- April 18, 2023
- In the Media
Memphis Airport’s New Deicing Facility Spotlighted in Airport Improvement
Nathan Lemon, PE
Aviation Project Manager
David Sparkes, PE
Senior Aviation Project Manager
Kimley-Horn’s extensive work as the prime designer and lead civil engineer for multiple phases of the Memphis International Airport’s Centralized Deicing Facility project was featured in Airport Improvement. Aviation experts Nathan Lemon, PE, and David Sparkes, PE, discuss how the facility’s location will reduce taxi and holdover time—allowing for more efficient and cost-saving operations—as well as how innovative stormwater and glycol runoff management systems support environmental project goals. The new facility opened in November 2022, and its 12 deicing bays have already proven their worth, massively supporting the airport’s operations during a holiday season winter storm.
“There were a slew of challenges, but nothing that we weren’t able to overcome as a group. At the end of the day, we needed all that expertise to complete this very large, complex facility.”
About the Experts
Nathan Lemon, PE
Nathan specializes in aviation-specific construction and design, including airport facility rehabilitation and reconstruction, airport design, and construction administration for airfield and airport projects. Nathan has led teams of discipline engineers, analysts, and inspectors through large, complex rehabilitation and reconstruction airfield pavement projects. Leveraging his civil construction experience to promote the proper application of methods and practices for horizontal and vertical construction, Nathan is also well-versed with FAA Advisory Circulars as they pertain to the design and construction of airfield systems and infrastructure.
David Sparkes, PE
David has 23 years of experience in aviation-specific design on the airside and landside. David’s experience in aviation includes environmental, planning, pavement management, deicing, landside design, and runway and taxiway reconstruction and improvement projects at general aviation, regional, and international airports. Along with serving as a project manager for reconstruction, improvement, and analysis projects throughout the country, David has also been a project engineer and quality control reviewer for aviation projects in Michigan, Arkansas, and Texas.