and the safety that the Thermobond system components provide.
A veritable international hub between East and West, Dubai International is the world’s fastest growing airport in terms of passenger traffic, with a growth rate of 19.31% and over 34 million passengers in 2007. The airport’s long-awaited $4.5 bn expansion is now nearing completion, with Concourse 3, a huge vault-like structure 600 m long and 250 m wide, staying watertight, thanks to some 500,000 m² of Elastoseal EPDM membrane.
“The water table in the United Arab Emirates is very high, as the loose sand particles of the desert make it easy for sea water to penetrate, so you hit salt water just one or two meters down,” explains Munzer Akbik, Managing Director AMC Protection, providers of concrete treatment and protection solutions. “This means that every basement structure has to be very well protected against water to prevent penetration and to ensure a longer life for the building,” he explains.
AMC Protection was contracted by the Dubai’s Department of Civil Aviation to supply an envelope tanking system for Concourse 3, which will accommodate the increased number of passengers from the new A380 Superjumbo. It will also incorporate climate-controlled lounges, will have 27 contact gates, and will include an underground baggage transfer area.
SealEco supplies Elastoseal membrane in 1,7 m wide rolls, 25 m long which are shipped from Sweden to the prefabrication center of AMC in Dubai, where they are welded into 5 m x 25 m panels, folded, and then taken to the site for installation. “In addition to the logistical challenges, we’re working very close to the aircraft in certain areas so we have to be very careful,” says Akbik.
“We’ve worked with SealEco for several years now, but never on a project of this scale, which is a real logistical challenge,” says Akbik. "It is among some of our largest orders, however we are confident that the SealEco and AMC partnership will bring another successful project to completion” comments Fredrik Åhman, Export Manager at SealEco.
The deepest part of the basement of Concourse 3 is 20 meters below the water table, and the area is punctuated by 4,500 piles to support the structure. “We have to monitor the progress very carefully and ensure the tanking is perfect, so we requested a permanent on-site technician from SealEco to ensure things run smoothly,” says Akbik. “We normally send someone for a week or two,” says Åhman. “However for a project of this size, we are happy to provide an on-site presence”.