{"id":3163,"date":"2024-06-27T12:13:49","date_gmt":"2024-06-27T12:13:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.buildsoft.eu\/?post_type=reference-project&p=3163"},"modified":"2026-07-30T05:43:28","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T05:43:28","slug":"mundo-a","status":"publish","type":"reference-project","link":"https:\/\/www.buildsoft.eu\/en\/reference-projects\/mundo-a\/","title":{"rendered":"Mundo-A"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Photo <\/em>\u00a9 Ilse Liekens<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Mundo-A, a passive office building in Antwerp built directly above a subway station with no foundation options above it, the structural engineering team designed the 30-metre-wide building as a bridge: laminated wood trusses spanning between concrete walls at each end, which in turn bear on the subway station’s existing diaphragm walls below. Diamonds was used to design the 4-storey-high timber trusses as separate, individual analysis models rather than one combined model, checking tension and compression in the truss members and calculating deflection over the 30-metre span using a reduced Young’s modulus that accounts for the timber’s climate class and load duration class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The project<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Pieter Ochelen highlights the Mundo-a building project, Ethical Property Europe’s fourth Mundo center in Belgium. “The unique thing about this bio-ecological passive office building in Antwerp is that it has been realized above a subway station, with no foundation possibilities whatsoever above this underground station. In addition, free passage had to be provided to the Ecohuis behind, and smooth outflow of underground railway travelers was to be safeguarded via a future subway station exit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A bridge of laminated wood trusses<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Taking these boundary conditions into account, B-architecten<\/a> opted for a design which suspends the 30-meter-wide new building in between the adjacent buildings. From a structural point of view, the Mundo-a office building was designed as a bridge supported by concrete walls at both ends. These concrete walls were then to be supported by the underlying subway station\u2019s diaphragm walls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo \u00a9 Lucid<\/em> –The Mundo-a office building has been realized through 3 laminated wood trusses suspended in between adjacent buildings. Diamonds was used for the overall design of the 4-story high laminated wooden trusses.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The bridge structure has been realized through 3 laminated wooden trusses. The decision to opt for a wooden structure was imposed by the client’s request for sustainable design. We used the Diamonds software for the overall design of the 4-story high laminated wooden trusses. Rather than developing one comprehensive structural analysis model for the entire structure, we usually prefer to split the structure into separate analysis models for individual parts. In this way, we keep in touch with how the structure works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Modelling and design checks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Using Diamonds, it becomes straightforward to assess the tensile and compression forces in the truss members and perform the required code checks related to cross-section resistance and member stability. Another essential aspect of the structural design is the calculation of the 30-meter-long wooden trusses\u2019 deflections. Diamonds uses a reduced Young\u2019s modulus for this purpose, considering the structure\u2019s climate class and load duration class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Diamonds<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As Diamonds is so easy to use, it is the perfect tool for a global structural design of challenging buildings such as Mundo-a. Diamonds enables us to identify interesting structural concepts efficiently and communicate transparently with the architectural design team.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FAQ<\/h2>\n\n\n