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PROF. WOLFGANG SCHUELLER

Building Structures as Architecture

basic structure elements in architecture

Structure is a necessary part of live; it establishes order. It relates various entities or all the parts of

a whole displaying some pattern of organization and lack of randomness. It occurs at any scale,

ranging from the molecular structure of material to the laws of the universe.

The richness of structures can only be suggested by the wealth of building structure types, ranging

from the long-span stadium to the massive building block to the slender tower, from structures above

or below ground or in water to structures in outer space. They range from simple symmetrical to

complex asymmetrical forms, from boxes to terraced and inverted stepped buildings, from low-rise to

high-rise buildings, and so on.

The necessity of Structure: ORDER, structure is a necessary part of life

structure scale: low-rise vs. high-rise building structures

Classification of building support structures according to:

- geometry and form

- building use and function

- material and construction

- mechanical behavior

- systems

Topics to be introduced:

Building structure type and use e.g. apartment buildings, factories, gymnasiums, arenas, multi-use

Structure systems: rigid systems, flexible systems, composite systems

horizontal-span structures, vertical-span structures

Structural behavior: loads, force-flow, force and form

Structure as geometry ordering system, form giver, art

Building vs. Structure vs. Architecture: structure is necessary for buildings but not for architecture:

without structure there is no building, but architecture as an

idea does not require structure

Expression of structure: hidden vs. exposed, innovative vs. standard construction

A. GENERAL CONCEPTS of STRUCTURE

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Global vs. local scale of structure: DETAIL

A1. Building STRUCTURE Types and Building USE Single volume with large spans cellular subdivision with multiple small spans long-span stadiums

vs. massive building blocks vs. vertical slabs vs. high-rise towers

study of truss in context of various building types

A2. Building STRUCTURE as support (local and global scale) Structure holds the building up so it does not collapse or deform excessively; it makes the building and spaces within the

building possible. Structure gives support to the material and therefore is necessary.

Building and structure are inseparable and intimately related to each other. The external forces that act on buildings

cause internal forces within buildings. The forces flow along the structure members to the ground, requiring foundations

as transition structures to the comparatively weak soil. The members must be strong and stiff enough to resist the

internal forces. In other words, building support structures have to provide the necessary strength and stiffness to

resist the vertical forces of gravity and the lateral forces due to wind and earthquakes to guide them safely to the ground.

In addition to strength and stiffness, stability is a necessary requirement for structures to maintain their shape.

A3. STRUCTURE Systems Every building consists of the load-bearing structure and the non-load-bearing portion. The main load bearing structure,

in turn, is subdivided into:

Gravity structure consisting of floor/roof framing, slabs, trusses, columns,

walls, foundations

Lateral force-resisting structure consisting of walls, frames, trusses,

diaphragms, foundations

Support structures may be classified as,

Horizontal-span structure systems:

floor and roof structure

enclosure structures

Vertical building structure systems:

walls, frames cores, etc.

tall buildings

A4. STRUCTURE Behavior Loads: gravity, lateral loads (wind, seismic) external vs. internal forces(force flow along members)

Properties of forces

Force flow: path to the ground where foundations make the transition possible to the weak soil -- stresses

(intensity of force flow, blood pressure) depend on: member shape, material, size, structure,

connections

Response of structure to loading

A5. STRUCTURE as GEOMETRY: STRUCTURE as an ordering system

It functions as a spatial and dimensional organizer besides identifying assembly or construction

systems.

geometry vs. composition, dimensional coordination (grids, surface subdivision, mathematics, etc.):

Beijing Jian Wai SOHO, Beijing, 2004, Riken Yamamoto

Langen Foundation, Hombroich, Germany, 2004, Ando

Buckminster Fuller geodesic dome, US Expo Montreal, 1967

Cube (tree) houses, Rotterdam, Piet Blom, 1984. The houses look like a tree because the architect

turned the cubes 45 degrees and put them on a pole. The 32 attached houses together look like a

stone forest. The complex is built at a pedestrian bridge crossing a traffic road.

Kisho Kurokawa, Nakagin Capsule Tower, Tokyo, Japan, 1972, the 14-story high Tower has 140

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capsules stacked at angles around a central core. Kurokawa developed the technology to install the

capsule units into the concrete core with only 4 high-tension bolts, as well as making the units

detachable and replaceable.

