YOUNGSTOWN STATE UNIVERSITY

Concrete and Steel Structures

Josh Graham, Jim Ryhal, Tom Clayton, Matt Pitsch
Group 7
Spring, 2010
 Steel Design

The two steel structures I am going to talk about is the Beijing National Stadium,
otherwise known as "The Bird's Nest" and the new Cowboys Stadium. The Beijing National
Stadium is a steel structure with a price tag of $423 million dollars. Due to the stadium's outward
appearance, it was nicknamed "The Bird's Nest". The design was awarded to a submission from
the Swiss architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron in April 2003. The design, which originated
from the study of Chinese ceramics, implemented steel beams in order to hide supports for the
retractable roof; giving the stadium the appearance of a "Bird's Nest".( See figure 1) The stadium
consists of two independent structures, standing 50 feet apart, a red concrete seating bowl and
the outer steel frame around it. In an attempt to hide the steel supports for the retractable roof,
required in the bidding process, the team developed the "seemingly random additional steel" to
blend the supports into the rest of the stadium. Twenty-four trussed columns encase the inner
bowl, each one weighing 1,000 tons. The retractable roof was later removed from the design after
inspiring the stadium's most recognizable aspect. The ground was broken in December 2003 and the
stadium officially opened in June 2008.
Beijing National Stadium was a joint project among architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de
Meuron of Herzog & de Meuron, project architect Stefan Marbach, artist Ai Weiwei, and CADG which
was lead by chief architect Li Xinggang. The structural engineer on the project was Arup. They decided
to eliminate the retractable roof, which was the original inspiration for the "nest" design. The removal of
the retractable roof helped to bring the project under the reduced construction budget of $290 million,
from an original $500 million. With the removal of the retractable roof, the building was lightened, which
helped it stand up to seismic activity; however, the upper section of the roof was altered to protect fans
from weather. 17,000 construction workers worked on the construction of this stadium and 10 workers
had died throughout construction. All 110,000 tons of steel were made in China.
The Cowboys Stadium was completed on May 29, 2009 and seats 80,000, but is expandable to
hold up to 112,000 through the use of standing areas. The stadium is the largest domed stadium in the
world, has the world's largest column-free interior, and the largest video screen hung from 20 yard line
to 20 yard line. The construction cost was $1.12 billion, making it one of the most expensive sports
venues ever built. Cowboys Stadium was designed by the Dallas-based architectural firm HKS. The
structural engineer for the project was Walter P. Moore.
Two structural steel arches, each spanning the entire 1,290 ft length of the stadium, frame the
end zones and come to rest on massive concrete abutments in the approach plazas. (See Figure 2) Each
arch reaches a maximum height of 300 ft. The structure also contains a retractable roof. The retractable
roof was designed by structural engineering firm Walter P Moore and the systems were implemented by
mechanization consultants Uni-Systems. A highlight of Cowboys Stadium is its gigantic center-hung
high-definition television screen.( See Figure 3) The largest in the world, coming in at 160 by 72 feet,
11,520-square-foot scoreboard. The weight of the scoreboard is 1.2 million pounds.
Figure 1: Bird's Nest

Figure 2: Steel Arches

 Reinforced Concrete Design

The first concrete structure I am going to talk about is the "Zaragoza Bridge Pavilion"
which was the new symbol of the Expo 2008. The British architect Zaha Hadid went with glass
fibre reinforced concrete from the Austrian company Rieder to envelope the 275 meter long
bridge. This bridge is located in the northern Spanish Zaragoza. She covered the outer skin of the
building with 29,000 triangles in different grey shades out of fibreC. On the day of the expo,
there were to be an estimated amount of 10,000 visitors per hour going across this bridge. The
Pavilion consists of an inhabited multi-level bridge that spans the Ebro River, linking the city to
the EXPO site. Apart from its function as a pedestrian access to the EXPO, the 275 meters long
Zaragoza Bridge is a big showroom. People can visit three exhibitions relating to the water and
sustainability theme. Four curved vaults on two floors offer an exhibition area of 7000 square
meters. Zaha Hadid chose triangular panels made of glass fibre reinforced concrete - fibreC for
the envelope of the bridge. A sophisticated pattern out of 29,000 elements in different grey
shades causes an effect like shiny fish scales and will shimmer in the sunshine on completion.
Due to its dimensional effect, the fibreC triangles imbue the outer skin of the pavilion with life,
reflecting the glittering and varied facets if the water. "The composition of fibreC out of
degradable, purely mineral raw materials entirely complies with the current trend of natural,
environmentally-friendly and sustainable materials", says CEO Wolfgang Rieder.

My next concrete structure I want to talk about is the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas.
The Stratosphere Tower is the tallest freestanding tower in the U.S., but it also offers thrill rides,
a lounge, a revolving gourmet restaurant, indoor and outdoor observation decks, and a wedding
chapel. The "brainchild" of the Stratosphere Tower was Bob Stupak. In 1993, the project caught
fire. Luckily, it was mostly concrete and there was little that could burn. The Stratosphere Tower
cost $550 million to build. Ground-breaking was held on Nov. 5, 1991, and the crowing spire
was lowered into place by helicopter on Nov. 4, 1995. During the four years that were needed to
build it, several critical phases of construction took place. Located at the tower's base, three
rectangular legs had to be set on a 12-foot-thick concrete pad foundation. They were positioned
like a tripod around a concrete hexagon center. The legs taper toward that center, coming
together at the 255-foot level. From there, they turn outward rising an additional 535 feet and
supporting the mushroom-like structure at the top, called the pod. At 1,149 feet in height, the
Stratosphere Tower is the tallest freestanding tower in the United States and the tallest structure
west of the Mississippi River. It's also taller than the Eiffel Tower. The Stratosphere Tower
weighs approximately 100 million pounds. Its double-deck elevators travel at speeds of 1,800
feet per minute. Almost 290 miles of rebar were used during the construction of the tower which
is the approximate distance from Los Angeles to San Francisco.
Figure 3 Stratosphere Tower

Figure 4 Zaragoza Bridge Pavilion

 Works Cited

"Architectural Bridge Building for the Expo 2008 | Design Events." Dexigner Design Portal | Design

News. Web. 28 Sept. 2009. <http://www.dexigner.com/design_events/architectural-bridge-

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"File:Birds Nest at Night.jpg -." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Web. 28 Sept. 2009.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wik/File:Birds_Nest_at_Night.jpg>.

"File:DallasCowboysNewStadiumapril08.jpg -." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Web. 28 Sept. 2009.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:DallasCowboysNewStadiumapril08.jpg>.

http://imgs.sfgate.com/c/pictures/2009/08/22/sp-cowboys23_ph_0500507284.jpg

"History of the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas | eHow.com." EHow | How To Do Just About

Everything! | How To Videos & Articles. Web. 28 Sept. 2009.

<http://www.ehow.com/about_5068215_history-stratosphere-tower-las-vegas.html>.