SPACE FRAME

BMCT ASSIGNMENT 4
S.KRISHNACHANDRIKA
3801610009
Shah Alam Sports Complex
General Information
ØLocation: Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia
ØSize: 155,000 square feet
ØCapacity: 80,000 people
ØConstruction cost: RM480 million
ØConstruction begin: 1st January 1990
ØConstruction time: 4 years
Design Team
ØOwner: State Government of Selangor
ØArchitect: Hijjaz Kasturi Associates Sdn.Bhd, German
firms of Weidleplan and Consulting GmbH,and Schlaich,
Bergermann and Partners
Structural Background
• Space frame: USSP Unistrut space frame roof
• Arc length: 284m
• Cantilevered from the back: 69m
• Shape: Crescent shape (generated from cut section of circular cylinder)
• Type of tube: Cold-form high strength structural tubing
• Tubes: Local buckling of tubes
Column buckling of tubes
• Nodes: 5556
• Members: 21550
Structural
Unistrut Space Frame Roof
• Unistrut is a series of threaded road and metal channel used to form a
ceiling-mounted support structure for anything, to injectors, to
overhead system components.
Unistrut Features
• It consists of a large chamfer in nut ease starting of bolt. A special
shaped in turned edges and tapered, serrated grooves produce strong
vice-like grip between channel and nut.
 Geometry
ØGeometry of each of the crescent shaped arches is
generated from a cut section of a circular cylinder. Each
cylinder is of 814 feet (248 m) in radius and is tilted
10° from the level ground.
ØThe front section is a 45° cut measured from a
horizontal plane where is the back section is a 23° cut.
ØMaximum distance between cuts is 226 feet (69 m),
and the maximum height frame above playing field is
200 feet (61 m). Maximum span of the arch is 931 feet
(284 m).
ØGeometry of the space frame is depicted . Each space-
frame is composed ofreplicates of modular geometry.
ØEach module consists of cold-formed steel tubes bolted into spherical steel
nodes to form a rectangle-base pyramid. represents a typical Unistrut
Space-Frame System III assembly.
ØThe base of each pyramid is a rectangle of 12.5 feet (3.8 m) in length and
of 11.8 feet (3.6 m) in width.
ØDepth of each pyramid is 9.9 feet (3 m).
ØCross sections of tubes are tapered towards the nodes using a truncated
cone interface elements welded to the tubes.
ØCones provide for the transfer of forces from tubes to the connections, and
reduce the sizes of the otherwise large nodes.
ØA hexagonal bearing element "sleeve" is used between the cone and the
node with a pin penetrating through the bolt and sleeve to allow for turning
the bolt to engage into the node.
Ørepresents a typical Unistrut Space-Frame System III tube assembly.
Double Layer Barrel Vault
ØThe stadium constructed of two
graceful arches, each measuring
284m, making it one of the longest
free-standing arches in the world,
enclosing 70% of interior.
ØA double layer barrel vault space
frame is utilized but incorporated
with a triple layer at the front arc to
preserve an arch action for effective
load distribution.
 Support
ØE a c h o f t h e t w o s p a c e - f r a m e s i s
supported in the back by prestressed
concrete cantilever beams at 16 locations,
and each side is supported by a
prestressed concrete buttress at 8
locations.
ØStiffness and maximum reactions at
supports were established a priori, and
space-frame design has to satisfy these
requirements.
 Connectors
ØEach module consists of cold-formed steel tubes bolted
into spherical steel nodes to form a rectangle-base
pyramid.
ØCross sections of cold-form high strength structural
tubing are tapered towards the nodes using a truncated
cone interface elements welded to the tubes.
ØCones provide for the transfer of forces from tubes to
the connections, and reduce the sizes of the otherwise
large nodes. A hexagonal bearing element "sleeve" is
used between the cone and the node with a pin
penetrating through the bolt and sleeve to allow for
turning the bolt to engage into the node.
Ø The tube-cones assembly is galvanized before
inserting the bolts into the tubes.
Construction Technology
Ø Space-frame is being constructed by strips extending
between the back support and the front arch of the frame.
Ø Each strip is secured between two adjacent supports to
insure its relative position.
Ø Strips are supported by temporary shoring towers between
the supports and the front arch of spaceframe.
Ø Each tower is equipped with a screw-jack to fine-tune the
relative position of space-frame and to enable cambering
the frame by its dead load deflection.
Ø Strips are tied together as they are extended towards the
front arch of the frame.
Ø This is to preserve the arch action of the frame which
provides a self-supporting mechanism
Loading Combinations:
ØTo satisfy serviceability limit state requirements, 10 service load combinations
were established to predict service load deflections. Serviceability requirements
require cambering the space-frame by dead load deflection, and a maximum
vertical wind induced displacements of 9 inches (229 mm).
ØTo satisfy ultimate limit state requirements, the space-frame is designed for 63
different factored load combinations.

