Vanderlande has designed and delivered a new individual carrier system (ICS) to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) as part of a wider design-build-operate-maintain (DBOM) contract. The first phase of the ICS project was handed over to the airport in January and the baggage handling system (BHS) officially went live on May 24.
The Vanderlande ICS that includes approximately seven miles of conveyor was built for the West Gates at Tom Bradley International Terminal – a new 15-gate facility at LAX. The carrier-based system is designed to enable a smooth and high-speed baggage process. The overall capacity of the BHS is 6,400 bags per hour.
The ICS has two flight make-up locations that are complemented by two Vanderlande EBS (Early Bag Store) with Automated Storage and Retrieval Systems – which allow passengers to check in bags earlier than before. This is Vanderlande’s first ICS system with an EBS installation in the United States. Similar systems are scheduled to follow at other airports in the near future. The combined capacity of both EBS systems is 3,100 bags.
As part of the DBOM contract, Vanderlande already took on O&M responsibility for the existing Tom Bradley BHS in 2017 in order to deliver a seamless introduction of the additional system. The company is also currently working on the Delta T2/T3 project at LAX, for which it will deliver a separate BHS.
Capacity at LAX is set to increase with Los Angeles hosting the 2028 Olympics, as well as being one of the host cities for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
