Heathrow Terminal 5: delivery strategy

The success of the five-year construction phase of Terminal 5 at London's Heathrow airport was dependent of putting into effect the principles of a unique form of contract, called the Terminal 5 agreement. The £4·3 billion scheme required the client to lead in areas that were typically the traditional domain of suppliers or contractor organisations, resulting in novel methods and relationships. From the early stages it was recognised that the project had to be delivered differently to the norm if it was to achieve its desired objectives. This resulted in the phrase that all those involved in the delivery of the T5 were part of ‘history in the making’.