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Port Columbus Honored With Three Awards

February 05, 2003

Port Columbus International Airport recently received several awards from local and national organizations honoring the airport for outstanding work on a wide variety of projects.
“These awards recognize the commitment to excellence that is carried throughout all aspects of the airport,” said Elaine Roberts, president and CEO of the Columbus Regional Airport Authority. “Our employees take great pride in their work and are the airport’s greatest asset in serving the needs of Central Ohio travelers.” Details on the awards are provided below:
The FAA Great Lakes Region awarded Port Columbus the Airport Safety Excellence Award for its focus on safety throughout the organization. FAA specifically cited the airfield driver’s training program, winter operations procedures, wildlife management practices and the Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting department’s training and effectiveness as important and highly successful aspects of the airport’s overall approach to safety. Another contributing factor in receiving this prestigious award was the fact that for three consecutive years Port Columbus has received zero deficiencies in its annual FAA certification inspection. Inspectors focus on runway safety, pavement lighting, safety records and many other aspects during this four-day inspection. Port Columbus was one of only three airports in the eight-state region to receive the Airport Safety Excellence Award.
The airport also received a 2002 White Glove Award for Excellence in Recycling from Keep Franklin County Beautiful for its new recycling program. The program was implemented to greatly reduce the amount of solid waste from Port Columbus going to the Franklin County Sanitary Landfill. The project was introduced in Port Columbus’ terminal building with special trash receptacles allowing passengers and visitors to recycle. The program, which also included the voluntary participation of restaurants, retailers and airlines, is expected to divert nearly 200 tons of waste annually. Plans call for expanding the program to include airport facilities and tenants outside the terminal building.
The Ohio Concrete Construction Association Award honored Port Columbus with the Ohio Award for Excellence in the 2002 Outstanding Design and Construction, Commercial Service and Military Airports category.
Port Columbus was recognized for phase 3 of its four-phase, $20 million project to rehabilitate the terminal apron. More than 90,050 square yards of concrete were placed in total with nearly 32,000 of that occurring during Phase 3. Besides the massive amount of concrete work, this project also required extensive interaction with airlines to accommodate aircraft parking as Port Columbus revamped the apron over a four-year period.