BARCELONA, 2 JULY 2009
Successful start-up of Barcelona T1 automated baggage handling system (SATE)
BARCELONA - On Wednesday 17th June 2009, at 04.00 a.m., Terminal 1 (T1) at Barcelona’s El Prat Airport was brought into operation. The high expectations for this DCV-based automated baggage handling system were all met, as since the start the system performs according to plan. In total 200 flights were managed from T1 on the first day, with no delays at all and no baggage missed its flight.
The Joint Venture Vanderlande-DINSA-ABB, led by Vanderlande Industries, has successfully completed the start-up of the Automated Baggage Handling System (SATE) at Barcelona’s new Terminal T1 for its customer Aena. Vanderlande’s TUBTRAX DCV-technology was used in the departure system.
The heart of the system is the departure system. Baggage is led into the system by passengers checking in either in the departure hall or the parking area. The departure hall has 140 check-in positions and another 14 are located in the parking area. In addition to that, baggage can also be introduced into the system through several high capacity induct stations: 6 for transfer baggage, 1 for the train station and 2 for cruise ship baggage. A giant web of over 20 km of conveyors is built to be able to route baggage from all these induct stations to one of the 22 make-up stations (tilted TRIPLANAR carousels). From these stations, the bags will be loaded on the carts that commute back and forth to the airplanes. In peak hours the designed system is capable to process over 10,000 bags per hour.
DCV’s (Destination Coded Vehicles) are used for the Barcelona system. Every individual baggage item, from small to large, will be loaded in a dedicated tub, each of which is fitted with an ID tag. It is a totally redundant system based on Vanderlande Industries TUBTRAX technology. This TUBTRAX technology is made up with highly standardized and modular equipment, which is capable to transport the tubs with speeds up to 6 meters per second. This system also guarantees a total hold baggage screening in the four existing security levels, either carried out by X-ray machines (12 units) or by tomographic machines (4 units).
The SATE system includes an automated Early Baggage Storage (EBS) made up of 14 miniload cranes, which allow individual access to any of the 1,500 stored baggage items.
The system is completed by a conventional Baggage Handling System for arrivals. This system can be kept straightforward because no sortation is required. In other words, all bags go from one airplane to one carousel. The arrivals system has a total length of over 3 km of conveyors and 15 TRIPLANAR tilted carousels.
For more information please contact:
Vanderlande Industries
José María Izquierdo
Phone +34 93 221 94 94
