
Melbourne Stadium Bioframe Design: The cover of the new stadium in Melbourne with isowand vario sandwich elements in the construction phase. (Image: Grocon) Courtesy: ThyssenKrupp
American architect Richard Buckminster Fuller might be pleased to see the geodesic dome covering something as expansive as a rugby/soccer field. ThyssenKrupp Business Services GmbH supplied 25,000 square meters (just about a square mile’s worth) of steel sandwich elements for the construction of just such a dome project in Melbourne, Australia. On May 7, dedication day, the Australian rugby league team plays the New Zealand team in the stadium. According to ThyssenKrupp:
This type of dome is made up of many small triangles held together by a fine lattice-like structure. It mimics construction principles that can be found in nature, is extremely stable and can enclose large spaces using comparatively small amounts of material…Protecting the 30,000 plus spectator seats from the wind and weather required around only half the material that would be needed for a conventional design using a so-called cantilever roof…Hoesch isowand vario® is a steel sandwich element designed specially for modern industrial architecture with high aesthetic requirements. The element, which comprises two thin steel face sheets enclosing a thick polyurethane rigid foam core, has first-class heat insulation properties and is low in weight. Hoesch isowand vario® has concealed fastenings as well as precision joints…The surface of the elements is microprofiled to enable rainwater to run off easily into tanks for subsequent use as service water in the stadium. Rainwater management is part of the sustainability concept for the stadium which also includes an integrated waste and recycling system.
About now you’re probably asking, “Okay, so where you going with this, Duane?” Here’s the thing. That’s a pretty cool looking structure and the rainwater harvesting bit takes an intrinsically eco-friendly aspect of the dome to a higher level. But in many ways the dome has always stayed an oddity, even though it makes a hell of a lot of sense from the engineering, construction, economic and environmental points of view. Some of the latest press bears that out.
In the UK you can rent a dome tent for the night, complete with fireplace. In another place in that country three domes are going up to serve as the community’s sports centre. In Montana a co-op is trying out year-round organic gardening in a 51-foot dome. In Alaska, another greenhouse dome project is set to begin using about $36K in grant money to construct a 33-foot greenhouse with solar energy, water tank and water fall. There are countless other dome structure examples across the globe that reside on the fringes of architecture.
It’s almost as if a dome structure is taboo unless:
- It’s a government or community-funded structure
- A structure with ecology or nature as its theme
- A place for Hobbits to live (I’m being respectfully disingenuous to all those who have found the bliss that comes from living in domes but it’s only to make a point)
The truth be known, the dome makes so much sense we should all be living and working in them. Besides, they really are very adaptable.
A construction team built one to serve as a field hospital in Haiti using only bamboo, and rebar from fallen buildings. Brian Zook, a Caspar resident developed the idea as a way to bring housing and jobs to developing countries.
And so, the dome goes on. Perhaps being on the fringe is exactly where it should be.