Owner
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport
DFW Airport, Tarrant County, Texas

Project Engineer/
Designer
Chiang, Patel & Yerby, Inc.
Austin, Texas

Repair Contractor
Gibson & Associates, Inc.
Balch Springs, Texas

Materials Suppliers/
Manufactureres
Silicone Specialties, Inc.
Tulsa, Oklahoma

American Airlines operates its largest hub out of the Dallas-Fort Worth Inter­national Airport and uses all 31 gates at Terminal C. The Terminal C elevated roadway was coated in the 1990s with a polyurethane membrane that experienced significant deterioration over time. An engineering solution was required that would not only provide for a long-term durable roadway surface but would also be aesthetically pleasing, cost-effective, and conducted within a short time frame and with minimal disruption to the airport.

The rehabilitation scheme chosen was a multiple-layer epoxy overlay that would be able to meet the project’s exacting aesthetics. The roadway surface also needed to be pedestrian-friendly in addition to having good long-term performance under traffic. To meet aesthetic and performance project requirements, both colored epoxies and specifically graded colored and noncolored aggregates were used in the overlay. This design resulted in a finished overlay that was aesthetically pleasing but durable and pedestrian friendly at the same time.

Constructability was also a challenge on the project, because the terminal was in use for approximately 18 hours every day during construction. The contractor worked closely with the airport in coordination of rerouting vehicles and pedestrian traffic in one of the busiest terminals in the world without any significant disruption of service during construction. During construction, 164,734 ft2 (15,304 m2) of existing overlay was removed in 54 working nights and a new overlay was installed in just 28 days at a total cost of $7.38 per ft2 ($79.44 per m2).