Beijing National Aquatics Centre
Encyclopedia
The Beijing National Aquatics Center , also officially known as the National Aquatics Center, and colloquially known as the Water Cube , is an aquatics center that was built alongside Beijing National Stadium
in the Olympic Green
for the swimming competitions of the 2008 Summer Olympics
. Despite its nickname, the building is not an actual cube, but a cuboid
(a rectangular box). Ground was broken on December 24, 2003, and the Center was completed and handed over for use on January 28, 2008. Swimmers at the Water Cube broke 25 world records during the 2008 Olympics.
After the Olympics, the building underwent a 200 million Yuan revamp to turn half of its interior into a water park. The building officially re-opened on August 8, 2010.
In July 2003, the Water Cube design was chosen from 10 proposals in an international architectural competition
for the aquatic center project.
The Water Cube was specially designed and built by a consortium
made up of PTW Architects
(an Australian architecture firm), Arup
international engineering
group, CSCEC (China State Construction Engineering Corp
oration), and CCDI (China Construction Design International
) of Shanghai. The Water Cube's design was initiated by a team effort: the Chinese partners felt a square was more symbolic to Chinese culture and its relationship to the Bird's Nest
stadium, while the Sydney based partners came up with the idea of covering the 'cube' with bubbles, symbolising water. Contextually the cube symbolises earth whilst the circle (represented by the stadium) represents heaven. Hence symbolically the water cube references Chinese symbolic architecture.
Comprising a steel space frame
, it is the largest ETFE
clad structure in the world with over 100,000 m² of ETFE pillows that are only 0.2 mm (1/125 of an inch) in total thickness. The ETFE cladding
allows more light and heat penetration than traditional glass, resulting in a 30% decrease in energy costs.
The outer wall is based on the Weaire–Phelan structure, a structure devised from the natural formation of bubbles in soap lather. The complex Weaire–Phelan pattern was developed by slicing through bubbles in soap foam, resulting in more irregular, organic patterns than foam bubble structures proposed earlier by the scientist Kelvin
. Using the Weaire–Phelan geometry
, the Water Cube's exterior cladding is made of 4,000 ETFE bubbles, some as large as 9.14 metres (30 ft) across, with seven different sizes for the roof and 15 for the walls.
The structure had a capacity of 17,000 during the games that is being reduced to 7,000. It also has a total land surface of 65,000 square meters and will cover a total of 32000 square metres (7.9 acre). Although called the Water Cube, the aquatic center is really a rectangular box (cuboid)
- 178 metres (584 ft) square and 31 metres (101.7 ft) high.
It cost £75 million (10.2 billion yuan
). The facade of the water cube became so popular that there is now a one-to-one copy near the ferry terminal in Macau
– the Casino Oceanus by Paul Steelman
.
The Aquatics Center hosted the swimming, diving and Synchronized Swimming
events during the Olympics. Water polo
was originally planned to be hosted in the venue but was moved to the Ying Tung Natatorium
.
Many people believe the Water Cube to be the fastest Olympic pool in the world. It is 1 meter deeper than most Olympic pools. Up to a certain limit, beyond which swimmers will lose their sense of vision, deeper pools allow the waves to dissipate down to the bottom, leading to less water disturbance to the swimmers. The pool also has perforated gutters on both sides to absorb the waves.
With the popularity of the newly introduced faster Speedo LZR Racer
swim suit, the Aquatics Center saw 25 world records broken in the Beijing Olympics
.
amongst other shows. The building's popularity has spawned many copycat structures throughout China. On October 19, 2009, the Water Cube was closed to the public to begin a massive renovation of a portion of the complex into a water park
. The building re-opened on August 8, 2010, marking the two year anniversary of the beginning of the 2008 Summer Olympics. The redesigned facility contains numerous water rides and slides, a wave pool, and spa areas. The renovations were performed in order to bring renewed interest to the Olympic Green
area as part of the games' legacy.
