STEEL STRUCTURES FOR ARCHITECTURE IN JAPAN AND ASIA

T. Takeuchi
Associate professor, Tokyo Institute of Technology, O-okayama 2-12-1, Meguro-ku Tokyo Japan

ABSTRACT
According to the development of new concepts of steel materials and members, various
applications of steel structures in the field of architecture have been developed in these 20
years in Japan and Asian countries. In this talk, the author discuss on the detailed examples
of such recent trends in structural designs.

1. STELL STRUCTURES FOR HIGH-RISES
Many countries in Asia including Japan have severe conditions for designing skyscrapers,
because of high intensity of earthquake and Typhoon. For achieving economical design
against these horizontal loads, the effective structural system providing the horizontal stiffness
needs to be provided. Traditional approaches for the structural system in United States in 19
th

century used various steel structural system as braced frames or tube frames. The structural
rationality has been also emphasized, and they have employed simple shapes. However,
recent approaches taken place in Asia and Japan is slightly different, and their trend can be
expressed as Diverse requirement for the shape and Composite structure. Fig.1 is The
Center completed in Hong Kong in 1998, whose height is 350 m including the top mast.
Design of this skyscraper emphasizes the traditional Chinese practice of luck Feng Shui,
which is affect on the rental price of the floor itself. They have a star-shaped symmetry plan
with eight corners, with 80-stories, and diagonal braces are carefully avoided. To achieve














(a) Appearance (b) Structural System (c) Plan and Construction
Fig.1 The Center / Hong Kong














(a) Appearance of the Buildings (b) Plan and Interior / Jin-Mao Bld.
Fig.2 World Financial Ctr. & Jin-Mao Building / Shanghai Fig.3 Spiral Tower

economical structure for such limited condition, star-shaped framed-tube system with
concrete in-filled steel tube column was introduced (Fig.1(c)). In Shanghai, Two skyscrapers
over 400m have been constructed (Fig.2(a)). They employ the composite structural system
with concrete core walls with steel frames around them. This system is effective to achieve
both of the horizontal stiffness and clear space for interior. Jin-Mao building (Fig.2(b))
achieves dramatic interior using the inside space of the core-walls. Free-shaped skyscrapers
are also constructed in various cases. Fig 3 is The Spiral Tower recently completed in
Nagoya, Japan. This building is used for the school of art.

2. STEEL STRUCTURES FOR LONG SPANS
Long-span structures are the fields where the steel materials are mostly appeal its merits of
lightness. Traditional approach is truss system, which organizes the steel pipes with triangular
units, and systematic joint systems have been developed as in Fig.4. The recent trend can be
Ecological and again Free-Shape. Fig.5 is the Beans Dome recently completed in Hyogo,
Japan, which covers three tennis courts with planted roof with very light artificial ground. Fig.6
is the national swimming pool gymnasium for Beijing Olympic. They have a space frame of
free-formed hexagon layout accommodate with its Bubble faade, however fully welded
joints are required because of the structures are not composed of triangular units (Fig.6(b)).
The main stadium for Beijing Olympic called Birds Nest also employs the free-formed
structure, however, the traditional truss frames are introduced inside the structure to resolve
the structural irrationality (Fig.7). The development of computer-aided shape-creating
techniques supports such designs, however, development of systematic joint system for
Steel Outrigger
Steel
Column
Void
Plan of Lower Office Plan of Upper Hotel
Core













Fig.5 Beans Dome / Hyogo








Fig.6 National Swimming Pool Gymnasium / Beijing









Fig.7 National Swimming Pool Gymnasium / Beijing

such free-form structures are desired for practical constructions.

3. STEEL STRUCTURES FOR ELEGANT
Glass skins with steel supporting structures are often used for the entrance hall or atriums of
building complexes, and various sash-less grazing systems obtaining high transparency has
been developed in these years. Also membrane structures with steel supports are expanding
the design fields of light-weight structures. Fig.8 is an early example (completed in 1992 in
Fig.4 System Truss
Tokyo) of glass boxes supported by high-strength steel rod structures stabilized by
pre-tension forces, Japan. The tension structures are one of the most rational structural
systems for the steel material comparing to the bending members or compression members,
because the section of the member can be fully counted for the strength and stiffness without
buckling. For designing such structures, analyses considering geometrical non-linear
characteristics are effective to minimize the structural member (Fig.9). With such
consideration, structural design with lesser numbers of members are achieved, leads to quite
transparent and beautiful structures. Fig.10 is another example of Glass Service Tower
attached on an ancient palace in Madrid. Such structures are well accommodate with the
traditional buildings, and often used for the extension of historical buildings.













