Taiyuan Botanical Garden Domes

Shanxi, China

The city of Taiyuan in central China looked to StructureCraft to create three long span gridshell domes covering a world class botanical garden. To achieve a more sustainable and aesthetically pleasing garden, the innovative architectural design from DMAA called for the domes to be supported using wood instead of steel. StructureCraft was both structural engineer and builder for an entirely unique paraboloid scheme which, at 88 metres, creates one of the longest span non-triangulated timber gridshells in the world. The jurors were captivated with the curvature of the structure and how it flowed together from one end to the other. The clever use of wood modules to develop an effective structural system using leading-edge fabrication and engineering earned high marks from the jury.