PERMANENT FLIGHT CONNECTION CENTRE (FCC)

The Permanent Flight Connection Centre (FCC) was a business critical project to Heathrow Airport set within the footprint of Terminal 3, constructed to replace the Temporary Flight Connection Centre (FCC) and Vertical Circulation Corridor (VCC) previously supplied and installed by FJ Booth in 2015.

Following completion of the permanent structure the Temporary FCC was demobilised and demolished, and Stand 323 returned to operational use.

The Permanent FCC building is arranged above bus circulation routes at apron level and constructed over three floors with a plant enclosure located on the roof. The total height of the freestanding build is approximately 20 metres.

The structure has a footprint of approximately 3,600 square metres (41 metres by 88 metres) and is constrained by the existing terminal and baggage buildings on all four sides but remains structurally independent, with connections to the existing Pier 5 and Passenger Transfer Facility (PTF) using movement joints.

We supplied and fabricated all structural steelwork, secondary support steelwork for lifts and escalators, back of house steel stair cores, and temporary works for the support of the structure. The structure comprises a braced steel frame that utilises steel transfer beams to support the steel columns above, steel hangers, trusses, and approximately 280 tonnes of plate girder cellular beams for primary floor beams.

The prefabricated composite roof panel system is primarily supported by roof trusses prefabricated in-house at our workshop. The trusses tapered between 3 – 4 metres deep, with a total length up to 41.50 metres.

We fabricated in-house five ground transfer beams, each comprising of three Category C Universal Columns using 8mm fillet welds.  The transfer beams weighed in excess of 7 tonnes once fully fabricated, and delivered airside to Heathrow for concrete encasement by others.

Our in-house project management coordinated the supply and installation of the main floors comprising of approximately 7,500 square metres of 150mm thick metal decking (with the concrete placement completed by others).