- The long-term transformation of the ‘heart of Heathrow’ took an important step forward today as the ink dried on a deal to design and install a new baggage system in Terminal 2
- Working with BEUMER Group, the new dedicated system will serve 20m passengers a year
- The project is a pre-cursor to the full demolition of the now closed Terminal 1, unlocking huge redevelopment opportunities inside the airport’s Central Terminal Area
Heathrow took a leap forward today in its long-term plans for transforming the UK’s global hub. A new deal with BEUMER Group will see the construction of a state-of-the-art replacement baggage system in Terminal 2 – The Queen’s Terminal. The project marks a pivotal steppingstone to unlock future developments at Heathrow and will allow the airport to switch off the 30-year-old Terminal 1 baggage system that currently supports Terminal 2.
Once complete, the system will be capable of handling 31,000 bags a day with improved resilience. New technology with greater data analytics means the upgrade will deliver the predictable and reliable service customers need.
Importantly, the project allows the next phase of demolishing Terminal 1 – which closed to passengers in 2015 – as a new vision for the ‘heart of Heathrow’ takes a step closer to reality. The airport’s long term-plan will completely transform the Central Terminal Area with new buildings and infrastructure between the airport’s runways.
Once the full removal of Terminal 1 is completed Terminal 2 will ultimately be extended to its full size, opening capacity to serve more passengers with world-class facilities within the airport’s existing footprint.
While airlines and their ground handlers are responsible for the majority of a bag’s journey to the final destination, Heathrow’s systems swiftly sort and scan up to 140,000 departing bags a day as they move between check in and the airfield. Maintaining high performance in baggage is just one of the ways Heathrow can maintain its position as a leading global hub airport. In turn this gives UK businesses and travellers direct access to an unrivalled 239 destinations in 89 countries.
Heathrow’s Chief Solutions Officer, Helen Elsby, said: “We know our customers want great and reliable journeys and that begins with having world-class facilities. Installing a new dedicated baggage system in Terminal 2 is the next stage in our plans to breathe new life into the beating heart of Heathrow. Just like home renovations, we’re improving Heathrow room by room as we continue to build the airport of tomorrow, without interrupting the passengers of today.”
BEUMER Group Airport Director, Ronald Willems said: “It is with great pleasure that we have received confirmation that Heathrow has chosen BEUMER Group as the strategic partner for the design and installation of the new baggage handling system in Terminal 2. We've collaborated closely with Heathrow, in the true spirit of partnership, throughout these early stages of the process, and it's a huge honour to be selected as a partner for the T2 project. We've put all our technological visions into the design of the new state-of-the-art baggage handling system, which will be based on our CrisBag® technology combined with our data analytics solution.”
BEUMER Group has been appointed to deliver the six-year project which will, in addition to passenger benefits, build on Heathrow’s continued commitment to give airline and ground handler partners a safe and efficient work environment, including improvements to support manual handling roles.
About Heathrow
Heathrow is the UK’s international gateway, the largest airport in Europe and the most connected hub in the world – connecting to 239 destinations in 89 countries. The airport welcomes over 200,000 passengers on roughly 1,300 flights each day, and serves as a Britain’s hub for trade, tourism and investment. Approximately 75,000 colleagues work at Heathrow – the airport directly employs about 10% of them, with the rest working for Team Heathrow partners including airlines, ground handlers and retailers.
About BEUMER Group
BEUMER Group is an international leader in the manufacture of intralogistics systems for conveying, loading, palletising, packaging, sortation, and distribution. With 5,400 employees worldwide, BEUMER Group has annual sales of about EUR 1 billion. BEUMER Group and its group companies and sales agencies provide their customers with high-quality system solutions and an extensive customer support network around the globe and across a wide range of industries, including bulk materials and piece goods, food/non-food, construction, mail order, post, and airport baggage handling.
For more information visit www.beumer.com
