Hill International has won a contract to provide programme management services for the Miami-Dade County Aviation Department’s $5bn Capital Improvement Program.

The 15-year modernisation plan involves Miami International Airport (MIA) and all the county’s executive and general aviation airports.

Improvements will accommodate dramatic growth at the airports, with total passengers expected to reach 60 million annually over the 15 years.

Owing to MIA being the first IATA-Designated Pharma Hub Airport in the US and substantial growth in e-commerce, freight traffic is also expected to increase to a total of more than 4 million tons by 2040.

Hill’s contract is for the initial five years with the potential for two five-year extensions.

According to the office of the Miami-Dade County Mayor, MIA and other airports generate some $31bn in business revenue a year and serve as the gateway for 96% of the region’s visitors.

Work at MIA is composed of five sub-programmes: the redevelopment of Central Terminal (concourses E and F); the expansion of the South Terminal (concourses H and J); renovations to North Terminal gates (concourse D) to accommodate additional wide- and narrow-body aircraft and larger regional jets; two new hotels; miscellaneous landside projects; and expanded aircraft parking and warehouses for cargo operations.

Hill first vice president and southeast regional manager Eladio Castrodad said the award “positions the community’s airports to continue providing an efficient, safe, and pleasant passenger experience for many years to come”.

“The pandemic certainly slowed growth in the region, but as air travel returns there is building pressure to resume and accelerate that growth,” said Hill’s chief executive Raouf Ghali, adding the programme will put Miami-Dade’s airports “ahead of the curve, as efficiently and cost-effectively as possible”.