Beijing

National
Stadium
INTRODUCTION:
INTRODUCTION:
ABOUT
• The Beijing National Stadium, located at the south
of the centerpiece Olympic Green, is a stunning
landmark building, which staged the 2008 Olympic
Games from August 8 to August 24 2018
• The stadium has a gross volume of three million
cubic meters and is considered to be the world’s
largest enclosed space.
• It is also the world’s largest steel structure with
26km of unwrapped steel used and most complex
stadium.
BACKGROUND
• In July 2001, Beijing was chosen to be the next host
for the Olympics
• The city planners began to worry due to lack of
venues for the prestigious sporting event. China
must design and build new sports arenas.
• To make space for the new venues, traditional alley
ways called Hutongs were torn down.
BACKGROUND
• Over the next seven years, 12 Olympic venues are
needed to be built, this includes the main stadium
for the Olympic event.
• In 2002, the Beijing Municipal Planning
Commission (BMPC) announced a global
competition for the design of the main stadium
BACKGROUND
• The criteria of the competition are as follows:
- A stadium capacity of approximately 100,000 people
during the games (to be reduced to approximately
80,000 afterwards).
- A multi-functional design, to efficiently incorporate a
range of uses in the future.
- An emphasis on green building and advanced
technology.
BACKGROUND
Among the dozens of participants, the architects Jacques
Herzog and Pierre de Meuron are drawn to the challenge in
working on the stadium.
➢ Since there are differences in their western way of thinking,
they decided to consult one of China’s leading artists
Ai Weiwei for the design.
➢ They came up with the concept inspired by old Chinese art
with sweeping lines arranged around a circular vessel
BACKGROUND:
BACKGROUND
➢ They wanted the building to be a
contemporary icon and a public space
for the people, like the Eiffel tower
that was made for an event but then
became an icon of the city.
BACKGROUND
• In April 2003, the design of architects Jacques
Herzog and Pierre de Meuron was chosen out of
the 13 finalists for the construction of the main
stadium by jury and public voting.
• The chinese say it looks like a bird’s nest and the
nickname sticks.
BACKGROUND
• In December 24, 2003, the
construction of the Bird’s Nest kicks off
on a groundbreaking ceremony
CONSTRUCTION
The construction of the National Stadium started on
December 24, 2003. On July 2004, the project was
stopped temporarily due to the amendment of the
design.

On December 27 of the same year, the construction

was resumed and finished in March, 2008. The
stadium officially opened on 28 June 2008.

The gross cost of the whole project is 2.2 billion

Chinese yuan (about 428 million dollars).
PROFILE
• Steel roof: 1050 ft long, 974 ft wide
• Seats: 91,000
• Height: 69.2 m (227 feet)
• Length: 330 m (1082 feet)
• Width: 220 m (721 feet)
• Total weight of steel for outer shell: 42,000 tons
• Total weight of construction materials (including concrete seating bowl):
110,000 tons
• Design Life: 100 years
• Architecture Firm: Herzog & de Meuron
• Designers: Architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron, Project Architect
Stefan Marbach, Artist Ai Weiwei, and CADG which was led by
Chief Architect Li Xinggang
TRIVIA
• The circular shape of the stadium represents ‘heaven’

• It was in this stadium that Usain Bolt beat the world records over 100 m (in 9.69
seconds) and 200 m (in 19.30 seconds).

• It is planned to be used again in the 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics

• 17,000 construction workers worked on the stadium

• All 121,000 tons of construction materials were made in China.

• Construction began on December 24, 2003, the same day as the neighboring
“Water Cube” National Aquatics Centre.

• The first sporting event — an IAAF 20km race walk won by Australian Jared
Tallent — was held on April 18, 2008, 112 days ahead of the opening ceremony.

• The construction involved the relocation of 4,707 residents from 2,043

households in the surrounding area.
STRUCTURE AND
DESIGN
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
Beijing National Stadium is divided into two independent structures
- Red Concrete Bowl
- Outer Steel Frame - Giant curving beams which crisscross in an intricate
pattern of woven steel creating its nickname “The Bird’s Nest”.
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
STRUCTURAL DESIGN
- Structural design was introduced by Herzog and De Meuron, with the help of
OVE-ARUP & partners developing 3d models.
- Because of complicated design, in order to sell the idea, even the small details
has to be modeled in the very stages of the project.
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
STRUCTURAL DESIGN
- one of the connections involved in the
structure.
- Welding process took about 17 hours
per connection
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
BUILDING LOADS
Dead Loads
• Total structure weight (without spectators) = 45,000 tons
• Weight of steel = 42,000 tons
• Seats = 91,000 x 8lb = 728 tons
• Internal systems and partitions= 5% of internal structure = 150 tons
• Weight of concrete = 45,000 tons – 42,000 tons - 728 tons – 150 tons = 2,122
tons

To resist the dead load of the structure, the stadium was placed on a plinth.
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
BUILDING LOADS
• Plinth
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
BUILDING LOADS
Live Loads
• The stadium can seat up to 91,000 spectators. With the service personnel and
competitors the total occupancy can be reached up to 110,000 people .
• Since the stadium lies roughly on the same altitude as Philadephia, Denver and
San Francisco. The Live loads due to wind and snow will be similar to those in
Philadepia
• Average weight of person considered for calculation is 200 lbs.

