Elephant Enclosure at Zurich Zoo
1st Place in Competition
Audience Award of the City of Zurich 2011 – 2015
The 6,000-m2 roof of the new elephant house is a wooden structure with a diameter of 85 m. The roof structure acts as a self-supporting shell structure perforated by 271 skylights with a circumferential prestressed concrete ring beam that connects local abutment areas. Sunlight filters through an intricate roof structure as though through a canopy of leaves, creating patterns of light and shadows made up of shifting moods of light with fascinating contrasts.
Through a specially developed process of shaping and smoothing, the building material cross-laminated timber in combination with extensive nailing was turned into a ductile and robust areal supporting structure. As a hybrid structure in combination with prestressed concrete for the ring beam and abutments, it was possible to realise an efficient supporting structure with a reduced amount of material which is thus sustainable for the client.
DEVELOPMENT PERIOD
2011 to 2014
CLIENT
Zoo Zurich AG, Zurich
ARCHITECTURE
Markus Schietsch dipl. Architekten ETHZ, Zurich
Lorenz Eugster, Landschaftsarchitekt, Zurich
FUNCTION WITHIN PROJECT
Structural engineering from concepting to execution
CATEGORY
Timber
PICTURE 1
SIKA Schweiz AG