BE Magazine - Volume 5, Issue 1 - (Page 19) BUILDING Crowning glory The building design and signature blade feature posed a number of challenges for WSP Cantor Seinuk. The firm provided all engineering services for the building, including structural, building services, fire, and environmental engineering. WSP relied on an assortment of structural design and analysis software applications, including STAAD.Pro for transfer structure, feature blade frame, and spiral-stair analysis and design, and RAM Frame for lateral analysis of the core and frame. The 22-meter-tall structural steel feature blade forms a striking visual statement for the building. WSP used STAAD.Pro to model the structural framing for the blade and to analyze the design. The team studied the structural forces and dynamic behavior of the structure, with STAAD.Pro allowing easy changes to section properties, support conditions, and connection options during various stages of the design development. This enabled the engineering team to quickly assess the steel weight of the frame and study temporary stability conditions to determine constructability and the best method for erecting the blades on top of the building. Also, engineers could make late modifications to the design to accommodate construction methods and the lifting capacity of the tower crane. Additionally, unexpected wind-noise effects surfaced during installation of the roof blade. The engineering team used STAAD.Pro to study the dynamic behavior of individual elements and identify the natural frequency of the members. Analyzing the walking columns also proved challenging. The engineering team again used and adjusted the design to accommodate changes such as new openings, wall lengths, and slab openings. During construction, the program helped assess temporary conditions caused by changes in construction sequence and out-of-tolerance conditions. WSP has used RAM Frame from Bentley since the late 1990s, so its engineers are proficient with software programs that provide economies of scope and scale. “The integrated approach of design programs benefits the consulting engineer industry as it provides PROJECT Beetham Hilton Tower OVERVIEW Organization WSP Cantor Seinuk BE Awards Category Building Structural Analysis, Design, and Documentation Project Objective Design and build a 48-story hotel and residential building with post-tension concrete structure and signature blade feature a one-stop shop for engineers,” said Samuel Wong, technical director at WSP. “Learning too many programs is costly and can be confusing to the team and to the industry.” The ability of the products to easily modify input data and produce adequate and sensible output helped the team make informed decisions during various stages of the project. This proved critical for late changes that required rapid decisions and affected cost and project schedule. The building opened for guests in October 2006. A landmark building regarded as a symbol of Manchester’s recent economic resurgence, the Beetham Hilton Tower was selected by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat as the Best International Tall Building for 2007. BE Award Winner Modernizing History v The tower foundation is a 3-meter-deep concrete raft foundation that sits on sandstone rock 19th century buildings are rejuvenated with 21st century technology STAAD.Pro for the finite element analysis of the walking columns and load-transfer system. The engineering team used RAM Frame extensively for the core wall and the framing of the building. During conceptual design, the program was used for varying concrete properties and crack factors and for assessing wall thickness and geometry required for the core. During design development and detailing, RAM Frame evaluated F ortis, one of the five largest financial institutions in Europe, recently implemented a master plan that would optimize its corporate building portfolio in Brussels, Belgium. After establishing a dedicated department to handle the project management, design, engineering, contracting, construction, and refurbishment, Fortis designated the restructuring of the Kanselarij Cluster, located on King Street in the heart of Brussels, a key project. Volume 5, Issue 1 | BE MAGAZINE 19
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