Beijing National Stadium
Beijing National Stadium, also known officially as the National Stadium, or colloquially as the Bird's Nest , is a stadium in Beijing, China. The stadium was designed for use throughout the 2008 Summer Olympics and Paralympics.-History:...
in the Olympic Green
Olympic Green
The Olympic Green is an Olympic Park in Beijing, China constructed for the 2008 Summer Olympics. Since then, the streets around the park have been used for an exhibition street race of the FIA GT1 World Championship in 2011, after a race at Goldenport Park Circuit in the vicinity.- Beijing...
for the swimming competitions of the 2008 Summer Olympics
Swimming at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Swimming at the 2008 Summer Olympics was held over a thirteen day period from August 9 to August 21, with the conventional events ending on August 17 and the new marathon 10 km events being held on August 20 and 21...
. Despite its nickname, the building is not an actual cube, but a cuboid
Cuboid
In geometry, a cuboid is a solid figure bounded by six faces, forming a convex polyhedron. There are two competing definitions of a cuboid in mathematical literature...
(a rectangular box). Ground was broken on December 24, 2003, and the Center was completed and handed over for use on January 28, 2008. Swimmers at the Water Cube broke 25 world records during the 2008 Olympics.
After the Olympics, the building underwent a 200 million Yuan revamp to turn half of its interior into a water park. The building officially re-opened on August 8, 2010.
Architecture
Architectural design competition
An architectural design competition is a special type of competition in which an organization or government body that plans to build a new building asks for architects to submit a proposed design for a building. The winning design is usually chosen by an independent panel of design professionals...
for the aquatic center project.
The Water Cube was specially designed and built by a consortium
Consortium
A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal....
made up of PTW Architects
PTW Architects
PTW Architects is an Australian architecture firm founded in Sydney in 1889.-Selected works:*AMP Place, Brisbane *National Gallery of Australia Extension *The Toaster Building...
(an Australian architecture firm), Arup
Arup
Arup is a global professional services firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom which provides engineering, design, planning, project management and consulting services for all aspects of the built environment. The firm is present in Africa, the Americas, Australasia, East Asia, Europe and the...
international engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
group, CSCEC (China State Construction Engineering Corp
China State Construction Engineering Corp
The China State Construction Engineering Corporation is the largest construction company and the largest international general contractor in the People's Republic of China.-History:The CSCEC in 1982 as a state company...
oration), and CCDI (China Construction Design International
China Construction Design International
China Construction Design International is an architecture firm headquartered in Shanghai, People's Republic of China, with offices in Beijing, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Chengdu, and New York City...
) of Shanghai. The Water Cube's design was initiated by a team effort: the Chinese partners felt a square was more symbolic to Chinese culture and its relationship to the Bird's Nest
Beijing National Stadium
Beijing National Stadium, also known officially as the National Stadium, or colloquially as the Bird's Nest , is a stadium in Beijing, China. The stadium was designed for use throughout the 2008 Summer Olympics and Paralympics.-History:...
stadium, while the Sydney based partners came up with the idea of covering the 'cube' with bubbles, symbolising water. Contextually the cube symbolises earth whilst the circle (represented by the stadium) represents heaven. Hence symbolically the water cube references Chinese symbolic architecture.
Comprising a steel space frame
Space frame
A space frame or space structure is a truss-like, lightweight rigid structure constructed from interlocking struts in a geometric pattern. Space frames can be used to span large areas with few interior supports...
, it is the largest ETFE
ETFE
Ethylene tetrafluoroethylene, ETFE, a fluorine based plastic, was designed to have high corrosion resistance and strength over a wide temperature range. ETFE is a polymer, and its systematic name is poly. ETFE has a very high melting temperature, excellent chemical, electrical and high energy...
clad structure in the world with over 100,000 m² of ETFE pillows that are only 0.2 mm (1/125 of an inch) in total thickness. The ETFE cladding
Cladding (construction)
Cladding is the application of one material over another to provide a skin or layer intended to control the infiltration of weather elements, or for aesthetic purposes....
allows more light and heat penetration than traditional glass, resulting in a 30% decrease in energy costs.
