Summary
Airports are vital pieces of national infrastructure. They cost billions, and can take decades to design and deliver. We expect them to meet the day to day needs of millions of users, operate totally reliably, survive changing climate conditions, whilst providing a return on investment for their owners and operators. Stephen Pollard from Arup will explore the past present and future of a major airport in London, looking at challenges and successes to understand how best to manage design at the nexus of people, process, technology, and large complex assets.
Key Insights
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Design practice has evolved from delivering physical buildings to shaping national visions and economic investments.
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Large infrastructure projects like Heathrow operate under strict financial constraints, such as fixed landing charges limiting revenue.
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Successful design delivery depends heavily on influencing organizational strategy, not just executing design tasks.
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Culture and explicit values within client organizations are crucial drivers of project success.
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Design operations (design ops) play a central role in coordinating cross-disciplinary teams and maintaining quality at scale.
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Key roles for design leaders have expanded across entire programs beyond traditional design disciplines.
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A multidisciplinary approach involving economists, planners, and data specialists enriches design solutions.
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Innovative passenger experience ideas, like pre-booking carry-on baggage to overhead bins, indicate future airport improvements.
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Communication and partnership models have evolved from open collaboration to more structured program management frameworks.
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Embedding design ops within strategic conversations enables the design community to impact broader business objectives.
Notable Quotes
"Some of these are quite fun. Who wouldn’t like this one here? If you could pre-book your carry on baggage into the overhead locker on the plane, wouldn’t that be great?"
"We have to be able to go beyond just delivering the design that’s in front of us but find ways to influence the strategy."
"The landing charge is the key thing the airlines will be looking at and that needs to stay flat."
"They’re very deliberate and explicit focus on the culture and the values which have really been actually essential to ensuring over the successful delivery."
"Design ops is at the heart of success, of how we can achieve outstanding quality and value in the design."
"We’ve moved from open partnership to various types and tools and methods, program management to new business case gateways."
"Key roles for the design community in leadership across the entire program have become really essential."
"Working with a really talented collection of people: designers, economists, planners, and data specialists."
"Ultimately, we want to deliver a national vision and an economic investment."
"I am so glad to be part of this new community that’s forming and I wish you all the best of success."
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