Daniel Libeskind, city edge

Bus shelter, Aachen, Germany, 1996, Peter Eisenman

CCTV Headquarters and TVCC Building, Beijing, 2008, Rem Koolhaas

National Swimming Center in Beijing, 2007, Arup, space frame cells

The National Swimming Center in Beijing marks a new beginning in design thinking. This new

thinking has been spurned on by one question: How does structure fill space? The structure of the

Water Cube is based on the most effective sub-division of three-dimensional space - the fundamental

arrangement of organic cells and the natural formation of soap bubbles. It will be clad in ETFE foil

cushions which have excellent insulation properties and will create a greenhouse effect.

Arup based the structural design on Weaire and Phelans (Irish Professors of Physics at Trinity

College) proposed solution to the problem of What shape would soap bubbles in a continuous array

of soap bubbles be? This problem was both initially posed and tentatively answered by Lord Kelvin

at the end of the 18th century but it was 100 years before the Irish Professors proposed a better one.

Beijing Olympic Stadium, called the nest, 2008, Herzog and De Meuron, Arup Eng

Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, 1997, Frank Gehry

Fisher Center, Bard College, NY, 2003, Frank Gehry

UFA Palace Dresden, 1998, COOP Himmelblau

Thom Maynes (Morphosis, LA) design for the Phare Tower in La Dfense, Paris, 2006

Structure as form giver: it defines the spatial configuration and reflects other meanings and is part of

esthetics:

Roman aqueduct in Segovia, 50 AD, Spain

la Grande Arch, Paris, 1989, Fainsilber & P. Rice

TU Munich, Germany

Integrated urban buildings, Linkstr. Potsdamer Platz), Richard Rogers, Berlin, 1998

Mercedes-Benz Museum, Stuttgart, 2006, Ben van Berkel & Caroline Bos, Werner Sobek

Ingenieure

Phaeno Science Center, 2005, Wolfsburg, Zaha Hadid

BMW Welt Munich, 2007, Coop Himmelblau

STRUCTURE as art The experimentation with structures is also reflected by the structivist art of modernism and was first

articulated particularly by the dreams of designers such as the pioneers Antoine Pevsner and Naum

Gabo at the early part of this century in Russia, and later by Alexander Calder's kinetic art and Kenneth

Snelson's tensegrity sculptures. Part of this exiting new wave of experimentation are also the chair

structures.

Calder Flamingo Sculpture Chicago, 1974, in front of Mies van der Rohe Building

Calder in the National Gallery of Art, East Wing, Washington, 1978, I.M. Pei

Experiments with structure, Russian Constructivism (3 slides)

Kenneth Snelson's tensegrity tower (1968), double-layer tensegrity dome

Santiago Calatrava, Stradelhofen Station, Zurich, 1990 (2 slides)

A glazed canopy structure (similar to Stadelhofen Station Canopy, Zurich, Switzerland, 1990,

Santiago Calatrava) consists of a series of single cantilever beams with sword-like steel plates,

spaced at 5 ft that carry the glass roof. The cantilever beams are welded to a continuous 16-in. (41cm)

dia. steel tube with a wall thickness of 0.5 in. that acts as a beam and torsion ring to transfer the loads

to the inclined, branching Y-columns of triangular cross section, which in turn are stabilized by

vertical hinged pendulum columns. The 2-legged composite columns are spaced at 40 ft (12 m).

Assume a dead load of 20 psf and a live load of 25psf . Use A36 steel for secondary beams and A53

(using Fy = 36 ksi) for the steel tube with Fb = 24 ksi and Fv = 14.4 ksi. For this first investigation

disregard the weight of the tubular beam. Check the size of the tubular section by treating it as a thin-

walled member for this preliminary design approach.

Earth sculpture, MUDAM, Luxembourg, 2007

Chairs, MUDAM, Museum of Modern Art, Luxembourg, 2007, I.M. Pei

Chaise by Le Corbusier, chairs by Marcel Breuer (late 1920s)

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SHIZUOKA PRESS & BROADCASTING CENTER,Tky,1967, K. Tange

A6. STRUCTURE vs. BUILDING vs. ARCHITECTURE Structure is necessary for buildings but not for architecture, without structure no building, but architecture

as an idea does not require structure (i.e. design philosophy).

EXPRESSION of STRUCTURE:

- hidden structure vs. exposed structure

- decorative structure (post-modern) vs. tectonic structure

- innovative structures vs. standard construction

Cathedral of Learning, at the University of Pittsburgh, 1930s

Tsinghua University building, Beijing, 2005 (2 slides)

Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, 1993, James Ingo Freed

New Beijing Planetarium, 2005, AmphibianArc Nanchi Wang (4 slides). To represent the warps

and curves of outer space, Wang designed the glass curtain wall with bulges and depressions, marking

the entrances with distinctive saddle-shaped curves depicting half of a wormhole, the term for a

shortcut in Einsteins space-time continuum. (Wang is careful to call his design an analogy, since

these phenomena resist direct or literal representation.) He built virtual models of the building using

RHINO software, which also enabled their manufacture.

