Buro Happold was appointed as structural engineer for the design of the roof structure for Cork Airport’s stunning new passenger terminal building. Offering double the floor space of the old building, the terminal forms the centrepiece of a massive expansion of the airport’s facilities carried out in response to increasing passenger numbers. The intention was to provide an iconic gateway into Ireland that will help Cork Airport compete effectively with other potential points of entry.

The terminal has been constructed of glass, steel and timber to make the best use of natural light and maximise the amount of space available. The innovative and eye-catching roof design comprises a lightweight steel deck supported on exposed glulam timber beams, which span the full width of the terminal building. These in turn are supported on four-limbed steel ‘trees’ which transfer the loads back to the main concrete support columns.

Buro Happold provided an ingenious solution in which the form of the structure mirrors the transmission of the vertical and lateral load forces through the members. Materials were deployed in proportion to their strength and capacity demands; for example, to minimise the depth of the glulam sections, a composite timber/steel ‘bow string’ truss solution was adopted to make the best use of each material’s properties by using timber in compression and steel in tension.

Date: 2004 - 2005