Huge Salt Storage Building
With a base area of 11,300 m² (121,632 ft²), Saldome2 is about the same size as two soccer fields. Thus, it is almost twice as big as the first dome structure ("Saldome1"), put into operation in August 2005.
More than 110,231 tons of road salt can be stored in the new Saldome2. The base area of the salt storage building has a circumference of 377 m (1,236.8 ft).
"Häring Ensphere" Structural Concept
The shell structure of Saldome2's structural system is a radical departure from traditional construction methods. C. Häring calls his concept the "Häring Ensphere" (from an American term meaning to envelope a space with a spherical shape). This concept is based on the fact that each double-curved construction is free-standing and spans the space above a ring foundation, thus creating complete freedom of use inside.
The lamella arch structure made of glued-laminated timber consists of a primary and a secondary framework structure. In total, the construction is composed of 894 structural elements that are supported by 48 foundations and connected by 163 nodes (two connection points per node). The individual elements of the dome were rigidly bolted using 4,272 bolts (eight bolts for each main beam). The result is a high-capacity structure rivaling steel and concrete constructions with regard to efficiency and cost effectiveness.
The entire structural system was cantilevered (built without scaffolding) using aerial work platforms. This is why separate analysis models were used to analyze the high number of resulting construction stages.
| Structural Engineering | Häring Project AG Eiken, Switzerland Engineers: R. Schneider, C. Zihlmann www.haring.ch |
| Structure | General Design Häring & Co. AG Structure Assembly Häring Holz- und Systembau AG |
| Investor | Schweizer Rheinsalinen AG www.rheinsalinen.ch |
