The Bike Show is a weekly radio show and podcast from London community station Resonance FM. This week host Jack Thurston talks to Richard Arnold of the Olympic Delivery Committee and architect Mike Taylor of Hopkins Architects, who presents the design vision and explains how he hopes it will not only be fast but environmentally sustainable.
The 90 million building’s ongoing use, after the 2012 games, is firmly at the centre of it’s design. Many sustainable features have been included to ensure that it is not too costly to run once the Olympics have left town. The architect mentions natural light, insulation, energy use, recycled materials and FSC timbers.
The roof is interesting: 48 trusses, supporting a bowl structure, with a roof suspended by lots of 38mm diameter cables. The 250m track itself is designed by expert Ron Webb, with a total of 56km of 40x40mm timbers, held in place by 360,000 nails. There is also an interesting discussion about acoustics and reverberant noise.
Multiple gold medal winner Sir Chris Hoy had an input into the design, including provision for spectators all the way around the track, improving the atmosphere during competition. Cold drafts, which slow down the riders, have been prevented and a handy small toilet has been positioned close to the start line for competitors.
Listen to the podcast via the ‘Audio MP3’ link below, or click through to the bike show website and listen to it there. You can also find it on iTunes. The Velodrome is due to be completed today.
Hopkins Architects- Velodrome Project details
Tags: Building structure, Energy efficiency, Iconic structures
Building Design 
18/03/2011 at 11:13 |
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