January/February 2024 - 37

PROJECT OF THE MONTH
Sustainability
The New SLC is committed to sustainability
initiatives. Wyatt highlighted
efforts such as natural light harvesting,
minimal irrigation, and the reduction of
electrical and water demand. The airport's
parallel design has also contributed
to significant carbon savings by reducing
taxi time for aircraft.
Discussing the future of airports,
Wyatt touched upon emerging trends
like AI and electrification. The airport
is already in the process of electrifying
its campus, with plans for shuttle buses
and electric ground service equipment.
" Electrification at airports is going to continue, "
he stated.
pricing, ensuring that passengers do not
face inflated costs. He explained, " In a
lot of airports they'll have a street plus 10,
or a street plus 15, or maybe five, which
is whatever it costs downtown plus 5% or
10% or 15%. And we said, 'no, it's going
to be street pricing'. And what that means
is, you can come out to the airport, have
a meal, buy a bottle of water, and not
worry about being gouged. "
As a result, Wyatt said the concession
sales are off the chart, " I think a large
part of that is because people who have
gotten used to the airport, come out here
a lot and know that they can do that and
not feel like it's going to cost them an
arm and a leg. "
Since unveiling Phase One and Phase
Two of The New SLC, Needham said
the feedback has been overwhelmingly
positive.
" Both airlines and passengers have
experienced positive changes. The new
layout facilitates smoother aircraft movements,
reducing congestion. Passengers
find it more convenient, with improved
walking distances compared to the old
airport, " he said.
Needham said such positive feedback
is a result of strong teamwork since the
very beginning stages of the project.
When asked what advice he would
give to another airport looking to
undergo a similar project he said, " The
entire team needs to be engaged from the
planning through the design and the construction
as a single unit to really address
everything that comes up, because we
need to actually develop these 95 gates
and bring them online simultaneously
with the current airport and connect it
to the old airport that was there while
we were building. That is an incredible
amount of coordination, particularly
when you think about all the services
that a major airport has in it. "
He continued, " When you go
Needham said two other notable
sustainability features in The New
SLC include the use of embodied fly
ash in the foundation, reducing embodied
carbon, and the implementation of
permanent magnet motors in the mileslong
bag system.
" These motors save electricity by starting
and stopping based on the system's
demand, reducing overall energy consumption, "
he said.
Passenger-Centric
Approaches
Wyatt said every aspect of The New SLC
was designed for the highest passenger
experience, including concessions.
The airport's concessions program
stands out for its commitment to street
A view of the heated floors during
construction of Phase Three.
through multiple phases to keep that old
airport open as long as you can, you've
got to go through the analysis to keep the
entire city running for each phase. And
so, to really allow that to happen, you
need a very highly collaborative team
that works well together. And at the end
of the day, not just has fun together, but
has an amazing legacy to look back on. "
Wyatt said The New SLC has had a
positive impact on the entire community.
" Something we're very proud of, The
Salt Lake Tribune, which is one of our
local newspapers, named the airport
Art installation.
'Utahn of the Year for 2023', and it's
exciting for two reasons. One, the airport
is not a person, which is normally the
case for this award, but also really, I think
it makes us all very proud because this is
a recognition given to us by people who
live here, who experience the airport, "
he said. 
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2024 \ AVIATIONPROS.COM / 37
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January/February 2024

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