04 March 2015

AHEC: American white oak welcomes travellers at Heydar Aliyev International Airport in Azerbaijan.

The new terminal at Azerbaijan’s Heydar Aliyev International Airport opened in September of this year in the country’s capital of Baku. The landmark terminal features interior architecture and experiential design by the globally acclaimed, Istanbul-based, Autoban studio. Bearing all the hallmarks of the multidisciplinary studio’s experimental, genre-defying approach, the contemporary interiors overturn the traditional airport conventions of cavernous space and impersonal experience. Commenting on the project, Seyhan Özdemir, Co-founder of Autoban said: “Aviation has always been a field that we felt very attached to. It started with us designing the head office for Turkish Do & Co - the company that operates gourmet meals for airlines in Turkey. Then came the interiors of the Turkish Airlines CIP Lounge at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul. That project was named among the 10 best airport lounges in the world. And now we have designed a complete airport. This is our largest commercial public project to date, and it gave us the opportunity to apply our expertise in hospitality on a much larger scale and to a wider audience.”
Azerbaijan Airlines initially approached Autoban in June 2012. According to Özdemir, the initial brief included all of the interior architecture of the terminal, which covers all sections and areas that are used by passengers. The design needed to reflect Azerbaijani culture, values, and its people, and so it was always going to be a human-focused environment, putting their needs first. The client wanted a space that evoked a feeling of warm hospitality and a contemporary presentation of traditional design touch points extended to a whole airport terminal.
At Heydar Aliyev, their bespoke furnishings and lighting schemes upend airport typologies, opting for tactile natural materials such as wood, stone and textiles, gently and warmly lit. There are a total of 16 cocoons - 11 are solid in form and are clad in wooden panels while 5 have open frameworks. The cocoons have a variety of uses; there are two cafes, a champagne and caviar bar, a play area for children, a spa and beauty shop, a music and bookstore, and some provide amenities such as luggage storage. Additionally, the use of the cocoons is flexible and it is expected they will change over time as the airport terminal evolves. Made using American white oak veneers, they were manufactured in Ankara under the supervision of METU engineering professors and then assembled on site. American white oak lumber and veneers, finished in a dark stain, were also used in the production of bespoke table and chair sets for various lounge areas in the new terminal. Timber was specified because Autoban wanted to create a welcoming, comfortable and contemporary environment that generates a sense of belonging and homely feel for its users and to offer a brand new passenger experience at an airport. According to Çağlar, the main idea was to break away from the general airport typology. Initially, it was quite challenging to convince all of the international partners of the project but in the end, it turned out to be the part Autoban enjoyed the most out of the whole experience. The biggest design elements are the series of custom-made wooden ‘cocoons’, which the designers view as micro-architectural elements. In terms of the quantity of American white oak veneer used in the project, 6,000 square metres and 4,000 square metres were used for the cocoon shells and spandrel beams respectively.
The largest cocoon is clad with 2,050 panels in 40 different sizes. To make the cocoons, Autoban played with natural materials and worked with craftsmen, but also used CNC milling and laser-cutting. Now spanning 65,000 square metres, more than six million passengers a year are expected to pass through the airport, enjoying Autoban’s thoughtful, highly functional and memorable gateway to the country and the wider Caucasus region.

American white oak (Quercus spp.)
American white oak has a creamy coloured sapwood and a light to dark brown heartwood. White oak is mostly straight grained with a medium to coarse texture, with longer rays than red oak, producing a distinctive and attractive grain pattern. American white oak is widely available and is a popular choice in export markets around the world for many furniture, flooring and joinery manufacturers due to its colour consistency and the high volume of square edged lumber production, and veneer availability. The wood is hard and heavy, with medium bending and crushing strength. It is low in stiffness, but very good in steam bending.
For more information contact Mrs Tamsin Marshall or visit the web site:

AHEC: American Hardwood Export Council
23 Austin Friars
LONDON EC2N 2QPl / United Kingdom
Tel +44 20 76264111
Fax +44 20 76264222
E-mail: tamsin@americanhardwood.org