National Veterans Memorial and Museum

The main structure of the National Veterans Memorial and Museum consists in plan of three concentric, free-form rings made of in-situ concrete, each formed from nested arches in the developed view. This geometrically complex design element, which is visible from the outside and inside, supports the roof and, together with the glass surfaces inserted in the arch cutouts, forms the enclosure. The structure made of strong reinforced concrete rings and transparent surfaces, which appears sculptural and arbitrary from the outside, was specifically composed according to the requirements inside the building. A variety of parameters, such as the length or the thickness of an arch, as well as the degree of intersection of the successive arches, were used as tools to achieve the design goals mentioned above. Long-span arches created major static challenges. In order to improve the flow of visitors' movement and the continuity of the structure, arch elements were also peeled off from the otherwise strictly maintained vertical plane. These moments created further complexity for dimensioning and detailing. The highlight of this concept is an external ramp that winds along the rings all the way up to the roof terrace of the building.

Due to the direct correlation between the arch shape and intersection, the required arch heights and, for example, the lighting conditions inside, the architecture and structural planning of the building were closely interwoven. A simple preliminary estimate of the statically required beam dimensions was not possible due to the unusual geometry and interactions. As part of the design and analysis, a process was set up for the dimensioning and analysis of the ring structure, which was able to implement a series of iterations through a maximum of automation. From one iteration step to the next, the static and architectural demands on the shape and extent of the arch span could be approximated and brought into harmony.