Wisdom Hall in Bangkok: glazed triangular front façades

Steel A-frame in the wisdom hall of the shopping mall ICONSIAM, Bangkok, Thailand

80t

structural steelwork

64

triangular panes

80t steel A-frame for wisdom hall ICONSIAM

Wisdom Hall is located at the highest point of Bangkok’s luxury shopping centre, ICONSIAM. It extends over three storeys and will house a museum in the future. Facing towards the Chao Phraya River, the glazed triangular front façade provides an optimum view of the river and the city.

The design by architects Carpenter | Lowings included a cable net front façade with glass façades sloping back from this at the sides, all provided by seele. At the front a steel A-frame weighing about 80t had to be erected to support the cable net façade, which consists of 64 triangular panes of glass held in place by 14 tensioned steel cables connected at 21 nodes.

To the left and right of this triangular front façade, the side façades by seele consist of 72 panes with a solar control coating plus ceramic frit printing. The intensity of the printing is greatest at the top of the façade and gradually decreases towards the bottom so that at eye level the printing on the glass is no longer visible. Between the sides and the front façade there are 10 external fins, each 24 m long, which function as structural members while also providing shade. The fins are part of the lighting concept, creating different plays of light and shadow inside Wisdom Hall.

Reference overview and Header image: © seele/Andreas Keller

ICONSIAM Wisdom Hall a steel A-frame at the highest point of the luxury shopping centre in Bangkok. — © seele/Andreas Keller

64 triangluar panes for the steel A-frame of ICONSIAM Wisdom Hall realized by seele — © seele/Andreas Keller

Design, production and erection of a steel A-frame and side façades for ICONSIAM Wisdom Hall made by seele. — © seele/Andreas Keller

Insights into the assembly of the steel A-frame

The project film shows the lifting of the A-frame into its position. Two wire ropes were attached to the top of the frame and tied back into the building at an angle. It took 2½ hours to raise the A-frame into position with two synchronised strand jacks and bolt it to the steel roof structure.

Spectacular building measures at highest point of building complex

Owing to the situation on site and the weight of the steel A-frame (about 80t) for the triangular glass front façade, the frame could not be lifted to the topmost platform in one piece. Therefore, the 17 separate parts were lifted up to a platform supported on falsework in front of Wisdom Hall, where they were then welded together and painted. During assembly, the bottom of the frame was also connected to the building via a hinge mechanism.

The steel cables and their connecting nodes were also attached at this stage. To lift the A-frame into position, two wire ropes were attached to the top of the frame and tied back into the building at an angle. It took 2½ hours to raise the A-frame into position with two synchronised strand jacks and bolt it to the steel roof structure. Afterwards, the 64 triangular panes of 3-ply 10mm laminated safety glass were fitted between the cables and sealed with silicone.

Assembly work on the high-level platform: The steel A-frame was welded together and painted directly in front of Wisdom Hall.

The 14 diagonal steel cables were tensioned and the 21 nodes fitted prior to raising the A-frame into Position.

Two wire ropes were attached to the top of the A-frame so that it could be raised to its final position with two synchronised strand jacks.

Credits

Client	ICONSIAM Co. Ltd.
General contractor	Thai Obayashi Corp., Ltd.
Architect	Carpenter \| Lowings Architecture & Design
Engineer	Eckersley O'Callaghan
Date of completion	2018
Scope of work by seele	Design, production and erection of Steel A-frame: 80t structural steelwork 64 triangular panes (3-ply 10mm low-iron laminated safety glass) Side façades: 72 pcs. 2-ply 10mm low-iron heat-strengthened glass (3 x 2m diamond) 10 external fins: framework with sail-type sheet metal cladding