Pavilion Steel Structure Design

Wrenze provides pavilion steel structure design for architects, event companies, contractors and consultants. Our work covers national pavilions at Expo 2020 Dubai, air show and event structures, VIP lounges, container buildings and feature roofs, as well as gridshells, 3D trusses and space frames. Depending on the job, we provide the full structural design, the connection design, or the modelling and steel quantities.

Pavilion and event structures we design

Expo and exhibition pavilions
Event structures and VIP lounges
Gridshells, 3D trusses and space frames
Shipping container structures, restaurants and kiosks
Openable and feature roofs
Handrail, glass parapet and equipment anchorage inside pavilions

Design points for pavilions and event structures

Fixed opening dates

A pavilion opens on a set date, so design, fabrication and erection overlap. An early 3D model and steel quantity take-off let the contractor order material and price the work while the details are still being finished. A model review then confirms that the model matches the design before fabrication starts.

Temporary and demountable structures

Many event structures stand for days or months and are then taken down. Bolted connections let them be erected quickly and dismantled for reuse. Foundations may be ballast blocks or shallow pads instead of piles, so we check overturning, sliding and uplift under wind with the weight that is actually there.

Lightweight roofs and wind

Open frames, fabric roofs and light cladding weigh little, so wind usually governs their design more than gravity. Suction on roofs and canopies can lift the structure, and every connection down to the anchor bolts must carry that uplift.

Gridshells and space frames

In a gridshell or space frame many short members meet at nodes, and the geometry comes from the architect’s 3D model. The node connections usually decide the design, so we model the nodes and check them with connection software such as IDEA StatiCa. Members are then detailed in Tekla Structures with every angle and length taken from the model.

Anchorage into finished structures

Pavilion items such as handrails, glass parapets, lifting points and chiller platforms are often fixed to slabs built by others. Anchor capacity depends on the concrete, the edge distance and the embedment depth, so we design each anchorage for the real conditions on site.

Our pavilion and event projects

At Expo 2020 Dubai we worked on:

Emirates Pavilion. Emirates Airline (client), WME (consultant), Cimolai Rimond Middle East JV QA (contractor). Steel take-off, quantity survey, cost estimation and model review.
Slovakia Pavilion. BMA Studio. Structural design.
Brazil Pavilion. MJU Engineering Consultancy. Structural anchorage connections design.
Angola Pavilion. NSD Architectural Consultants. Modelling and quantity survey.
USA Pavilion rocket frame. QA Construct Contracting. Modelling and quantity survey.
Smaller pavilion items: handrail anchorage for the Azerbaijan Pavilion, glass parapet anchorage for the Palestine Pavilion, a lift hook for the UK Pavilion and AC chiller platforms for the Czech Pavilion.

Other event, lounge and leisure projects:

ADFW Executive Lounge, Abu Dhabi. Out of The Box L.L.C. Full engineering.
Empire Aviation at the Dubai Air Show, Dubai. Bluamoeba. Structural design.
Veronika Wedding at Ain Dubai, Bluewaters, Dubai. Out of The Box L.L.C. Design and management.
Gridshell connections design, Dubai Media City. Summit Engineering Consultants. Connection design.
H-Hotel Social Club openable roof, Abu Dhabi. Vision Engineering Consultancy. Structural design.
20 Pods Park underground steel structures, Ras Al Khaimah. Armadilla. Structural design.
G+M container structure and container restaurant, Dubai. Super Tech Industries L.L.C. Structural design.