LF Wade International Airport Bermuda

277,000 sq ft Size of the new terminal

250+ Workers on site at peak

500,000 Manhours without a lost time injury

Update Group were engaged by Aecon Airport Constructors to provide the entire mechanical, electrical, IT and fire safety systems for the new passenger terminal at Bermuda’s international airport.

In order to facilitate the increasing popularity of Bermuda as a destination, a public private partnership project between the Bermudian Government, Skyport and Aecon Group was initiated to construct this new 280,000 sq ft terminal.

The building was designed to be a state-ofthe-art terminal to reflect Bermuda’s growing status as a destination and to transit up to four million passengers per year.

The design brings Bermuda’s airport into line with other major modern airports in terms of passenger comfort, facilities and ease of arrival and departure.

Modern lounges and passenger boarding bridges will enhance the passenger experience, while immigration and security have been streamlined.

In addition, the whole project is geared towards sustainability and crucially, the new building has been designed to minimise the effect of extreme weather conditions.

Our scope on the project included the entire mechanical, electrical, fire protection, IT and security systems.

Update Group worked closely with Aecon in the development of the design into the detailed and coordinated install which was ORAT-compliant (Operational Readiness and Testing).

Our scope also included the infrastructure packages for the MV network and storm drainage systems, as well as standby generation and full load UPS support.

Update Group is especially proud to be associated with a project that is creating something special for Bermuda and its people.

Technology

Within the overall IT systems we had responsibility for the Airport Information Management systems.

This included the:

• turnkey install of the flight and gate display systems

• automated check-in kiosks

• all airline check-in desks, bag drop and integration with the baggage handling systems

• automated entry passport kiosks

• fit-out of US Customs and Border Protection areas

• management of the entire access control and analytic CCTV install.

2022 – LF Wade International Airport has been voted the Best Airport of its Size in the Latin America and Caribbean region.

The Airport Council International (ACI) World Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Awards, which are held annually, celebrate and showcase the world’s best airports as voted for by travellers, and this year, Bermuda’s airport won the showcase award in the region for airports with two million annual passengers or less.

The new passenger terminal, built by Canada’s Aecon Construction and several Bermudian sub-contractors, and operated by Bermuda Skyport Corporation, a subsidiary of Aecon Concessions, was voted on by passengers in over 30 different categories, including facilities, cleanliness and ambience, security, check-in and overall satisfaction.

In addition to the Best Airport by Size and Region award, LF Wade International was also voted as having the Best Hygiene Measures of any airport in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Mark Breen

Role Project Manager

How long have you worked at Update Group?

After joining Update Group in 2015, I was initially based in Dublin. A move to the Caribbean followed in late 2016. Prior to that, I previously worked in the UK and Ireland in both the contractor and design consultancy fields.

Describe your role.

My role is diverse and involves all aspects of the day-to-day management of our Caribbean projects. This includes ensuring our site-based delivery teams have all the necessary support they require, and scheduling compliance across our supply chain. As there are always challenges in delivery, I encourage a collaborative approach to problem-solving.

Aspects such as construction drawings, submittals, procurement, and project status reporting, all fall under my remit.

I am also part of the wider Update Group team regarding business development and evaluating new and suitable opportunities for the business within the Caribbean marketplace.

What do you see as your key challenges?

The obvious challenges of working within the island community of the Caribbean region are connectivity and travel.

The acceptance of virtual meeting platforms made normal during the Covid-19 pandemic has been a great development. Less time spent in the air or travelling is great, a contribution to a greener environment and anything less stressful on the mind helps.

We work closely with our supply chain partners to cultivate their talents and contributions to our projects. We share our international systems and processes with our local partners which, we hope, provides a meaningful legacy for their businesses going forward.

What project are you working on now?

I am currently overseeing several projects in the Caribbean which are at either design or delivery stages. ExxonMobil in Guyana, the Port Modernization in St Vincent and the Grenadines, as well as the Mandarin Oriental in Grand Cayman.

It’s exciting times as we see this division of the business grow through the large volume of new projects on the horizon. It feels great and rewarding to be part of it!

Describe working at Update Group in 3 words. Engaging. Collaborative. Driven.

“The most rewarding project I have worked on has to be the new Bermuda Airport. Being involved in a project of that magnitude and prestige from day one to being on the first flight to leave the airport heading to Ireland via the UK was a great feeling.”

Bishops Square Dublin

A development by Hines Real Estate Ireland. The works enlarged this 180,000 sq ft property by an additional 30,000 sq ft of commercial space.

The scope saw the construction of additional space to the existing 4th and 5th floors and adding an entire penthouse level.

The scope saw the construction of additional space to the existing 4th and 5th floors and adding an entire penthouse level