An eco-dome that channels a cool micro-climate inside could be the answer to highly inefficient buildings kept cool with energy-draining airconditioning systems.
The way forward to a sustainable future, according to The Netherlands, is through a new innovative concept it calls the Shaded Dome.
Designed by Royal HaskoningDHV, ZJA Zwarts and Jansma Architects and Poly-Ned, the structure is a semi-permanent facility, comprised of an air-supported, environmentally-controlled dome, in which a pleasant microclimate is created.
“We were part of a tender in 2014 with the Dubai Sports Council for a stadium,” said Jos van de Loo, director of business development at Shaded Dome Technologies and Royal HaskoningDHV.
“The sustainability requirements we saw there were enormous.”
The same applied when the team visited Abu Dhabi.
“There were many cooling machines and it’s not sustainable as they need a lot of power,” he said. “In the Middle East, many events are planned so we have to develop something which serves this purpose, and we can build facilities which can create a very nice climate in desert-like countries.”
The company deliver 30,000 projects every year worldwide, with 85 people working in their offices in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
It delivers many projects for multinationals, as well as Abu Dhabi International Airport where it was heavily involved in a master planning and consulting for its extension. It also built a 70-metre pedestrian bridge at the World Trade Centre in Dubai.
The dome is positioned under a tent layer, supported by a steel cable structure. This passive design element provides the dome with protection from often-demanding climatological conditions, like for instance solar radiation, wind, high air temperature, humidity and precipitation.
“It’s a proven concept because the sun shade roof isn’t a new concept, it exists in small tent constructions,” said Edwin Molenaar, owner of Poly-Ned. “We have been specialised in manufacturing with fabric materials and with textile architecture for the past 40 years in air domes, which we have in Saudi Arabia, and textile structures.” More
By Caline Malek in Delft thenational.ae
