Airport Experience® News - Leadership Issue 2024

BEFORE YOU TAKE OFF

TAPPING TALENT SYR Partnered With Student Designers For Its Pre-Security Lobby

BY SARAH BELING

“We made this decision to ensure that the perspectives of those who would be involved in the implementation, maintenance, and future planning of the project were considered,” adds Ryan. In the end, the RIT team led by Quentin Stoneburner ’23 with work by Lavender Tu ’23, Isabel Kubick ’25, Nathan Templeman ‘25, and Troa Vimahi ’25, were chosen to bring their vision to life. “The pre-security food and beverage area, within a public transit facility, required students to tackle issues such as flow of traffic, heightened stress of occupants, safety and comfort of passengers and staff, and the diverse range of people using the space on any given day, at an in-depth level,” says Jahn, adding that her students “jump at the chance to think creatively, outside the box. Their lack of professional experience gives them the freedom to explore ideas without the burden of what has been done in the past.” The innovative design wasn’t just visually appealing, but financially appealing. “We saved $25,000 on the design,” says Ryan. To build the space, SYR and the winning RIT team partnered with Syracuse-based SEI Design Group and BMG construction. The area now holds plentiful seating surrounding an array of machines serving ramen, cupcakes, sandwiches, salads, cookies, pizza and more for travelers to enjoy. The lobby, which opened in December 2023, has become an exciting draw for travelers, says Ryan, adding that everyone from passengers taking Zoom meetings to social media influencers on dates have enjoyed the new space. It’s also become a living portfolio for its young designers. Ryan hopes that SYR’s partnership with RIT is just the beginning of what they can accomplish by collaborating with the region’s many colleges. “We have 32 colleges and universities in our area,” she adds, “and if we could coordinate something like this with all of them, we would, because this was awesome.”

SYR’s Jason Mehl (front right) and Linda Ryan (second from right) teamed up with professors and students from Rochester Institute of Technology for the design of a pre-security vending lobby.

T he team at Syracuse Hancock International Airport (SYR) had a problem. Their pre-security lobby, devoid of abundant seating or concessions offerings, was in desperate need of a makeover. Now, after partnering with one local group of up-and-coming designers – the creative students from the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) – SYR’s new and improved entryway provides not only a warm welcome to travelers but also serves as a showcase of RIT’s talented bench of designers. “Our number two complaint at Syracuse Airport was that we had no food pre-security,” says Linda Ryan, director of business development at Syracuse Regional Airport Authority . Looking to design a more hospitable setup for employees, passengers, taxi drivers and families picking up their loved ones, the SYR team decided that an automated vending lounge would best serve their market.

Ryan says a friend recommended that the airport reach out to adjunct instructor Kelly Jahn of RIT. “We started talking and [Kelly] said, ‘Linda this might be a great project for my students,’ – which is exactly what we want, that type of collaboration,” says Ryan. They decided to incorporate the project into the school’s annual Hyperspace competition, in which teams of RIT students prepare and present competing designs for a real-world client. First, the team at SYR presented their own hopes for the lobby space to 80 RIT students, giving them one week to come back with a fully fleshed-out design for the new lobby. A panel of judges then evaluated 15 team presentations. “Our heads were spinning,” says Ryan. After narrowing the competing teams to three finalists, the judges called them back for one more round of presentations, this time in front of everyone from the SYR leadership team to the airport’s electricians, custodial staff and plumbers.

52

AX NEWS DECEMBER 2024 / JANUARY 2025