Fig.8 Shinsei Bank Building / Tokyo










Fig.9 Analysis and Joint for Tension Structures

Fig.10 Glass service Tower / Madrid
4. STEEL STRUCTURES FOR HOUSING
Traditional structural system for housing in Japan has been wooden frames for thousands
years. However, there are still disadvantages of weakness against earthquake and organizing







Fig.11 Lightweight Steel Sections






Fig.12 Lightweight Steel Sections

the large interior spaces. On contrary, steel frames have difficulty for site-arrangement by
carpenters. Recently housing systems with light-weight steel members are developed and
taken into practice (Fig.11). These members can be nailed and cut on site, and composite
structures with plywood boards and traditional housing frames can be easily organized
(Fig.12). Fig. 11 shows the available member sections and structural system for this Steel
House. Each member is galvanized in plant, and it is proofed that the corrosion is not
expanded even cut or nailed on site. To avoid heat-bridge from outer environments, effective
thermal system with outer insulation finishing is also introduced into exterior walls. For
designing the light-weight steel sections, various kinds of buckling phenomena become
critical as shown in Fig.11. Various analyses and experiments for the effective and economical
sections are investigated.

5. STEEL STRUCTURES FOR SAFETY
As aforementioned, many Asian countries including Japan is placed in high-seismic and
typhoon zones, and passively vibration control techniques mitigating such disaster using
low-yield strength steel dampers have been remarkably developed in these 20 years. One of
the most popular elements is Buckling Restrained Braces (BRB), which comprise a steel core
plate restrained by a concrete in-filled tube (Fig.13). Developed for practice in the 1980s in
Japan, BRBs have been employed in more than two hundred buildings as ductile bracing
members or hysteretic dampers. Distributed in steel frames, these members dissipate the
introduced seismic energy, and minimize the damages of main structures and building
facilities (Fig.14). Special steel materials having low-strength yield points and high ductility
has been developed for the core plates for dissipating the seismic energy effectively. Such
devices are introduced to more than 90% of high-rise buildings design in recent Japan.
Completion of roof truss Completion of roof truss Completion of roof truss Completion of roof truss
Completion Completion Completion Completion
Foundation and 1st Foundation and 1st- -story wall panel work story wall panel work Foundation and 1st Foundation and 1st- -story wall panel work story wall panel work








Fig.13 Buckling Retrained Brace Fig.14 Damage Control Design Concept









Fig.15 Aged Building before Seismic Retrofit Fig.16 Retrofit Concept











Fig.17 Building Faade after the Retrofit

These techniques are applied for not only new-construction but also retrofit of aged buildings. Fig.15
is the aged building constructed in late 1960s, and found to have very high risks for collapsing in the
event of large earthquakes. The BRBs were introduced to retrofit this aged building, designed as
part of building faade, improving building appearances and thermal efficiency, not only structural
improvements (Fig.16). Different from double-grazing concept in Europe, faade design using louver
was investigated for adapting Japanese climates. Fig. 17 is a completed building appearance, which
proves this retrofit is effective to renew the design of the building. Comparing the scrap-and build
concept, it is estimated the saved production of CO
2
will be 2,000ton for the thermal effect of the
faade and avoiding the disposal of concrete scraps. The key word for such design can be defined
as integrated approach covers Sophisticated design, Seismic performance, and Environmental
improvements.

6. CONCLUSIVE REMARKS
Recent examples of steel structures in Japan and Asian countries are introduced, and their
trends are discussed. Different from other industrial products, design of architecture is quite
individual depends on the purpose of the building and environment it places. Diverse design
concept, hazard risk control, and reduction of environmental impact are generally observed as
the key factors of the structural design in each category, and they are supported by individual
technologies. The effort to apply such technologies to the condition of each country is expected.

Reference
1) T.Takeuchi D.C.S.Lee, I.KImura: Tube Action and Construction of Star-Shaped 80 Story
Skyscraper, Structural Engineers World Congress, San Francisco, pp.562, 1998.7
2) Nikken Sekkei: New Horizons in Structural Design, FACT, 2008.4
3) T.Takeuch H.Kitamura, K.Harada, et.al : A Practical Design and Construction of Tension
Rod Supported Glazing, ASCE-IASS Int. Sym., Atlanta, pp.684-693, 1994.4
4) T.Takeuchi, K.Yasida, M.Iwata: Studies on Integrated Building Faade Engineering with
High-Performance Structural Elements, IABSE 2006, Budapest, Vol.92, A-0184, pp.442,
2006