Beijing’s Bird’s Nest Stadium –A Superior Welded Structure

The iconic Bird’s Nest Stadium is instantly recognisable worldwide as the architectural and structural engineering showpiece from the 2008 Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Games. China’s remarkable National Stadium, designed by Swiss firm Herzog and De Meuron, Arup Sport and China Architecture Design and Research Institute, drew on traditional Chinese ‘crazed’ pottery to create the apparently randomly wrapped appearance. This distinctive exterior conceals complex advanced geometry and a host of innovative and green elements designed to enhance the spectator experience.

This book, edited by Professor Su Jun Wu of Beihang University in Beijing, focuses on the Bird’s Nest Stadium’s fully welded structure. Construction of the saddle-shaped roof, the main truss of which has radial layout around a central opening, and the vertical sub-structure are of special interest to engineers as a whole and to engineering structural integrity practitioners in particular. That Beijing is located in an active seismic zone serves only to make the details of the Bird’s Nest Stadium’s assembly more fascinating.

Contents include:

• Total Quality Control (TQC) of the Bird’s Nest Welding Project
• Research on the Weldability of Novel Steels
• The Particular Welding Techniques Applied in the Installation of the Bird’s Nest Steel Structure
• Qualification of the Welding Procedure for the Bird’s Nest Steel Structure
• Application of Low-Temperature Welding Technology
• Welding Stress and Strain-Controlling Technology
• Lamellar Tearing: Mechanisms and Prevention Techniques
• Welding Techniques for the Final Assembly of the Bird’s Nest Steel Structure
• The Application of Overhead Position Welding
• Robotic Automatic Welding
• Welding Regulations and Criteria for the Bird’s Nest Steel Structure