Diemersteiner Tal - Free Form
Customer Project
In 2019, an extraordinary pavilion was constructed in Diemersteiner Tal near Kaiserslautern (Germany). The structure is constructed entirely out of timber and did not require any metal fasteners.
| Owner |
Technical University of Kaiserslautern, Germany www.uni-kl.de |
| Architectural Design |
Jun. Prof. Dr. Christopher Robeller "Digital Timber Construction DTC" Technical University of Kaiserslautern www.uni-kl.de |
| Structural Design |
PIRMIN JUNG www.pirminjung.de |
| Timber Structure |
CLTECH GmbH & Co. KG cltech.de |
Model Parameters
Model
The pavilion is located at the Technical University of Kaiserslautern Architecture Faculty’s new timber research campus. The structure serves as the building entrance.
The structural analysis and design for this unique and one-of-a-kind building was carried out by PIRMIN JUNG. For the cross-laminated timber (CLT) surface design as well as the connections, the engineers of PIRMIN JUNG used the finite element program RFEM. The Digital Timber Construction DTC research group at the Technical University of Kaiserslautern was headed by Jun. Prof Dr. Christopher Robeller. This group developed a software to manufacture light timber CLT panel structures.
Structure
The wooden pavilion is approximately 13 ft high and spans over 39 ft. Three large arched wings stem from the domed roof and connect to the foundation. The shell structure consists of 3.94 in. thick CLT panels. Because the components are subjected to little bending and rather mainly to compression, fewer materials were required.
The pentagonal to heptagonal arch components required a mathematical algorithm. More than 200 unique geometrical surfaces about 24 in. in width were created through computer calculations. These small components were manufactured from scrap pieces typically deemed as waste during the production of multi-story building wall elements.
The adjacent panels are connected with glued-in beech dowels and X-fix connectors, which are plywood dovetail-shaped timber-to-timber connectors. The X-fix connectors resist the tension and shear forces resulting from the adjacent in-plane surface displacement. They also ensure a gap-free connection for the panels during assembly. The glued in beech dowels fix the plates and transfer the transverse forces acting perpendicular to the plates.
The entire project was completed in eight weeks short weeks including from the initial planning to the final construction. The production and assembly itself took only eight days. Load tests using six OSB panels with a 4.59 ft height (corresponding to a weight of about 17 tons) were able to verify the dome’s mathematically proven high load-bearing capacity after having completed the construction.
Project Location
Technical University of Kaiserslautern
Erwin-Schrödinger-Strasse 52
67663 Kaiserslautern
Germany
Keywords
Pavilion Cross-laminated timber CLT
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- I design timber components. The deformations of load combinations deviate from the manual calculation exactly by the factor of the material partial safety factor. Why?
- How can I run the RX‑TIMBER Frame plugin? I did not find it in the Add-on Modules menu nor in Project Navigator - Data.
- I have a question about the results of the serviceability limit state design: How is the increment of the dead load by the factor 1.8 and the imposed load by 1.48 explained in the result combinations for the SLS design?
- Where can I adjust the effective length lef according to Table 6.1 of Eurocode 5 in the TIMBER Pro add-on module?
- Is it possible to display more values for the stress distribution over the layers in RF‑LAMINATE?
- I would expect the results from my load combination (CO) set to a linear analysis to equal the summation of the results from my load cases (LC) also set to a linear analysis. Why do the results not match?
- How can I design dowel-laminated timber (DLT) or nail-laminated timber (NLT) in RFEM?
- Which Dlubal Software programs can I use to calculate and design timber structures?
- How can I set the deformation coefficient kdef in the program?
- A rigid member should only be able to absorb tensile forces or only compressive forces. What are the options for considering these nonlinearities in the calculation?
Customer Projects
Programs Used for Structural Analysis
RFEM
Main Program
Main Program
Structural engineering software for finite element analysis (FEA) of planar and spatial structural systems consisting of plates, walls, shells, members (beams), solids and contact elements
Price of First License
3,540.00 USD
3,540.00 USD
RFEM
Timber Structures
Add-on Module
Timber design according to Eurocode 5, SIA 265 and/or DIN 1052
Price of First License
1,120.00 USD
1,120.00 USD
RFEM
Other
Add-on Module
Stability analysis according to the eigenvalue method
Price of First License
1,030.00 USD
1,030.00 USD
RFEM
Other
Add-on Module
Generation of equivalent geometric imperfections and pre-deformed initial structures for nonlinear calculations
Price of First License
760.00 USD
760.00 USD
