National Stadium (Bird’s Nest)

National Stadium (Bird’s Nest)
Demonstrated System: Rigid Frame
Architect: Herzog & de Meuron Architekten AG, Arup Sport and the China Architecture Design & Research Group
Location: Beijing, China
Date: 2003-Present

Seating 100,000 people with a gross floor area of approximately 250,000 square meters, this 70 meter high structure resembles a bird’s nest, which is symbolically important in Chinese culture. The construction was halted once in 2004 because of extremely high construction costs, and after abandoning the retractable ceiling opening, resumed in 2005. The exterior structure consists of 36 km of unwrapped steel, with a combined weight of 45,000 tons. These twisted steel members are all unique, every member was individually cast off site and picked in place. The moment connections created by this structure are very sensitive; every member relies on the integrity of all the other members it touches. Should one member fail, the entire structure could easily collapse.