Award winning innovators in light gauge steel, EOS Facades, were appointed to design and manufacture two walling structures to support a new open/close roofing solution for Court No.1 for Wimbledon Tennis & Croquet Club. The bespoke roofing system will provide protection for players and 26,500 spectators, minimising disruption and reducing potential loss of income during inclement weather.
EOS designed two walls to envelop the entire circumference of Court No.1. The inner wall was completed in April 2017, and the outer wall is scheduled for construction later this year following the 2017 Championships.
The project has been split in to two phases; the first phase introduced the main roof support structure and courtside finishes. This will be temporarily suspended for the 2017 Championships, with all cranes and signs of construction work removed from site for aesthetic purposes during the prestigious event. The second phase will return after the Championships and will involve finishing the installation of the roof structure and associated external works.
Specialist building envelope contractor, Prater, awarded this highly prestigious scheme to EOS following a number of successful project completions in which BIM level 2 design capabilities had been partnered with their fully inclusive service to deliver a wide-ranging scope of supply and technical excellence.
EOS have been commissioned to form two walls. The inner wall is court side and forms a striking curving structure which will hide the mechanisms of the new roof during the break in the construction. A large vertical cantilever will form the main screen ‘hiding’ the heavy infrastructure which is supporting the new roof elements. This will be a lasting structure and integral to the internal aesthetics when the entire project is finished. The wall extends to the entire circumference of the building. The outer wall is part of phase two of the project and will hide the mechanisms from an external view point when fully completed. As with the inner wall, the entire stretch extends to the whole circumference.
EOS took a linear product and developed it to engineer an entirely bespoke solution, whilst retaining the minimalist design of the tennis club. They applied a lightweight solution to create an integral masking screen which will not only maximise the audience’s experience, but virtually eliminate any sign of industrial support infrastructure. EOS utilised bespoke framing support that was introduced subtly and hidden behind the screens, continuing the seamless flow.
With EOS supplying all ancillary parts and providing cold formed studs/tracks cut to length, a tight deadline was achieved. Site issues were non-existent due to the design being BIM modelled and being manufactured in factory controlled conditions with stringent quality checks.
The high level of expertise in design and manufacture of bespoke offsite solutions demonstrated in this project has led to EOS being shortlisted for this year’s Offsite Construction Awards in the Best Use of Steel category for the third year running, with the winner being announced on 13 June at a ceremony in London.
To read the full Wimbledon case study go to: https://www.eos-facades.co.uk/case-studies/case-studies-commercial/