Jewish Museum, Berlin, 2000, Daniel Libeskind (2 slides)

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Cleveland, 1995, I. M. Pei (3 slides)

The fractal space of Moshe Safdies Habitat 67 in Montreal, Canada

Administration Building, Ningbo Institute of Technology, Zhejiang University, Ningbo, 2002,

Qingyun Ma

Ningbo Institute of Technology Campus Library, Zhejiang University, Ningbo, MADA spam, 2002

Credit Lyonnais Tower (120 m), Lille, France, 1994, Christian de Portzamparc

Tour Lilleurope (115m, 25 stories), Lille, France, 1995, Claude Vasconi

Apartment tower, Malm, Sweden, 2003, Calatrava based on a turning torso sculpture

Palau de les Arts,Valencia Opera House, 2005, Santiago - like a surrealistic ocean liner or even

gargantuan prehistoric creature cast in stone

A7. STRUCTURE as Detail: articulation of the facade The devil (or god according to Mies) is in the detail

articulation of the facade - detail as material

Museum of Science and Technology, Parc de la Villette, Paris, 1986, Fainsilber/Rice

Atlanta mall, Elbasani & Logan

Ningbo downtown, 2002, Qingyun Ma

Dresdner Bank, Verwaltungszentrum, Leipzig, 1997, Engel und Zimmermann Arch

MUDAM, Luxembourg, 2006, I.M. Pei

Marta Herford, 2006, Frank Gehry

Architectural Institute, Rotterdam,1993, Netherland, Joe Coenen

The new San Francisco Federal Building, 2007, Thom Mayne (Morphosis)

Boston Convention Center, Vinoly and LeMessurier, 2005 (2 slides)

Pompidou Center, Paris, 1977, Piano and Rogers

Expansion of Printing Office, Berlin, 1997, BHHS & Partner; glass-tree structure

Glass structure, Beijing

State Gallery, Stuttgart, Germany, 1984, James Sterling Arch, canopies (2 slides)

Peek & Cloppenburg, Koeln, Renzo Piano, 2005 (2 slides)

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Beams: straight/inclined, solid/composite, arrangement/density, scale, building as beam, the

vertical beam: Atrium, Germanisches Museum, Nuremberg, Germany

Library University of Halle (?)

Petersbogen shopping center, Leipzig, 2001, HPP Hentrich-Petschnigg

New National Gallery, Berlin, 1968, Mies van der Rohe

Pedestrian bridge, Nuremberg, Germany

Documentation Center Nazi Party Rally Grounds, Nuremberg, 2001, Guenther Domenig Architect

Chongqing Airport Terminal, 2005, Llewelyn Davies Yeang and Arup

Debis Theater, Marlene Dietrich Platz, Berlin, 1998, Renzo Piano

Merzedes-Benz Zentrale, Berlin, 2000, Lamm, Weber, Donath und Partner

Bridge connecting two buildings, Berlin

Integrated urban buildings, Linkstr. Potsdamer Platz, Richard Rogers, Berlin, 1998

UNESCO stair, Paris, 1957, Breuer and Nervi

Everson Museum, Syracuse, NY, 1968, I. M. Pei

Grand Palais, Lille, France, 1995, Rem Koolhaas/Ove Arup

Hirshorn Museum, Washington, 1974, Gordon Bunshaft/ SOM

Story beam, Berlin

Everson Museum, Syracuse, NY, 1968, I. M. Pei

Central Plaza, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 1996, Ken Yeang

Columns: power of column as space maker, sign in landscape, facade columns, space

articulation, scale, etc. Acropolis, Athens, 650-480 B.C.

Bourges cathedral, 13th cent, Bourges, France

St. Lorenz, 15th cent, Nuremberg, Germany

Theater Erfurt, 2003, Joerg Friedrich Arch

Kunst Hal, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 1992, Rem Koolhaas Arch

College for Basic Studies, Sichuan University, 2000, Chengd (2 slides)

Government building, Berlin, Germany, 2001, Axel Schultes

Treptow Crematorium, Berlin, 1997, Axel Schultes

Peek & Cloppenburg Department Store, Berlin, 1995, Gottfried Bhm

Study of faade columns, visual analysis

Luxemborg Philharmonie, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg, 2006, Atelier Christian De Portzamparc