The outer wall is based on the Weaire–Phelan structure, a structure devised from the natural formation of bubbles in soap lather. The complex Weaire–Phelan pattern was developed by slicing through bubbles in soap foam, resulting in more irregular, organic patterns than foam bubble structures proposed earlier by the scientist Kelvin
William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin
William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin OM, GCVO, PC, PRS, PRSE, was a mathematical physicist and engineer. At the University of Glasgow he did important work in the mathematical analysis of electricity and formulation of the first and second laws of thermodynamics, and did much to unify the emerging...
. Using the Weaire–Phelan geometry
Geometry
Geometry arose as the field of knowledge dealing with spatial relationships. Geometry was one of the two fields of pre-modern mathematics, the other being the study of numbers ....
, the Water Cube's exterior cladding is made of 4,000 ETFE bubbles, some as large as 9.14 metres (30 ft) across, with seven different sizes for the roof and 15 for the walls.
The structure had a capacity of 17,000 during the games that is being reduced to 7,000. It also has a total land surface of 65,000 square meters and will cover a total of 32000 square metres (7.9 acre). Although called the Water Cube, the aquatic center is really a rectangular box (cuboid)
Cuboid
In geometry, a cuboid is a solid figure bounded by six faces, forming a convex polyhedron. There are two competing definitions of a cuboid in mathematical literature...
- 178 metres (584 ft) square and 31 metres (101.7 ft) high.
It cost £75 million (10.2 billion yuan
Renminbi
The Renminbi is the official currency of the People's Republic of China . Renminbi is legal tender in mainland China, but not in Hong Kong or Macau. It is issued by the People's Bank of China, the monetary authority of the PRC...
). The facade of the water cube became so popular that there is now a one-to-one copy near the ferry terminal in Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
– the Casino Oceanus by Paul Steelman
Paul Steelman
Paul Curtis Steelman is an entertainment architect based in Las Vegas, Nevada and Macau, PRC. He is best known for designing the Sands Macao - the first "Las Vegas Style" casino in Asia. The facility was paid for with its profit in less than one year....
.
Olympics
Synchronized swimming
Synchronized swImming is a hybrid form of swimming, dance and gymnastics, consisting of swimmers performing a synchronized routine of elaborate moves in the water, accompanied by music....
events during the Olympics. Water polo
Water polo
Water polo is a team water sport. The playing team consists of six field players and one goalkeeper. The winner of the game is the team that scores more goals. Game play involves swimming, treading water , players passing the ball while being defended by opponents, and scoring by throwing into a...
was originally planned to be hosted in the venue but was moved to the Ying Tung Natatorium
Ying Tung Natatorium
The Ying Tung Natatorium is a swimming venue located in the Olympic Sports Centre in Beijing, China with a seating capacity of 4,852. It was upgraded for the 2008 Summer Olympics and expanded to 44,635 square metres. It hosted Olympic water polo matches and the swimming part of the modern...
.
Many people believe the Water Cube to be the fastest Olympic pool in the world. It is 1 meter deeper than most Olympic pools. Up to a certain limit, beyond which swimmers will lose their sense of vision, deeper pools allow the waves to dissipate down to the bottom, leading to less water disturbance to the swimmers. The pool also has perforated gutters on both sides to absorb the waves.
With the popularity of the newly introduced faster Speedo LZR Racer
LZR Racer
The LZR Racer Suit is a line of high-end swimsuits manufactured by Speedo using a high-technology swimwear fabric composed of woven elastane-nylon and polyurethane. The line was launched on 13 February 2008...
swim suit, the Aquatics Center saw 25 world records broken in the Beijing Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
.
Post-Olympics
After the Olympics, the Water Cube was opened to the public on select days of the week beginning in June 2009, and was also used as the site for a production of Swan LakeSwan Lake
Swan Lake ballet, op. 20, by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, composed 1875–1876. The scenario, initially in four acts, was fashioned from Russian folk tales and tells the story of Odette, a princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer's curse. The choreographer of the original production was Julius Reisinger...
amongst other shows. The building's popularity has spawned many copycat structures throughout China. On October 19, 2009, the Water Cube was closed to the public to begin a massive renovation of a portion of the complex into a water park
Water park
A waterpark is an amusement park that features waterplay areas, such as water slides, splash pads, spraygrounds , lazy rivers, or other recreational bathing, swimming, and barefooting environments...
