Rio Olympics Play It Cool

CHALLENGE:Rio de Janeiro played host to the 2016 Summer Olympic games, with 14,850 athletes from 206 countries participating in 32 sporting venues located in four districts of Rio de Janeiro: Barra, Copacabana, Deodoro and Maracaña. Materials for these roofs and façades at five major venues were critical due to the technically demanding nature of these projects, which combine architectural challenges and difficult climatic conditions. SOLUTION:Headquartered near Lyon, France and operating in Brazil through a local subsidiary established in 2012, Serge Ferrari was asked to contribute to some of the major Olympic venues. The Olympic Park Live Site, which provides shade for Olympic celebrations, is a large round plaza equipped with a giant screen and designed to host outdoor events. Made from Soltis FT 381 in white, the sails will extend over the Live Site to provide the shade necessary for such large gatherings. The shading sails, with a total surface area of more than 39,800 sq. ft. consist of triangular panels of three different sizes. The Corinthians Arena is one of Serge Ferrari’s largest construction projects in the last few years. The group supplied and installed over 300,000 sq. ft. of a specially produced opaque Précontraint 1002 S2, with a white-colored finish. The membrane was hung to extend over the seating, acting as a stretch ceiling to hide the roof’s metal framework. The panels, which are used as a projection screen, deliver excellent flat performance and dimensional stability, and provide an aesthetically pleasing visual barrier to the roof’s metallic trusses. Lightweight, durable and 100% recyclable, the panels provide spectators with optimal acoustic, thermal and visual comfort. null