Heathrow Terminal 5

Plane sailing

One of the largest, most high-profile construction projects in Europe, we helped make Heathrow’s Terminal 5 a reality. Appointed to provide consultancy, logistics and main contracting, our skilled team was integral in delivering the project on budget, ahead of its scheduled arrival.

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Heathrow Terminal 5 Project summary

Client

BAA Group

Project value

£950m

Key partners

Richard Rogers Partnership

Services provided

Project and programme management, Contracting, Construction management, Specialist services, Consult, Construct

Sectors

Aviation, Transport

Locations

UK and Europe, UK - London and south-east England

Project timeline

Start date
2002
End date
2008
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Project story

Five main projects. 147 sub-projects. More than 3,000 packages of work. An 87 metre high control tower, to be constructed without a single crane, or disruption to the world’s busiest airport. The plan to construct a fifth state of the art terminal at London Heathrow was certainly ambitious.

We were engaged to provide an integrated service of logistics, consultancy and contracting, our world class team was at the heart of BAA’s pioneering build. With each of the five codependent projects required to run in tandem, our meticulous eye for detail was crucial – everything had to be built, tested and fully operational before Terminal 5 could open.

Through the diligent skill of our employees, T5 was delivered to the client on budget and ahead of schedule. We were awarded a Structural Steel Design Award for our work in 2008, with our spectacular safety record underlined by the 12 million hours logged without a single reportable incident.

Inside London's Heathrow Terminal 5 - Mace Group

Project stats

12million working hours without a reportable incident
3,000+ packages of work on the T5 project
87metre control tower, constructed without a single crane

Points of note

Conscientious work ethic, innovative approach

With the main hall 40 metres high, 396 long and 176 wide, the sheer size of the Terminal 5 project was vast. Factor in the 11 floors – six below ground, five above – and 87 metre high control tower, and T5’s scale was matched only by its challenges. Yet our conscientious work ethic paired with an innovative approach to problem solving saw the control tower constructed crane-free – with the viewing tower cab constructed off site, then raised to full height over four months using an innovative strand jacking system.

Social inclusion

In addition to T5’s main terminal building and tower, we successfully delivered four Commercially Important Passenger (CIP) lounges. These high end fit out works were undertaken within the main T5 construction theatre, and were opened in accordance with BAA's requirements. As part of the project we introduced a social inclusion scheme, providing training and career opportunities to individuals with barriers to employment.

“Mace provides an approach and attitude which enables BAA as a client to achieve the best possible outturn facility. Personally, I have worked with the Mace team on the Terminal 5, where they demonstrated high levels of professionalism throughout and an ability to turn highly complex challenges into clear and deliverable plans and programmes”