b'CARGOANC85FedEx is currently building another facility on the west side ofWhy Not Brick and Mortar?ANC: a 98,000-square-foot cargo distribution center. It will focusThe new cargo sorting facility at ANC was designed, manufactured exclusively on cargo headed for destinations within Alaska.and installed by Legacy Building Solutions, a global firm that About 82% of communities in Alaska are accessible only byspecializes in tension fabric structuresso named because air, Wassel explains. Aviation is part of the lifestyle here. Someindustrial-strength fabric is attached to a steel frame and small carriers might even deliver pizzas to a community by air. tensioned to create walls and a roof.We build large clear-span spaces with Location and Infrastructure no framing members in the center, explains Why is ANC such a crucial transit hub for delivery giants like FedExSara Davis, a building and project design and United Parcel Service (UPS)?consultant for the companys Transportation Its all about location, location, location, says Wassel.Division. Theyre designed for anyone who wants to maximize the space in an entire Because Anchorage is about halfway between Asia and thebuilding by eliminating interior supports.United States, its a strategic place to refuel. Aircraft can take off with half as much fuel for their full trip and then make a pit stopApplications range from airplane hangarsSARA DAVISat ANC. This allows them to carry more cargo without exceedingto warehouses to sports arenas. their total weight limits.FedEx found plenty of advantages to the alternate building Were 9 hours from 90% of the industrialized world, Wasselstyle. The fabric structure not only met our specific operational details. Cargo carriers can take more cargo and less fuel byneeds, but also provided for quicker design and construction transiting through Anchorage on their way to Chicago, Cincinnati,times, allowing us to bring the new facility online much faster, Miami and even Mexico and some South American countries. says Tolbert. Overall, ANC serves 44 cargo destinations. Davis notes that tension fabric buildings also cost significantly less to build than traditional brick-and-mortar buildings. She In addition to being a tactical refueling location that allowsdescribes Legacys options as temporary structures that are carriers to maximize their payloads, its also a popular place forengineered to be permanent, but can be taken down if necessary.carriers to change flight crews. Every day, the airport handles about 100 wide-body airplanes, each with a crew of two tofour people. Cargo crews rent about 300 hotel rooms a night here in Anchorage, says Wassel,Providing solutions to improvepointing out a secondary advantage for the local economy.But theres more to ANC than itsAIRPORT SAFETY serendipitous location. Cargo aircraft could& REDUCE NOISEjust as easily fly over it and land at airports in Vancouver or Seattle. Cargo-specific infrastructure at ANC, however, encouragessince 1957 carriers to stop in Anchorage. Wassel cites operational amenities like pull-through aircraft parking, fast and efficient refueling via hydrants (as opposed to refueling trucks) and reasonably priced fuel as key competitive advantages.We offer a great product here, she summarizes. Our infrastructure is set up so an aircraft can come off a taxiway, park, refuel, pull forward and get back on a taxiway and be Jet Blast De ectors (permanent + portable) back on their way in maybe one hour and 20 Ground Run-up EnclosuresEnd Around Taxiway Visual Screensminutes.Images: Top Charleston, left Memphis, right HonoluluFurthermore, about 1,500 of the airports 4,612 acres are still available for more commercial development like the new FedEx sorting center.Were land sexy here, Wassel laughs. blastde ectors.comAirportImprovement.comSeptember 2024'