People = 110,000 x 200 lbs = 11,000 tons

Snow (20 lb/sf) = 20 lb/sf x 62,500 sf (roof area) = 625 tons
Wind load = 90 mph ~ 25 lb/sf = 25 lb/sf(1,093 ft (longest length) x 226 ft (height))
= 25 lb/sf x 27,018 sf = 3090 tons
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
BUILDING LOADS
Total Loads
• Dead Load =45,000 tons
• Live Load(Vertical) = 11,625 tons
• Live Load(Lateral) = 3,090 tons

Total Vertical Load = 56,625 tons / 62500 sf = 0.906 tons/sf of load in the foundation
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
LOAD RESISTANCE
- The design should be able to withstand earthquake and typical building loads.

Horizontal Loads
• The structure must resist a total of 56,625 tons of vertical load.
• Steel structure itself must resist its own load of 42,000 tons and 11,625 tons of
live load , totaling in 53,625 tons. The Plinth type of foundation is essential to
carry such a load, which is fairly evenly distributed.

• Each member of the steel nest is designed carefully to carry its own weight of
42,000 tons.
• The loads at each intersection are split between the members and transferred
downward.
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
LOAD RESISTANCE
• Red points indicate transfer connections where impact is felt most significantly.
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
LOAD RESISTANCE
• Primary and secondary members. The secondary members had to be welded on
two sides of primary members. Steel envelope is constructed of 22.5 miles of
steel and took about 700 welders to complete the task.
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
LOAD RESISTANCE
• Core of the foundation carries the dead load of the concrete structure as well as
the live load of people totaling to 13,122 tons.
STRUCTURE AND DESIGN
LOAD RESISTANCE
Lateral Loads
• The structure resist lateral loads in a manner similar as the horizontal ones.
• The loads hitting the structure is broken down through the lattice of steel while
being weakened and providing natural ventilation for the structure.
CHALLENGES AND
SOLUTIONS
CHALLENGE 1:
EARTHQUAKES
• China seats in the middle of the seismic region
surrounded by some of the deadliest fault lines.
• The stadium is so large that it will not shake uniformly.
• It must be strong enough to withstand dangerous
earthquakes.
SOLUTION
• Building the steel frame as a separate structure without
touching the concrete bowl
• Division of bowl into 6 isolated sections
CHALLENGE 2:
STABILITY OF ROOF
DESIGN
• On May 23, 2004, at Charles de Gaulle Airport, terminal 2E suddenly collapses
with no warning just 1 year after its opening killing 4 travellers. It turned out
that the design of the terminal roof of the airport is similar to the design of the
Beijing Olympic stadium, without interior supports.
SOLUTION
• China suspends all work on the Bird’s nest and re-
examined the design of stadium.
• After 5 months, the construction was continued but the
number of seats were reduced and the original
retractable roof design was cancelled.
• Architects redesigned the stadium with an open air
design retaining the design and style of the stadium.
SOLUTION
CHALLENGE 3:
TIME
• Winter is fast approaching and the concrete bowl would
freeze leading to strength reduction.
• With less than 6 months, hundreds of tons of concrete
must be poured on site.
SOLUTION
• Beijing assembles thousands of workers.
• 7000 workers – 3 shifts a day
• In just 5 months, the bowl of the Bird’s Nest is complete.
CHALLENGE 4:
STEEL BEAMS ON
CURVED EDGES
• Steel strong enough to handle the stress of the curves
and flexible enough to withstand earthquakes.
• Refine the steel design, how strong the steel needs to be,
how thick the plates, and how big the welds.
SOLUTION
• Creating a brand new steel called the Q460, the newly
engineered steel that would stand up to Beijing’s
earthquakes.
CHALLENGE 5:
ASSEMBLY OF STEEL
BEAMS
• Positioning of massive sections up to 300 tons requires
great skill.
• The welds must be perfect for they hold the steel
structures in place.
SOLUTION
• Over 1000 skilled welders were trained for the job.
CHALLENGE 6:
CONTRACTION AND
EXPANSION OF STEEL
DUE TO TEMPERATURE
• The carefully welded steels must hold up against Beijing’s
dramatic weather shifts.
• The open steels must be welded at the midpoint of
Beijing’s temperature scale.
SOLUTION
• The welding must take place at night.
• The welders will have to work over 3 nights without a
break.
CHALLENGE 7:
UNLOADING
• Making the Bird’s Nest stand on its own without the
supporting columns.
SOLUTION
• A lifting jack will lift each beam and temporarily bear the
heavy load of up to 300 tons. When the supports are
removed, the jacks will slowly descend. The main
structure will sink into itself up to 12in.
• If the structure sinks 12 in. further or there are any cracks
that appear on the steel, it’s a signal that there is a
serious problem in the design of the construction.
SOLUTION
CHALLENGE 8:
GREEN OLYMPIC
STADIUM
• Beijing is a city with massive air pollution.
• Over 100 new cars hit every day and traffic is often at a
standstill.
• Olympic officials are concerned in the air quality on
Beijing and how it will affect athlete’s performances in an
open arena.
SOLUTION
• The steel roof is skinned with high tech membrane
(Ethylene Tetrafluoroethylene) which let in sunlight to
conserve energy, keep the noise in, and the rain and the
wind outside.
• Beijing spend 12 billion dollars to move industrial
polluters, plant hundreds of trees and reroute traffic.
SOLUTION
SOLUTION