by Sherif Morad Abdelmohsen, with Chuck Eastman et al.

The Beijing National Aquatics Center, often referred to as the "Water Cube," was built for the 2008 Olympic Games. The winning entry in an international design competition was submitted by the China State Construction and Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) with Arup and PTW Architects.

The Water Cube building design concept is all about water, deeply expressed in its bubbly state. The building is on the Olympic Green in Beijing, China, across from the main stadium by Herzog & de Meuron.

The structure is covered in 100,000 square meters (1.1 million square feet) of a modified copolymer called ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE), a tough recyclable material weighing just one percent of an equivalent-sized glass panel.

Structural Concept

The Water Cube's unique lightweight structure was developed by PTW and CSCEC with Arup. A total of 3,000 pneumatic ETFE cushions, inflated with low-pressure air and restrained in aluminum extrusions, are supported by a lightweight steel structure.   >>>

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SUBSCRIPTION SAMPLE The Beijing National Aquatics Center was designed for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games by PTW Architects with Arup and the China State Construction and Engineering Corporation. Image: Courtesy Arup, PTW & CSCEC The National Aquatics Center, or "Water Cube," stands on the Olympic Green, due west of the Beijing Olympic Stadium, or "Bird's Nest." Image does not appear in book. Photo: Angus Macleod   Click on thumbnail images to view full-size pictures.