Infrastructure firm Balfour Beatty has been awarded the major £170 million contract to deliver a package of improvement for the work on Heathrow Airport.

The deal was announced to the stock exchange on Tuesday morning and will see the company upgrade the airport’s handling systems and baggage screen at the site’s Easter baggage hall after it was granted the work by the Heathrow Airport Limited Delivery Instigator Framework.

The contractor says that it will use the latest techniques in building information modelling to grapples with the logistics and design of the project, which will be carried out during normal airport operations.

The major outsourcing firm has already secured a series of big contracts at the airport, including a £590 million contract to support the Terminal 2 upgrades and £180 million of infrastructure works, which were both secured in 2014.

Balfour Beatty Group Chief Executive, Leo Quinn, commented on the group’s strong relationship with the South East airport by stating that the award of the contract has come as a result of the strong partnership the firm has developed with Heathrow Airport Limited over the past 17 years.

Mr Quinn added: “”The UK aviation sector is a core market for Balfour Beatty and we are delighted to play our part in helping Heathrow maintain its position as a leading travel hub and supporting local employment.”

Heathrow Airport itself is currently in the middle of a fierce political discussion for the approval of a new third runway at the site after the decision on whether to reward an expansion to Heathrow or rival Gatwick has been put back once again until a new Prime Minister has been put in place.

Earlier in the month, hundreds of people who live near the Heathrow site staged a rally to back the government in the construction of a new runway at the airport as it would boost jobs during a tough economic period.