Constructing a concrete dome is a costly process, but this may change soon. A team from the Vienna University of Technology has developed a method that allows concrete domes to form with the use of air and steel cables instead of expensive, timber supporting structures.
“[We have] developed a method that can cut costs to around 50 percent,” says Benjamin Kromoser, an instructor at the university’s Institute of Structural Engineering.
The technique is named the “Pneumatic Wedge Method.” First, segments of flat, standard concrete slabs are laid out on top of an air cushion with wedge-shaped spaces left between each.
Once the slab is hardened, the cushion is inflated and a steel cable is tightened around the segments, so that the concrete is lifted up at the center and pushed together from outside. This process can be seen in this timelapse, German language video:
Kromoser compares the resulting structure to a snail, a thin shell that can support a lot of weight (such as five feet of snow).
The technique has been patented and the team is optimistic that the new construction method will establish itself in the market. As of now, the Austrian Federal Railways have commissioned a design project using this new method for a deer pass over two high speed rail tracks in the Austrian state of Carinthia.
Visit the Vienna University of Technology's official website to learn more about the method.
Related Stories
| Aug 22, 2013
Energy-efficient glazing technology [AIA Course]
This course discuses the latest technological advances in glazing, which make possible ever more efficient enclosures with ever greater glazed area.
| Aug 21, 2013
Why research is the ticket to successful airport wayfinding
Wayfinding is more than just signs; it requires a holistic approach based on communicating information that helps people make the right decision at the right time.
| Aug 19, 2013
Discovery of hidden asbestos complicates DFW terminal renovations
The finding of more asbestos in Terminal B than expected, and the pending merger of US Airways and the airport’s largest tenant, American Airlines, is causing construction delays on a $2.3 billion Dallas/Fort Worth Airport terminal renovation.
| Aug 19, 2013
Integration of solar panels in building skin seen as key net-zero element
Recent high-profile projects, including stadiums in Brazil for the upcoming World Cup and Summer Olympics and a bank headquarters in the U.K., reflect an effort by designers to adopt building-integrated photovoltaics, or BIPV.
| Aug 14, 2013
Green Building Report [2013 Giants 300 Report]
Building Design+Construction's rankings of the nation's largest green design and construction firms.
| Jul 29, 2013
2013 Giants 300 Report
The editors of Building Design+Construction magazine present the findings of the annual Giants 300 Report, which ranks the leading firms in the AEC industry.
| Jul 22, 2013
Transportation Facility Report [2013 Giants 300 Report]
Building Design+Construction's rankings of design and construction firms with the most revenue from airport terminals and other transportation-related facilities, as reported in the 2013 Giants 300 Report.
| Jul 19, 2013
Renovation, adaptive reuse stay strong, providing fertile ground for growth [2013 Giants 300 Report]
Increasingly, owners recognize that existing buildings represent a considerable resource in embodied energy, which can often be leveraged for lower front-end costs and a faster turnaround than new construction.
| Jul 18, 2013
Top Local Government Sector Construction Firms [2013 Giants 300 Report]
Turner, Clark Group, PCL top Building Design+Construction's 2013 ranking of the largest local government sector contractor and construction management firms in the U.S.
| Jul 18, 2013
Top Local Government Sector Engineering Firms [2013 Giants 300 Report]
STV, URS, AECOM top Building Design+Construction's 2013 ranking of the largest local government sector engineering and engineering/architecture firms in the U.S.