Space.Frame Design:
ØThe space-frame was designed using an in-house computer program" USSP"
developed by Unistrut Space-Frame Systems, Inc. USSP is an integrated geometry
generation, structural analysis, structural design, plotting, and manufacturing data
generation program. Prior to structural design a member assembly data base is
generated
Hall of nations - Nehru pavilion

LOCATION : Pragati
Maidan, New Delhi,
Delhi 110001
Hall of Nations and Halls of Industries, New Delhi
ØThis complex of exhibition
halls for the 1972
International Trade Fair
was planned, designed and
constructed in 22 months.
ØIts large-span cast-in-situ
concrete space frames were
the first of their kind to be
built in the world.
ØT h e c h o i c e o f s h a p e a n d f o r m o f t h e
structural system was driven by its potential
versatility: it contains an enclosure with a
column-free main hall of 6700 sq.m, and
four smaller halls adding an additional 7500
sq.m, under its roof structure.
ØAfter investigating multiple alternatives,
such as folded p l a t e s a n d h y p e r b o l i c
paraboloids, a space frame system with a
truncated pyramid as the basic module and
overall form was adopted.
ØSteel or pre-cast concrete would have been
obvious choices of material for such a space
frame, but the constraints of the available
con s t r u c t i o n t e c h n o l o g y o f t h a t t i m e
necessitated the use of in-situ concrete. Main Gate – Pragati Maidan
ØAfter rigorous investigations into pyramid
geometry, the rhombic section developed
for all the members of this very large
building may well be the secret of its
ultimate delicate and light appearance.
ØWith chamfered faces of just 25cm in the
Hall of Nations and 23cm in the Halls of
Industries, and interface angles drawn
from the slopes of its members, the robust
rhombus allowed for the in-situ
construction of the space frame where as
many as nine to twelve members come
together at one node.
ØThe innovative resolution of the nodes in
this way provided the requisite strength at
the node to absorb the heavy compressive Interior view of three interconnected Halls of Industries
or tensile forces from the members.
ØThe large truncated pyramids of both
structures are composites of smaller unit
pyramids.
ØThe Hall of Nations consists of units of a
4.9m x 4.9m base and 3.5m height which
form the 73m x 73m pyramid, truncated at
the height of 30m with a roof span of 39m x
39m.
ØThe Halls of Industries are four 18m-high
pyramids of 40m x 40m base, with truncated
roofs of 22m x 22m, made of units that are
2.6m high and 3.6m x 3.6m at the base.
ØThe configuration of both these basic
pyramids is such that all members of the The height of the basic pyramid module of the
space frame is 3.5m and each member is 4.87m
square base and the four triangular sides long
have the same length, finally allowing the
same building slope and the angle of this
basic unit at 54°44’8”.
G R O U N D F L O O R P L A N – P R A G AT I
MAIDAN
ØOctahedra measuring 5m from joint to
joint were employed as the basic 3D
unit of the space frame, Which rests on
8 points around the essentially square
p l a n n e d a n d a l l o w s 11 m w i d e
openings between the supports.
ØAn effective system of environmental
control inside the building was another
outcome of the 3D structure, as solid
triangular panels at regular intervals
provided sun screens – a modern
equivalent , according to some authors
of the traditional jali in Indian
architecture .
Plans, Elevation, Section (Hall of Nations)
Ø 16 August 1971: Drawing of plans at all
nine levels of the Hall of Nations, with an
overall section and elevation and also the
geometry of the pyramid used as a basic
module.
ØEach plan includes two levels to help explain
the pyramidical space frame geometry and
how it connects to create the truncated
pyramid form.
ØThe simplicity and clarity of the pyramid
geometry is carried through consistently in
plans, sections and elevations.
ØThe structure blooms out of twenty-four
nodes at the ground level, six nodes at each
face of the square plan.
Typical joint in steel, precast concrete and
in-situ concrete and construction sequence
Ø Left, top to bottom: Drawings of a
typical joint in steel, precast concrete
and in-situ concrete. A complete set of
construction documents was developed
for each of these material options and
finally the cast-in-situ was adopted.
Ø on ceptualisation of the stages of
construction helped reduce efforts and
costs as the entire structure was not
supported with scaffolding till the roof.
Based on extensive analysis, a detailed
construction sequence was established.
Ø A system of scaffolding would support
the structure till level 5, one level above
all the desired openings in the lower
levels.
Ø After level 5, the structure itself
supports additional construction
load, freeing the ground space.
Ø With each successive level, four
different configurations of structure
were envisaged and analysed for all
possible loading conditions before
the final building was completed.
Ø During construction, however,
despite simultaneous construction
on all sides, the rate of progress was
not the same; one side was up to the
sixth level and another to the fourth.
Ø This was a new structure not
envisaged or analysed before. At
this stage, after more analytical
work, the scaffolding was removed
as the structure was found to be self-
supporting.
Inner Elevation (Hall of Nations)
Ø A typical elevational module emerging
from three nodes that sprouts into three
inverted pyramids.
Ø The three inverted pyramids form the
base that multiplies three dimensionally
to create an elevational module that
forms half of each face of the truncated
pyramid.
Ø The geometry accommodates the
triangular openings formed naturally on
each side and corners of the elevational
module.

Inside the structure – Pragati Maidan

Reinforcement Layout at Level 1 & 2 (Hall of Nations)
Ø Plan of level 1 and 2 shows the resolution of one
space frame module that emerges from three inverted
pyramids.
Ø The plans indicate the three-dimensional
multiplication on the inner and outer nodes to form a
space frame that finally evolves into a truncated
pyramid.
Ø The rhombic cross section of the space frame
members was an outcome of the search for a joint that
would be easier to construct.
Ø Evolved from the slopes and intersections of the
pyramid members, the geometry of the rhombus was
found to be most appropriate versus square,
rectangular and circular sections.
Ø For the Hall of Nations a rhombic section with
chamfered edges and a face dimension of 25cm and
cross-sectional area of 585 sq.cm was developed.
Ø This section shows Raj’s intuitive visualisation and
understanding of structures through the rigours of
geometry.