Council accepts bid for project to upgrade Brandon airport lighting
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 18/08/2017 (3141 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Airfield lighting at the Brandon Municipal Airport is set undergo a major rehabilitation.
At a noon-hour meeting on Thursday, city council accepted a bid from J. Schettler Electric Ltd. to complete the project at a cost of $1.13 million.
Airport operations co-ordinator Robb Nesbitt spoke to council about how this project is long overdue.
“Light kits generally last about 20-25 years,” he said. “The runway edge lighting and the apron lighting components …were installed in the ’60s, so it’s lived well past its lifespan.”
When factoring in consulting services and contingency, the total project cost is just less than $1.4 million. The majority of the cost will be covered by the federal Airports Capital Assistance Program, which was finally granted to the local airport after trying to secure it for about 15 years.
The city will pay $87,000 for two additional pieces: replacing fibre-optic signs with LED lighting, and the installation of a maintenance workstation with backup airfield lighting.
“In the long term it’ll be really good for us,” Nesbitt said. “The LED lighting, versus the old fibre-optic lighting will look nicer … but for the flying community, it’s a huge one.”
He noted that LED lighting is more energy-efficient, so it will save the city in power costs for years to come.
The city’s portion of the cost will come out of the Airport Improvement Fund. There is a charge on each ticket for passengers flying out of Brandon, which goes into the reserve.
“This will be the first time we really tap it for an infrastructure project, and it’s a very small amount,” Nesbitt said.
The lighting project is expected to take 16 weeks to complete, weather-dependent. If all goes well, it could be done by the end of the year.
Runway and apron lights, as well as lighted windsocks and flood lighting, will all be replaced.
“It’s a pretty extensive project,” Nesbitt said. “We have to keep the light kit going through construction, which will make it a little bit more complex for the folks putting it in. However, (J. Schettler Electric Ltd.) has been doing this a long time … most recently, I believe they did St. Andrews, just outside of Winnipeg.”
Mayor Rick Chrest said this upgrade only adds to the significant momentum at the airport, following the recent terminal expansion.
“Keeping our airport state-of-the-art will certainly go a long way for us attracting more and more air service.”
» jaustin@brandonsun.com
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