Beijing Daxing International Airport is a new airport in the Daxing district 46km south of the city centre (20 minutes by express train).

Developed to alleviate congestion at the capital’s existing airport, Beijing Daxing will be a major transport hub for the region with the world’s fastest growing demand for international travel and is fully integrated within the country’s expanding transport network.

Initially serving 45 million passengers per year, Beijing Daxing will accommodate 72 million travellers by 2025 and is planned for further expansion to serve up to 100 million passengers and 4 million tonnes of cargo annually.

Beijing Daxing’s 700,000m² passenger terminal includes an 80,000m² ground transportation centre offering direct connections to Beijing, the national high-speed rail network and local train services, providing a catalyst for economic development in Tianjin and Hebei Province.

Recently assigned the airport code ‘PKX’ by the International Air Transport Association, Beijing Daxing sets a new standard in air transport services, serving the region’s growing population within a compact and efficient passenger terminal that is adaptable for future growth.

Echoing principles within traditional Chinese architecture that organise interconnected spaces around a central courtyard, the terminal’s design guides all passengers seamlessly through the relevant departure, arrival or transfer zones towards the grand courtyard at its centre – a multi-layered meeting space at the heart of the terminal.

Six flowing forms within the terminal’s vaulted roof reach to the ground to support the structure and bring natural light within, directing all passengers towards the central courtyard. Natural light also enters the terminal via a network of linear skylights that provide an intuitive system of navigation throughout the building, guiding passengers to and from their departure gates.

Structural spans of up to 100m create the terminal's generous public spaces and allow the highest degree of flexibility for any future reconfiguration.

The compact radial design of the terminal allows a maximum number of aircraft to be parked directly at the terminal with minimum distances from the centre of the building, providing exceptional convenience for passengers and flexibility in operations. 79 gates with airbridges connect directly to the terminal which can rapidly process the passengers of six full A380 aircraft simultaneously.

Five aircraft piers radiate directly from the terminal’s main central court where all passenger services and amenities are located, enabling passengers to walk the comparatively short distances through the airport without the need for automated shuttle trains. As a result, the terminal’s compact design minimises distances between check-in and gate, as well as connections between gates for transferring passengers. This radial configuration ensures the farthest boarding gate can be accessed in a walking time of less than 8 minutes.

Photovoltaic power generation is installed throughout the airport to provide a minimum capacity of at least 10MW. Beijing Daxing's centralised heating with waste heat recovery is supported by a composite ground-source heat pump system incorporating a concentrated energy supply area of nearly 2.5 million m².

The airport also implements rainwater collection and a water management system that employs the natural storage, natural permeation and natural purification of up to 2.8 million cubic meters of water in new wetlands, lakes and streams to prevent flooding and counter the summer ‘heat island’ effect on the local microclimate.

Tridonic supplies new mega airport in Beijing with light-on-demand

The new Beijing Daxing International Airport, approximately 50 kilometres south of the Chinese capital, is already being hailed as a mega airport – and not without reason. Enormous capacity, unique architecture, rapid construction and special, customizable lighting are the hallmarks of the building. Tridonic played a major role in providing optimum lighting. The technology company supplied drivers, intelligent lighting control and light-on-demand with daylight tracking for this mega project.

The lighting concept is based on indirect lighting and uses concealed light sources and reflected light to create a special atmosphere. The building had to be welcoming and modern, and above make the time spent there by the millions of passengers a pleasant one. A very large area had to be equipped with functional light and an individual control system in only a short space of time. The lighting had to include daylight detection, flexible adjustment of lighting levels, remote control of the luminaires and simple maintenance.

DALI drivers and intelligent lighting control provide light-on-demand

Tridonic supplied the LED drivers that provide the basis for light-on-demand in the new terminal building. Lighting is an essential element at the airport. It has to fulfil different tasks and be used for different situations. The DALI drivers enable these different requirements to be met – always in line with the needs and comfort of passengers. Relaxation areas, for example, have low illuminance levels, whereas reading areas are brightly lit for optimum visibility, and the restaurant area is sufficiently bright to create the right atmosphere.

Daxing is the first new airport project in China in which DALI drivers and a light management system are integrated in the KNX building control system. Tridonic has supplied the starfish airport with DALI LED drivers, intelligent lighting control and an on-demand lighting solution. More than 2,000 LCA one4all drivers in the premium series are used in the spacious interior of the new terminal building. The drivers are compact and dimmable. They are therefore ideal for discreet indirect lighting. Tridonic has also supplied around 3,000 drivers for illuminating the parking spaces. The drivers in the premium and premium SELV series are characterised by their efficient dimming behaviour and optimum functionality. They therefore meet the requirements for daylight connectivity over large areas.

Daylight detection, simple maintenance and energy efficiency

The results of the mega project speak for themselves. Thanks to Tridonic, the airport has large-scale interior lighting with daylight tracking. The luminaires can be remote controlled in real time and as accurately as if they were being controlled from the immediate vicinity. For control purposes the luminaires are combined intelligently into small groups and can be adjusted independently and in any way within these groups. Maintenance is very simple. The drivers automatically provide information on their operating status and that of the luminaires – again in real time. There is therefore no need for permanent monitoring, and action is only required when necessary. Thanks to predictive maintenance, technicians receive information about impending failures or defective components at an early stage and can react in good time. This makes their job and the job of facility managers much easier and also has cost benefits. The low standby power consumption of only 0.2 W makes the drivers energy efficient.

“We are delighted to be involved in this globally significant mobility project. Thanks to our broad portfolio and the expertise of our team, we were able to quickly find appropriate solutions and meet the requirements of the airport authority,” said Christoph Zimmermann, SVP Global Sales & Communication at Tridonic. “With our solutions we are helping to make Beijing Daxing airport a pleasant place for millions of passengers.”

Beijing Daxing International Airport – a mega project

In terms of the area it covers, the new Beijing airport is the world’s largest airport. It was constructed in only four years. It was officially opened on September 30 to coincide with 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. Covering a total of 1.4 million square metres, it is expected to handle 100 million passengers a year. Approximately 300 take-offs and landings are scheduled to take place each day. Designed by architect Zaha Hadid, the unique futuristic building resembles a starfish from the air.

THE WORLD'S LARGEST AIRPORT LIT UP BY PERFORMANCE iN LIGHTING

More than 2400 professional floodlights used to illuminate outdoor spaces and airbus parking

Daxing International Airport has opened in Beijing, a hub that is about to become the world's busiest, handling up to 72 million passengers each year by 2025.

The terminal building, designed by studio ZahaHadid Architects and inspired by traditional Chinese architecture, consists of a central body from which six arms radiate, five containing boarding areas and one connecting the terminal to the outside area. The outdoor spaces were designed by Hong Kong design studio Lead 8.

More than 2400 professional floodlights were used for the lighting of the outdoor area and airbus parking to ensure the highest standards for lighting and performance required by a project that is about to redefine the airport paradigm of the future.

This engineering jewel is unique in the world among single terminal airports due to its huge size (equal to 97 football fields), innovative design and the use of extremely efficient modern technologies for total environmental sustainability. The services provided to customers, from baggage management to check-in and security take advantage of advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence and robotics.