The 2024 ACEC/Iowa Engineering Excellence Awards winning projects in the Buildings and Systems Category: Building and Systems Grand Place Award (1st Place in Category)
Firm: Stanley Consultants Client/Owner: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Middle East District Project: Al Dhafra Air Base Large Aircraft Maintenance Hangar
Project Description
Abu Dhabi Air Base (ADAB) is host of the US Air Force 380th Air Expeditionary Wing. The base’s lack of an enduring and permanent aircraft hangar with conditioned space to perform fuel cell maintenance made it difficult to fulfill mission requirements. As a result, mission sorties were lost or delayed because monthly aircraft maintenance had to be performed 8,000 miles away at Travis AFB.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Transatlantic Division Middle East District turned to Stanley Consultants to design a large aircraft maintenance hangar (LAMH) at the base to support the current fleet of KC-10s that sustain aerial refueling operations. Ultimately, multiple aircraft with a diverse set of missions including crucial reconnaissance air and ground combat and essential air refueling support will use the facility.
The hangar is equipped with fuel cell maintenance capabilities, fire detection and suppression, environmental control, pavements, interior office space and all utilities and infrastructure necessary to be self-sustaining.
The project includes: • 8,900-square-meter concrete hangar access apron. • Water storage tanks for fire protection and domestic water supply. • Electrical yard to house multiple permanent compact substations and temporary generators. • Comprehensive communications distribution system that provides an intrusion detection system and closed-circuit television capabilities. • Mechanical yard to house a chiller plant and other mechanical equipment. • Domestic sewage holding tank with the ability to convert to a small lift station to integrate with the full build-out of the sanitary sewer collection system. • Roadway pavement and vehicular parking.