PALAFOLLS

SPORTS HALL
INNOVATIVE STRUCTURE
• Name of Structure: Palafolls Sports Hall,
Spain
• Completed: November 1991
• Client: Ayuntamiento de Palafolls
(Barcelona) BACKGROUND
• Architect: Arata Isozaki
• Structural Engineer: Professor Dr J.
Martínez-Calzón, Estudio de Ingenieria,
Madrid
• Contractor: LANIK S.A., Chofre 11 – 1,
20001 San Sebastian, Spain
PALAFOLLS SPORTS HALL
Its situated between the city of Barcelona and
Spain’s Costa Brava, Palafolls in a small town where
a sports hall, constructed in 1991. It has a space grid
roof of striking form. Roof structure is an example
that contradicts the commonly held perception that
space grids are appropriate only for planar roofs of
simple rectangular plan form. Its shape was derived
from a simple scale working model proposed by the INTRODUCTION
project’s architect Arata Isozaki, who also designed
the Sant Jordi Sports Palace for the 1992 Olympics
in Barcelona. In fact, the roof in Palafolls bears some
resemblance to Isozaki’s original proposal for the
larger Barcelona roof.
• The scheme as a whole - 70m diameter circular plan

• Half of this is an open-air sports facility

• whilst the remainder is a multi-use pavilion

• semicircular in plan,covered by a double-layer, three- DESCRIPTION

way space truss

• the roof is an intricate three-dimensionally curved

OF A
surface STRUCTURE
• At the center, covering the main sports hall area, AND TECHNICAL
there is a spheroidal dome area, external radius
24.35m, bordered on two sides by the vertical faces of DATA
the façade and the main roof window parallel to it.

• At a lower level a toroidal area, 24.75m radius in plan

and 12.74m radius in section, surrounds the central
dome and covers the ancillary accommodation.
• Tubular steel bars varying between 40.2 and
115.7mm in diameter were used to connect the
spherical nodes of between 60 and 210mm in
diameter.
• maximum vertical deflection at symmetrical DESCRIPTION
points on the structure agreed closely with the
predicted value of 21mm. OF A
• Internally, the roof is lined with timber decking STRUCTURE
which is fixed to timber purlins spanning between
the nodes of the space grid. The wave-form grid AND
contrasts with the warm shades of timber roof
lining, whilst the segment window introduces
TECHNICAL
diffused light to the center of the sports hall. DATA
• Externally, the roof is covered with standing seam
metal decking.
ACTUAL
PHOTOS
DETAILS
CONCEPT MODEL

DEEP TRUSS SUPPORTS

JUNCTION BETWEEN THE

TOROIDAL AND
SPHEROIDAL ROOF ZONES
ALSO SHOWING THE PERIMETER
COLUMN SUPPORTS
PROGRESS PHOTOS OF
GROUP WORK
MATERIALS
• Plyboard
• Sintra board
• Styro board
• G.I. wire
• Chicken wire
• Felt paper
• Super glue
• Wood glue
• rugby
PROCESS
FINISH
OUTPUT