LAX Control Tower, Los Angeles1996, Katherine Diamond

Samsung Life Insurance Jong-Re Building, Seoul, 1999, Rafael Vinoly

Inclined columns : beam-columns, lateral thrust (visual analysis, tree columns, cantilever

columns, etc.), bone-shaped columns, human thighbone: Interchange Terminal Hoenheim-Nord, Strassbourg, 2002, Zaha Hadid

B. BUILDING STRUCTURE ELEMENTS: Line elements: beams, columns, cables, frames, arches

Space frames

Surface elements: walls, slabs (floors), shells, tensile membranes

Tensegrity,

Hybrid systems

Free form

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Erasmusbridge, Rotterdam, 1996, Ben Van Berkel. The bridge is a so called cable stayed bridge. The

pylon is 139 meters high. The special form of the pylon is why the bridge is nicknamed The Swan.

The bridge connects the north and south part of Rotterdam. The design is a good example of modern

architecture, without a computer the bridge could have never been built.

Mensa Dining Hall, Karlsruhe, 2007, Jrgen Mayer H . The new refectory for students of the FH, PH

and KA Karlsruhe is situated close to the Schlossplatz in the centre of the city. The building is to be

used as a refectory only during term-time. An integrated cafeteria will also be open at other times. The

building is a flat, slanted cube on a trapezoidal floor plan. The exterior dimensions are approx. 49to

55 x 40m. The flat and partly landscaped roof area slopes by approx. 9 and has been designed as a

fifth facade. The load-bearing structure of the faade and the roof emerge as dominant, apparently

random lines and thus give the building a very distinctive appearance. The building has 1 storeys,

the main areas of use being located on the ground floor. An inserted gallery level, accessed by stairs,

makes use of the high refectory room. There is a direct access to the roof terrace from this level. This

layout allows for an optimal accommodation of the building services to supply the kitchen areas

below. The structural framework consists of an interior reinforced concrete construction

enveloped by an innovative wood construction. This wood construction is made of insulated

hollow boxes consisting of laminated wood, laminated veneer lumber and plywood panels. The

construction with its optimized building physics is protected from the weather by way of PUR-

coating.

Hannover EXPO 2000, Thomas Herzog und Julius Natterer

Subway Station to Allians Stadium, Froettmanning, Munich, 2004, Peter Bohn

Stanted Airport, London, UK, 1991, Norman Foster/ Arup

Chongqing Airport Terminal, 2005, China, Llewelyn Davies Yeang and Arup

World Trade Center, Amsterdam, 2003, Kohn, Pedersen & Fox (2 slides)

Petersbogen shopping center, Leipzig, 2001, HPP Hentrich-Petschnigg

Satolas Airport TGV Train Station, Lyons, France, 1995, Santiago Calatrava

Airport Madrid, Spain, Richard Rogers, 2005 (2 slides)

AWD Dome, Bremen, 1964, Germany, Ronald Rainer and U. Finsterwalder

Frames: Visual study of frames, arches and trusses

Visual analysis of lateral thrust

Crown Hall, IIT, Chicago, 1956, Mies van der Rohe

Frankfurt Post Museum, 1990, Behnisch Architekten

Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, Norwich, UK, 1978, Norman Foster

Willemsbridge, Rotterdam, 1981, C.Veeling

BMW Plant Leipzig, Central Building, 2004, Zaha Hadid

Sony Center, Potzdamer Platz, Berlin, 2000, Helmut Jahn Arch., Ove Arup

Dresdner Bank, Verwaltungszentrum, Leipzig, 1997, Engel und Zimmermann Arch.

Design Museum, Nuremberg, Germany, 1999, Volker Staab

Capital Museum, Beijing, 2001, Jean-Marie Duthilleul + Cui Kai

Architectural Institute, Rotterdam, Netherland, 1993, Joe Coene. The building complex is divided into

several sections suggesting its continuation into urban context. The concrete skeleton dominates the

image supplemented by steel and glass. The main glazed structure appears to be suspended, and

allows the concrete load-bearing structure behind to be seen. The high, free-standing support pillars

and the wide cantilevered roof appear more in a symbolic manner rather as support systems. The

building complex clearly articulates its presence to the context.

Arches: visual analysis of columns (lateral thrust, space interaction through diagonal,

principal stress flow)

Colosseum, Rom, c. 100 AD

St. Peters, Rom, 16th century. Bramante, Michelangelo, etc.