. The building re-opened on August 8, 2010, marking the two year anniversary of the beginning of the 2008 Summer Olympics. The redesigned facility contains numerous water rides and slides, a wave pool, and spa areas. The renovations were performed in order to bring renewed interest to the Olympic Green
Olympic Green
The Olympic Green is an Olympic Park in Beijing, China constructed for the 2008 Summer Olympics. Since then, the streets around the park have been used for an exhibition street race of the FIA GT1 World Championship in 2011, after a race at Goldenport Park Circuit in the vicinity.- Beijing...
area as part of the games' legacy.
Awards
- 2004 – Venice BiennaleVenice BiennaleThe Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
– Award for most accomplished work Atmosphere section - 2006 – Popular SciencePopular SciencePopular Science is an American monthly magazine founded in 1872 carrying articles for the general reader on science and technology subjects. Popular Science has won over 58 awards, including the ASME awards for its journalistic excellence in both 2003 and 2004...
Best of what's new 2006 in engineering - 2008 – NSW 'Project of the Year' award from the Australian Institute of Project Management
- 2009 – 40th annual MacRobert AwardMacRobert AwardThe MacRobert Award has been presented every year since 1969 by the Royal Academy of Engineering.The award seeks to recognise innovative ideas in engineering.-History:The award is named in honour of Lady Rachel Workman MacRobert .-Winners:...
, the UK's biggest prize for engineering innovation - 2010 – International Association for Bridge and Structural EngineeringInternational Association for Bridge and Structural EngineeringThe International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering is a non-profit organisation with mission to promote the exchange of knowledge and to advance the practice of structural engineering worldwide in the service of the profession and society, taking into consideration technical,...
2010 Outstanding Structure AwardOutstanding Structure AwardThe Outstanding Structure Award is an award presented by the International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering to the Engineer, Architect, Contractor, and the Owner in recognition of the most remarkable, innovative, creative or otherwise stimulating structure completed within the last...
See also
- Frei OttoFrei OttoFrei Paul Otto is a German architect and structural engineer.- Life :Otto was born in Siegmar . He studied architecture in Berlin before being drafted into the Luftwaffe as a fighter pilot in the last years of World War II...
- Chris BosseChris BosseChris Bosse is Asia Pacific Director of multinational firm Laboratory for Visionary Architecture [LAVA], Adjunct Professor at the University of Technology, Sydney and lectures worldwide....
- Rob Leslie-CarterRob Leslie-CarterRobert Michael Leslie-Carter MICE, MAIPM is a British Engineer and Project Manager with consulting firm Arup, resident in Sydney Australia. He was named 'Project Manager of the Year' at the 2003 UK Association for Project Management awards for his role leading the new Laban Dance School in...
- Swimming at the 2008 Summer OlympicsSwimming at the 2008 Summer OlympicsSwimming at the 2008 Summer Olympics was held over a thirteen day period from August 9 to August 21, with the conventional events ending on August 17 and the new marathon 10 km events being held on August 20 and 21...
External links
- chris bosse
- Water Cube at Beijing.cn
- Beijing2008.cn profile
- Official website
- Beijing Water Cube video
- National Geographic Channel
- Arup in Beijing
- ptw architects
- Arup
- National Aquatics Center (Water Cube)
- LAVA chris bosse
- Science News article describing the design of the building and the mathematics behind it
- cscec
- iconography
- Vector Foiltec homepage
- Beijing 2008 @ OOne
- News and Project Information on the Watercube, Beijing
- Conceptualising, planning and engineering the Water Cube
- Gallery, architecture images
- Consulting services performed by RWDIRWDIWind Engineering Firm Established in 1972, Rowan Williams Davies & Irwin Inc. is a specialty consulting engineering firm. The RWDI group of companies has over 275 employees with offices in Canada, USA, United Kingdom, India and the Middle East....