AOC Serves as Airport's Nerve Center

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Runway temperatures and video cameras are among many items monitored in the operations center.

Photo by Jay Thompson
(posted May 20)

The $11.9 million Airport Operations Center is the nerve center of the six month old Indianapolis International Airport because "practically everything is wired through here," according to Bob Spitler, Director of Airport Security.

The AOC was designed with flexibility in mind to meet crisis situations. The center can easily be activated into an Emergency Operations Center if disaster strikes. "You have a building within a building," Spitler said, describing the interior room.

The EOC becomes a headquarters for the State Police, TSA, IMPD, the Mayor and other government agencies. Every support agency has its own computer and phone. The EOC's state of the art technology includes a white board that can store notes and drawings written on it into files on a PC for easy distribution.

The building is capable of withstanding an EF-4 tornado due to its one foot thick poured concrete interior walls, ceiling and 2.5" thick, triple dead bolt doors. Even the overhead doors for vehicle access can withstand tornado force winds. "When everything else comes to an end this place is still going to be standing."

Spitler said it made sense to build the state of the art building on an open piece of ground rather than trying to improve the existing operations center in the old UAL maintenance building.

Once a year, the airport conducts disaster exercises to prepare for emergency situations. "You can never make a disaster situation a good thing, but you can make it better than it would have been if you have never practiced."

Spitler credits the building design to Ratio Architects. Security cameras monitor all areas of the airport, as well as sensors sending data about the runways' temperatures. Each runway has three sensors. Spitler explained snow removal crews need to know the runway temperature and wind direction in order to determine whether to use dry chemicals or spray chemicals on the runway. Different chemicals are effective at different temperatures. Cost of the material used to treat runways has risen dramatically in recent years. "We used to spend $10,000 to spray the runways and taxiways, and now we spend $50,000."

The AOC receives all fire, police and 911 calls and serves as a backup MECA public safety answering point. The AOC has sensors and alarms for equipment that didn't exist in the old terminal, like sensors on the moving walkways and escalators. A change in water pressure due to a water main break set off the fire alarm in late December. If an airline's loading bridge does not work, it contacts the AOC to dispatch maintenance operations.

The old airport terminal is monitored since a skeleton staff of 30 still occupies the administrative building. The old terminal is now fenced for increased security.