YOUR AIRPORT & SEA ISLAND COMMUNITY CONNECTION
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SEPTEMBER 2014
Canada Post opens on Sea Island
People:
New chef at Fairmont Vancouver Airport Hotel PG 5 Space Travel:
Trip to Space competition PG
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Canada Post’s brand new state-of-the-art 65,000-squaremetre Pacific Processing Centre (PPC) Sea Island facility is now open. As part of a nationwide postal transformation effort, which began in 2008, Canada Post relocated its operations from both the
Vancouver Mail Processing Plant at West Georgia Street and the Vancouver Parcel Distribution Centre at No. 6 Road, Richmond, into the new facility. Canada Post invested $200-million in the new multipurpose processing facility and related equipment. The plant,
located on Ferguson Road, processes letters, parcels, packets and advertising mail under one roof. Building a processing facility at the YVR Sea Island location was a strategic decision that was made to improve Canada Post’s access to vital transportation links and open
the way for synergies with the airlines and the cargo community already located there. Vancouver is one of three international access points for Canada Post and plays an increasingly important role in facilitating trade with Asian countries. With its international role, the PPC facility
will house a Canada Border Services Agency operation to better serve western Canadians. The new postal facility was built to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards to take up as small an ecological footprint as possible.
Events:
10-million passengers have used YVR’s BorderXpress APC Kiosks Abbotsford Air Show PG
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Travel Talk:
Palm Springs aviation museum PG
Vancouver Airport Authority’s BorderXpress Automated Passport Control (APC) kiosk recently helped its 10-millionth traveller clear customs into the United States.
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Restaurant Guide:
Breakfast, lunch, dinner PG 14
Vancouver Airport Authority recently announced its BorderXpress Automated Passport Control (APC) kiosks helped its 10-millionth traveller clear customs into the United States. The 10-millionth passenger used a BorderXpress kiosk to clear customs at Montreal’s Trudeau International Airport. BorderXpress APC kiosks reduce the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) inspection process by 89 per cent, while cutting passenger wait times in half and lowering airport operating costs. Additionally, as the only turnkey, fully hosted solution available,
BorderXpress kiosks can be easily installed and maintained. Instead of filling out a declaration card and waiting to take their travel documents to a CBP officer, passengers, who are eligible and choose to use APC can proceed directly to a self-service kiosk in the U.S. CBP inspection facility. Passengers follow the on-screen instructions to scan their U.S. or Canadian passport, answer the customs declaration questions using the touch screen, receive a receipt confirming their information and then proceed to the CBP officer to finalize processing. See BORDERXPRESS page 2
Thermoplastic markings on Taxiway Lima Vancouver Airport Authority has installed new thermoplastic markings to one of its main taxiways (Taxiway Lima), which will replace the paint used in the past. Thermoplastic might sound futuristic and complex, but it’s essentially surface markings that are pre-cut and pre-coloured signs that form a strong bond with the concrete upon application to the taxiway. The benefits of thermoplastic are significant. Thermoplastic markings have a clean and crisp appearance, are more durable, and typically last seven years before needing to be replaced.
New thermoplastic markings are installed at one of the main taxiways on YVR’s South Runway.
See our ad on page 13 * YVR is the international aeronautical designation for Vancouver International Airport.
The alternative is paint, which YVR currently applies to airfields annually during our summer maintenance. Eliminating the need to reapply paint each year will help reduce the amount of work that needs to be done during the annual summer runway maintenance period, and may lessen the length of runway closures due to repainting in the future. If you have any questions about the thermoplastic application or summer runway maintenance, please contact community_relations@yvr.ca or call 604.207.7097.
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