Due to continuous growth, Tocumen decided to invest in a new, state-of-the-art terminal a number of years ago. Vanderlande has been chosen to deliver the baggage handling system, which is currently under construction.
The airport needed to increase the performance levels of the existing baggage handling system in the old terminal and to ensure that this would be ready for a future connection with the new terminal.
Tocumen continues to rely on Vanderlande to help it overcome its operational challenges. As a result, Vanderlande has taken over responsibility for the O&M of the current baggage handling system in the old terminal. The second step will be to retrofit the current system while safeguarding the required level of performance. A future connection to Vanderlande’s baggage handling system in the new terminal will also be prepared.
To ensure that bags transfer smoothly between terminals, the controls for both systems will be centralised in a ‘one-brain’ architecture. As soon as the baggage handling system in the new terminal has been delivered, the third step will be to operate and maintain both terminals.
The opening of Tocumen’s new terminal is scheduled for 2018.