2002
Schweizer Solarpreis Award The Midfield Terminal is a major expansion of Zürich-Kloten Airport with 27 new gates for large aircraft. The terminal area extends over a length of 500 m and a width of 40 m, designed for a volume of 3500 passengers per hour. Designed as a central island between the runways, the new terminal is connected to the other terminals by ground transportation and an underground railway.
One of the challenges of this project was the presence of severe geotechnical characteristics that forced the engineers to deal with a large building built on an old dried-up post-glacial lake with extremely soft soils. A system of anchor piles of 900 to 1500 mm diameter had to be designed to overcome the serious difficulties posed by this excavation, the foundations and the restraint against thrust.
The choice of an exposed cast-in-place concrete structure allowed for great flexibility of use with a pleasant and modern appearance, while providing superior soundproofing.
The choice of the professionals was the subject of an international competition won by the consortium that included the firm, thanks to the design of a structure whose elegance struck the jury and whose great simplicity allowed substantial savings in terms of time and money.
