Delta Airlines Terminal 4 Concourse B at JFK

Delta Air Lines’ 11 gate/75,000 sf expansion of concourse B at JFK’s Terminal 4, required system updates and for construction to not disrupt flight schedules or inconvenience millions of passengers.

Syska designed the MEP and fire protection systems. From the engineering perspective, one of the biggest challenges was integrating the new systems with the existing ones, without impacting the critical 24/7 operation of the terminal. The keys to the project’s success included:

• The project was simultaneously designed and modeled using BIM and clash detection from the start, to ensure seamless design among project team members.
• The integrated construction delivery method allowed us to be on-site throughout construction to expedite information and approvals, and ensure quality control.
• The existing central emergency power system was upgraded by 50%, in order to enable the entire terminal to operate at a reduced capacity, and the ability to process flights in the unlikely event of a power outage.

Today, JKF’s Terminal 4 successfully operates as one integrated unit with all major systems working in unison and controlled from a single engineering office. As busy passengers walk through the new extension designed by Gensler Architects, they experience a seamless transition from old to new, with no hint of the underlying phasing.