Timber Gridshells: Architecture, Structure and Craft

359 Pages·2016·28.43 MB·English

by  John Chilton

TIMBER GRIDSHELLS

THROUGHOUT history, people have constructed simple timber lattice shelters,
such as the tepee or yurt, covered with animal skins, leaves, grasses and woven
fabrics. Over the last fifty years, more sophisticated ‘webs of wood’ have
emerged, with timber gridshells in particular becoming a structurally expressive
form of architecture. Recent developments in digital design, 3-D modelling
software and timber fabrication technologies, as well as trends towards low-
carbon construction, have further reinforced architects’ interest in the use of
lightweight timber grids and lattice structures.
This timely book charts the origin and evolution of the timber gridshell and its
relation to timber lattice architecture. Drawing on a range of international case
studies, the authors trace the effect that advances in technology have had on
design and construction in this field, providing a clear understanding of the
structure, morphology, design process and construction technology, and
examining both the application and constraints of timber gridshells in
architectural design.
Timber Gridshells is a highly illustrated, up-to-date resource that provides
detailed answers and inspires new ideas. As such, it is essential reading for
students of architecture as well as professional architects.

JOHN CHILTON is Professor of Architecture and Tectonics at the University of
Nottingham, UK. With a special interest in the history, design and construction
of innovative and non-conventional structures, he is an active member of the
International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS) and chaired
their Working Group 12 – Spatial Timber Structures – from 1998 to 2015. He is
the author of Space Grid Structures and Heinz Isler: The engineer’s contribution
to contemporary architecture, a book on the work of the Swiss reinforced
concrete shell-builder Heinz Isler.

GABRIEL TANG is an architect and Senior Lecturer in Architecture at Sheffield
Hallam University, UK. He trained at the Bartlett, University College London,
UK, and worked in the offices of Foster + Partners, London. Currently
completing a PhD at the University of Edinburgh, UK, on the novel use of
deployable gridshells as formwork for concrete shell construction, his research
interests lie in technology culture, material tectonics and the innovation
synergies between architecture, structure and construction processes.
‘Timber Gridshells: Architecture, structure and craft, a well-written and
illustrated book, takes readers on an informative journey through the origin,
evolution and application of timber gridshells alongside the development of
technology. The book will inspire creativity in architects and engineers alike.’

Abdy Kermani, Director of Centre for Timber Engineering, Edinburgh Napier
University, UK

‘Anyone interested in the technology of structures and architecture will enjoy
Timber Gridshells. Written with clarity and elegance, readers will find delight in
the architecture presented through the series of beautifully illustrated and
carefully designed case studies of this book.’

Remo Pedeschi, Professor of Architectural Technology, University of
Edinburgh, UK
TIMBER GRIDSHELLS
ARCHITECTURE, STRUCTURE AND CRAFT

JOHN CHILTON
AND GABRIEL TANG
First published 2017
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2017 John Chilton and Gabriel Tang The right of John Chilton and Gabriel
Tang to be identified as authors of this work has been asserted by them in
accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act
1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the
publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered
trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to
infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of
Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Chilton, John (John C.), author. | Tang, Gabriel, author.
Title: Timber gridshells : architecture, structure and craft / John Chilton
and Gabriel Tang.
Description: New York : Routledge, 2016. | Includes bibliographical
references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016013999| ISBN 9781138775299 (hardback : alk. paper) |
ISBN 9781138775305 (pbk. : alk. paper) | ISBN 9781315773872 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Building, Wooden. | Grillages (Structural engineering)
Classification: LCC NA4110 .C44 2016 | DDC 624.1/773--dc23
LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2016013999
ISBN: 978-1-13877529-9 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-13877530-5 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-31577387-2 (ebk)
Every effort has been made to contact and acknowledge copyright holders, but
the author and publisher would be pleased to have any errors or omissions
brought to their attention so that corrections may be published at a later printing.
Typeset in Myriad by Fakenham Prepress Solutions, Fakenham, Norfolk NR21
8NN
CONTENTS

List of illustrations
Preface
Acknowledgements
ONE
Introduction: shells with holes
TWO
Early gridshells
Deubau, Essen, Germany, 1962
Montreal Expo, Canada, 1967
The S.T.I. experimental model at IL, Stuttgart, Germany, 1973
Multihalle and restaurant, Bundesgartenshau, Mannheim,
Germany, 1975
THREE
Second-generation deployable gridshells (post-Mannheim)
Earth Centre, near Doncaster, UK, 1998
The Japan Pavilion, World Expo, Hanover, Germany, 2000
The Weald and Downland gridshell, Singleton, UK, 2002
The Savill Garden gridshell, Berkshire, UK, 2005
The Chiddingstone Castle Orangery gridshell, Kent, UK, 2007
FOUR
Ribbed gridshells
Shell German Federal Garden Exhibition, Dortmund, Germany,
1969
Waste recycling facility, Vienna, Austria, 1981
Expodach, World Exhibition, Hanover, Germany, 2000
Law Court Building, Antwerp, Belgium, 1998–2005
FIVE
Alternative materials and systems
Silk Road Exhibition, Nara, Japan, 1988
Mermaid Bowl, Exposition of Sea and Island, Hiroshima, Japan,
1989
Naiju Community Center and Nursery School, Fukuoka, Japan,
1994
Uchino Community Center, Fukuoka, Japan, 1995
Flimwell Woodland Enterprise Centre, Kent and Sussex Borders,
UK, 1999
Beatfuse!, New York, USA, 2006
Waitomo Glowworm Caves Visitor Centre, Otorohanga, Waikato,
New Zealand, 2010
Hermès store, Rive Gauche, Paris, France, 2010
KREOD Pavilions, London, UK, 2012
Heydar Aliyev International Airport Terminal, Baku, Azerbaijan,
2014
Ahuriri Valley Lodge, New Zealand, under construction in 2016