The Neue Messe Süd welcomes its visitors in Düsseldorf under a spectacular canopy. The 20-metre high, pointed canopy is part of the newly designed entrance area in the south of the trade fair grounds according to a design by slapa oberholz pszczulny | sop architekten. With a length of 170 metres and a width of 93 metres, the polygonal roof made of translucent glass fibre fabric already offers plenty of space for trade fair visitors before they even enter the actual grounds and the event rooms.
A canopy of steel and membrane
Architect Jurek Slapa created a cushion-shaped structure of glass-fibre fabric for this purpose and created a living artificial sky that changes its face with the weather during the day and is illuminated by an exciting light show when it gets dark. The roof stands on 19 slender concrete supports and consists of a geometrically rigorous steel construction with 94 evenly spaced lozenges. The actual roof skin appears light as a feather. The upper side is covered with a translucent glass fibre membrane, which gives it the appearance of a cloud with its white, diamond-shaped cells. The polyester fabric on the lower side is transparent and allows a view through the delicate construction up to the cloud-like roof. The shape of the two membrane surfaces is spanned by internal steel arches.
Feasibility study for the construction of the Messe Süd entrance
Ansgar M. van Treeck
The engineers at formTL were involved in the construction project at an early stage. In coordination with the architecture, the feasibility of the diamond-shaped elements was first examined. Pre-structural calculations were carried out to determine the construction method and material selection, which provided the steel construction with the necessary load data. In addition to the choice of material for the two membrane fabrics, the functional efficiency of the construction was also tested, for example with regard to drainage at the edges of the rhombic panels.
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After tendering and awarding the contract to the membrane construction experts from Temme // Obermeier, formTL was commissioned again: this time, the function was to plan the final approval and workshop planning of the membranes with fastening system. Part of the function was to develop a functional and low-cut seam layout. For the sampling, a mock-up on a scale of 1:1 was created, on which the design of the fabric could be coordinated together with the architects.
Sophisticated cutting and seam layout
Ansgar M. van Treeck
The two roof cladding fabrics differ not only in terms of their materiality and transparency. The different materials fulfil different requirements in terms of load-bearing and design: The upper skin serves primarily as weather protection, the lower mesh fabric is transparent and provides a view of the construction and the seam layout. For the cut calculation, different compensation values result depending on the materiality, so that individual cut layouts were created for both sides of the membrane. Since the drainage concept also resulted in different angles of inclination for the rhombic construction, 18 different cutting geometries were finally developed for the roof membrane.
Also in Düsseldorf: The Düsseldorf diamond bridge
