THE PROJECT
3B2 Western Station is one of the largest iconic stations of the Riyadh Metro Project. The project includes: Above-ground Metro Station (with 34,155 m2 area), Bus Station (with 3,500 m2 area), Underground park & Ride Facility (with 39,295 m2 area) & Mosque (with 2,330 m2 area).
This station will be surrounded by a hierarchical landscape, which will be a combination of natural and artificial elements.
Starting: June 2015
Expected Completion: 2018
AIC has all steel structures scope of this station including connections design, detailing, fabrication and erection.
This was an extremely unique project because the station has a very exquisite and modern architectural design. The design concept of the station building is a modern interpretation of the “desert sand dunes”, where a cluster of dune shaped, earth-colored structures emerge from the site creating opportunities for station entries, light penetrations, and pedestrian shading.
CHALLENGE AND SUCCESS FACTOR
- Starting the modeling from scratch depending on design drawings and imported design models to indicate the nodes of the structure.
- The irregular shape and dimensions of the structure made the manual work has the first role of the modeling and detailing
- Very difficult cambering in the three directions not only in the z-direction for most of the members.
- Tight time and client modifications were extra challenges.
WHY TEKLA
Tekla software was a major cause for the success of this project because of the powerful 3D modeling tools and flexibility. Using their own created Tekla plugins helped AIC Steel a huge deal, to facilitate and accelerate the work.
