Sinclair Knight Merz provided structural engineering advice to the Greek contractor who built the major new roof over the existing OAKA stadium in Athens. The stadium was the centrepiece of 2004 Olympics and designed by internationally renowned Spanish architect and engineer Santiago Calatrava.
The distinctive design features two colossal tubular arches holding up two roofs which span over 300m across the stadium. They support a curved roof surface and comprise an even larger tie-member, which also acts as a torsion tube to support cantilevering, tapering girders that carry the glass cladding.
Between the arch and torsion tube are three sets of cables, the outer sets form a curved, fanning plane which is a strong architectural feature. The two roofs are tentatively joined at each end. The entire 12,000 tonne, 20,000m2 structure touches the ground at the ends of the massive spans in only four locations.
Due to the short construction timescale, and other projects to be completed on the existing stadium, the roof was constructed in two halves and set back by over 50m on either side of stadium. Once the steel structure was completed, the roofs were slid into position on teflon pads along giant reinforced concrete rails. Once joined, the two roofs were clad and completed.
The involvement of Sinclair Knight Merz on the project demonstrates its expertise in:
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Long span roof design of world class stadia.
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Highly complex non-linear analysis of major structures.
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Construction and erection techniques for fastrack projects.
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Understanding major steelwork fabrication and erection issues.