Arve River Bridge, 1935, Switzerland, Robert Maillart

Cologne Medienpark bridge

Satolas Airport TGV Train Station, Lyons, France, 1995, Santiago Calatrava

Berlin Stock Exchange, Berlin, Germany, 1999, Nick Grimshaw

Athens Olympic Sports Complex, 2004, Calatrava

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The Metro station at Blaak, Rotterdam, 1993, Harry Reijnders of Movares; the arch spans 62.5 m,

dome diameter is 35 m Oberbaum bridge, Berlin, Santiago Calatrava, 1995

Lehrter Bahnhof, Berlin, 2006, von Gerkan, Marg and Partners

Cables: World Trade Center, Amsterdam, 2003, Kohn, Pedersen & Fox

Sony Center, Potzdamer Platz, Berlin, 2000, Helmut Jahn Arch., Ove Arup

The University of Chicago Gerald Ratner Athletics Center, Cesar Pelli, 2004

Incheon International Airport, 2001, Seoul, Fentress Bradburn Architects, Denver

Olympic Stadium, Tokyo, 1964, Kenzo Tange, Y. Tsuboi (2 slides)

Surfaces:

ribbed vaulting Muenster Halberstadt, 14th century, Gothic ribbed vaulting

MUDAM, Museum of Modern Art, Luxembourg, 2007, I.M. Pei

Friedrichstrasse Atrium, 1996, Berlin, Henry N. Cobb

National Grand Theater, Beijing, 2007, Jean Andreu

DG Bank, Berlin, Germany, 2001, Frank Gehry, Schlaich and Bergemann

Reichstag, Berlin, Germany, 1999, Norman Foster, Leonhardt & Andrae

rigid shells Airplane hangar, Orvieto. 1940, Pier Luigi Nervi

Zarzuela Hippodrome Grandstand, 1935,. Eduardo Toroja

Notre Dame du Haut, Ronchamp, France, 1955, Le Corbusier

Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, TX, 1972, Louis Kahn

St. Mary Basilica, Tokyo,1964, Kenzo Tange, Y. Tsuboi

TWA Terminal, New York, 1962, Eero Saarinen

Chrystal Cathedral, Garden Grove, Calif., 1980, Philip Johnson

soft shells: Dulles Airport Terminal, Washington DC, 1962, Eero Saarinen, Fred Severud.

Dulles Airport, Chantilly, 2002, SOM, is one of the most architecturally and functionally

significant airports of the modern era. Designed by the famous modernist Finnish architect, Eero

Saarinen, it was the first example of the now ubiquitous concept of separating the passenger

processing (landside) and aircraft related (airside) components of an airport when it was built In

1962. Upon its completion, it was immediately recognized as a landmark of the modern movement

in architecture, and became a turning point in the design and construction of airports around the

world.

Remotely located from the capital and competing with two other airports in the region, Dulles was

under-utilized for 15 years after it was built. In the late 1970's, however, two factors began to cause

rapid growth at Dulles; first, intensive residential and commercial growth in the immediate area

created greater demand for service from Dulles. Second, the deregulation of the airline industry

resulted in the development of "hub and spoke" route systems; Dulles has become a hub of a major

domestic airline which is rapidly expanding its international service.

This increased demand required that the airport be expanded, and a master plan was completed in

1979. SOM became involved with the project in 1984 when we were awarded the contract for the

design of the first Midfield Concourse building. Since that time, SOM has won the commission for

every new project for the improvement of Dulles; in addition, SOM has recently completed a

thorough review and update of the master plan

Olympic Stadium, Tokyo, 1964, Kenzo Tange, Y. Tsuboi

Trade Hall 26, Hanover, 1996, Thomas Herzog, Schlaich Bergermann

Flexible surface structures

Yeadon pneumatic fabric structures, tennis court

Tektoniks; the strength and portability of our buildings derive from their unique design and

construction. Each structure is typically comprised of two layers of a fire retardant composite

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textile connected together using formers of the same material. The cavity formed between the

layers is pressurised with air producing an extremely rigid structural element which allows large

spans to be achieved whilst keeping the overall weight of the structure to a minimum. The unique

welded construction of our buildings combined with the types of textiles used enables them to

operate at higher pressures than conventional inflatable structures. This results in a much more

rigid building ideally suited to both temporary and permanent indoor and outdoor applications. All

our structures are constructed from composite textiles developed specifically for architectural

applications. The textile panels are cut and assembled using techniques derived from aerospace

manufacturing to produce high integrity seams consistently and reliably.

Ice Rink Roof, Munich, 1984, Ackermann und Partner, Schlaich Bergermann

Olympic Stadium, Munich, Germany, 1972, Frei Otto, Leonhardt-Andrae

Schlumberger Research Center, Cambridge, 1985, Michael Hopkins