Shells: All Difficult – Is Simple!
Since the school time many of us have remembered the feeling that one can get when a problem that seemed irresolvable was finally explained: it turns out so easy! Elegant and smart, non-standard and at the same time simple ways to fulfill unconventional tasks that offers the Firm ISTOK Stroy Research & Design Organization very often lead to similar emotions: its surprise mixed with admiration.
Guy Shell : Cost Effectiveness, Efficiency, Simpl icity
Back in 2000, in Moscow where there were about five hundred private garages was decided to build a multifunctional complex. However, they failed to start realizing the project quickly: the owners were dead against to clear the territory. There were 2 possible solutions in this situation: they could either have abandoned the idea of building rather important structure, or have found such a solution to the unconventional task that would have allowed them to build the structure above the existing structure so that the former one did not compromise its integrity.
It was the Firm ISTOKStroy that had such a solution. By the way, this method does not have any analogues in the whole world. According to the solution, there is a guy shell built over the site. It is the dimensional structure bounded by two curvilinear surfaces. The large-span floor structure with step supports 40 × 40 meters designed by the company made possible to implement such a project the best way (TB, № 4, 2008).
This balanced composite system, which its creators called “RC cable-stayed structures” heralded a new era for building envelopes. Let’s not forget that at its core there were suspended diagonal metal guy roosts having high strength characteristics and reliability. The support contour is made of reinforced concrete, which is a type of material optimally responsive to compression. The space between the diagonal guy roosts is filled with concentric trusses supporting the floor slabs. The trusses transfer the load to the slab at midspan on the guy, and stretching from the guys turns into support contour compression.
To construct the parking roof the designers used the same solution with suspended diagonal metal guy roosts just taking away the central concrete structure and replacing it with concentric reinforced guys. At the end they had a light guy shell with a 40 × 40-meter column grid.
This method minimizes the developer’s expenses: this structural design applied the construction costs are significantly reduced as they reduce the metal intensity, the manufacturing complexity and the cost of the entire manufacturing process. Today, when designing a guy shell is used one of the most widespread materials, which is A500C class reinforcement. The system is quite easy to implement, therefore the builders in charge of the installation of the shell are not set with any additional specific requirements for their qualifications; in fact there are the simplest and the most familiar technologies implemented there. And they do not require any additional methods of control, which is none the less important.
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Text: Alexander Bikin;
Photos : courtesy of Firm ISTOKStroy LLC