New surface for Dubai’s busy airport

Dubai’s busy international airport is now benefiting from new runway and taxiway areas that will help boost capacity. The upgrades are much needed as the airport is one of the world’s busiest in terms of international flights. Data from the International Air Transportation Association (IATA) says that in 2013, air passenger traffic worldwide topped 3.1 billion, and demand is expected to continue to grow. The combination of more flights and growing numbers of larger and more sophisticated aircraft like the A
January 6, 2015 Read time: 2 mins
Dubai’s international airport now has new runway surfaces with bitumen having been supplied by Shell Bitumen

Dubai’s busy international airport is now benefiting from new runway and taxiway areas that will help boost capacity. The upgrades are much needed as the airport is one of the world’s busiest in terms of international flights.

Data from the International Air Transportation Association (IATA) says that in 2013, air passenger traffic worldwide topped 3.1 billion, and demand is expected to continue to grow.

The combination of more flights and growing numbers of larger and more sophisticated aircraft like the Airbus A380 means that the world’s busiest international airports are having to redevelop their runways and taxiways. The Airbus A380 weighs close to 400tonnes and landings of this huge aircraft can place enormous stresses on runway structures.

As a result, special techniques and materials are required to build the runways to ensure that they can cope with the immense engineering loads exerted.

When Dubai International Airport required its two runways to be upgraded and resurfaced in May 2014, 763 Shell Bitumen was approached by contractor Al Naboodah Construction Group to provide special bitumen solutions for this logistically challenging project. The company was able to provide special bitumen technologies to meet the demands of the project. In the past, Shell Bitumen has provide materials for use on other major airports, including Heathrow in the UK, Charles de Gaulle in France, Schiphol in the Netherlands, HKIA in Hong Kong, Changi in Singapore, KLIA in Malaysia, Frankfurt in Germany and Suvarnabhumi in Thailand.

Asphalt milling, paving & compaction Materials

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Mallorca Airport upgrade completed
    September 21, 2021
    Palma de Mallorca Airport (PMI) reopened its northern runway (06L-24R) at the end of 2020, after completing the surface refurbishment work
    Read More
  • CET opens new laboratory to service UK’s infrastructure projects
    October 23, 2017
    With over £300 billion of investment in infrastructure planned over the next four years in the UK, materials testing firm CET is gearing up to service a lot more projects – Kristina Smith visited the newest laboratory near Heathrow to find out more. The CET Group has ambitious plans. Over the next four years it wants to double the size of its business, which in the last year turned over £27 million. “There’s a lot of positivity out there,” said Gary Corrigan, managing director of the group’s infrastructu
    Read More
  • Extreme bridge deck
    December 15, 2017
    August saw the completion of the main bridge deck section on the mainland China side of the Hong King-Zhuha-Macau Bridge. The 55km-long link, comprising a series of tunnels and bridges crossing the Lingdingtang channel, will connect Zhuhai in Guangdong Province to Hong Kong and Macau.
    Read More
  • Wirtgen’s cold milling solution breaks records in Sardinia
    December 9, 2016
    Three Wirtgen cold milling machines – two of type W 210 and one of type W 200i – and two Wirtgen soil stabilizers of type WR 2000 demonstrate their productivity and reliability at Alghero-Fertilia Airport in Sardinia. Located roughly 8 km northwest of the city of Alghero, Alghero-Fertilia Airport (IATA: AHO, ICAO: LIEA) is one of three commercial airports on the Italian island, along with Cagliari Elmas and Olbia. Built as a military airport in the late 1930s, Alghero-Fertilia still occasionally serve
    Read More

Highlighted Content