BEIJING

 NATIONAL  STADIUM  
Herzog  de  Meuron,  2008  
DESCRIPTION  
•  Architect:  Swiss  duo  Herzog  de  Meuron  
•  Year  completed:  2008  
•  Built  for  the  2008  Olympic  Games  and  
was  its  most  striking  structure.  
•  Nickname:  Bird’s  Nest  
•  Floor  area:  254,600  m2    
•  91,000  permanent  seats,  11,000  
temporary  seats  
•  World’s  largest  enclosed  space  at  3  
million  cubic  meters.    
•  Leading  Chinese  arRst  Ai  Weiwei  was  
the  arRsRc  consultant  on  the  project  
•  A  shopping  mall  and  hotel  were  to  be  
built  nearby  to  encourage  its  use  aTer  
the  Olympics,  since  it  had  trouble  
aUracRng  events.  
 POLITICALLY  
•  Beijing  was  the  host  of  the2008  Olympic  
Games.  This  brought  people  from  all  over  
the  world  to  the  city.    The  opening  and  
closing  ceremonies  were  to  be  in  the  
“Bird’s  Nest”.      
•  It  was  therefore  to  be  a  significant  
structure,  projecRng  the  progress  China  
had  made  as  a  country  in  the  prior  
decade.  
•  The  government  wanted  to  make  an  
impression  on  people.  The  circular  shape  
of  the  stadium  represents  heaven  in  
China,  while  the  cube  nearby  of  the  
AquaRcs  Center  represents  earth.  
•  It  was  important  to  them  to  use  a  globally  
recognized  architect  and  the  latest  
technology  to  show  their  sophisRcaRon.  
•  It  became  a  globally  recognized  icon  of  
the  Chinese  Olympic  Games  and  helped  
their  image  in  the  world.  
 
 ECONOMICALLY  
•  Cost  300m  GBP  ($423  million)  and  funded  by  
a  public,  private  partnership  arrangement.  
 
•  The  China  InternaRonal  Trust  and  
Investment  CorporaRon  (CITIC)  consorRum,  
raised  42%  of  the  finance  for  the  project  in  
return  for  a  35-­‐year  tender  aTer  the  
Olympics  were  finished.  

•  CITIC  is  comprised  of  the  CITIC  Group,  the  

Beijing  Urban  ConstrucRon  Group,  the  
Golden  State  Holding  Group  of  the  United  
States,  and  the  CITIC  Group  affiliate  Guoan  
Elstrong  (a  public,  private  partnership  
arrangement).  
•  The  remaining  58%  is  funded  by  the  Beijing  
Municipal  Government  and  this  has  been  
entrusted  to  the  Beijing  State-­‐owned  Assets  
Management  Co  Ltd  as  the  city  
government’s  representaRve.  

•  It  has  had  trouble  aUracRng  events  aTer  the  

games,  and  plans  shopping  mall  and  hotel.  
 SOCIALLY  -­‐  EXTERIOR  
•  As  the  landmark  project  of  the  Beijing  
Olympics,  the  Olympic  Green  is  located  
exactly  at  the  north  end  of  the  
metropolis’  axis,  marking  the  finishing  
line  of  the  central  axis.  The  NaRonal  
Stadium  and  the  NaRonal  AquaRc  
Center  are  located  on  this  axis.  

•  The  axis  is  the  most  important  cultural  

vein  of  Beijing.  It  takes  the  Forbidden  
City  as  the  axle  center  and  passes  
through  the  whole  ancient  city  south  
to  north.  The  buildings  and  space  along  
the  axis  are  invariably  symmetrical.  It  is  
where  the  best  buildings  are  and  is  the  
historical  art  of  town  planning  of  
Beijing.  
•  The  Olympic  Green  is  an  enlarging  of  
an  extension  from  the  axis  to  the  
north.  
•  It  is  rather  disconnected  from  
pedestrian  acRvity  and  requires  a  
vehicle  to  get  there.  
 SOCIALLY  -­‐  INTERIOR  
•  This  is  a  massive  stadium.  It  is  not  really  
intended  for  social  interacRon  but  to  
watch  an  event.  

•  It  has  a  VIP  area  separate  from  the  normal  

seats.  It  is  richly  decorated  in  tradiRonal  
manner.  
 TECHNOLOGICALLY  
•  The  structural  form  of  the  stadium  is  popularly  
described  as  a  'bird’s  nest',  with  its  paUern  inspired  by  
Chinese-­‐style  'crazed  poUery’  or  a  bird’s  nest.  

•   Using  associaRve  (parametric)  soTware,  Arup’s  

engineers  established  the  shape  of    the  seaRng  bowl,  a  
torus,  first.  Spectators  were  to  be  as  close  as  possible  to  
the  acRon  and  have  clear  sight  lines.  

•  While  the  exterior  paUern  gives  the  appearance  of  

chaos,  it  abides  by  complex  rules  for  which  advanced  
geometry  was  defined.  There  is  a  primary  geometry  of  
24  regularly  spaced  trusses,  and  a  secondary  geometry  
on  the  outside  based  on  rotated  planes  struck  through  
the  outer  surface.  
 
•  The  stadium  is  located  in  one  of  the  world’s  most  acRve  
seismic  zones.  Advanced  seismic  analysis  was  used  to  
test  the  stadium  under  various  earthquake  condiRons  
and  ensure  that  the  structure  would  withstand  major  
shocks.  
 ENVIRONMENTALLY  

•  The  football  field  of  the  stadium  with  an  area  of  
8,000m²  provided  enough  space  for  the  
underground  pipes  of  the  geothermal  heat  
pump  (GHP)  system,  through  which  ground-­‐
source  energy  is  collected.    

•  In  winter,  the  system  absorbs  the  heat  from  the  

soil  and  helps  heaRng  the  stadium,  while  in  
summer  the  coldness  from  the  soil  is  stored  
which  cools  the  stadium    

•  ComputaRonal  fluid  dynamics  (CDF)  simulaRon  

based  on  the  Games-­‐Rme  situaRon  has  been  
used  to  calculate  the  temperature  and  airflow  
speed  at  each  angle  of  the  structure  and  
opRmise  all  venRlaRon  faciliRes  accordingly.  
REFERENCES  

•  hUps://www.arup.com/projects/chinese-­‐naRonal-­‐stadium  
•  hUp://travelfeatured.com/beijing-­‐naRonal-­‐stadium/  
•  hUps://www.herzogdemeuron.com/index/pracRce/profile.html  
•  hUps://www.designbuild-­‐network.com/projects/naRonal_stadium/  
•  hUps://greenbuildingelements.com