Asia now has its first airport with a roof and frame made entirely from glulam, with Mactan Cebu International Airport, the second largest in the Philippines, gaining a new terminal. The aim was for the airport’s visitors to enjoy a warm welcome and an equally warm departure in a resort-like ambience. Light architecture combined with the right material was required to reflect the friendly and open culture of the Philippines. For both ecological and traditional reasons, wood was the final choice. Before construction could begin, the structural engineers at Rubner Holzbau built a full-scale test model. This enabled them to make sure that the joints were able to handle any seismic movements and that the roof beams anchored in the ground floor’s concrete posts stabilise the building in this hurricane and earthquake-prone part of the world.
In total, 4,500 cubic metres of glulam has been used for the vaulted structure, which has a height of 15 metres and a span of 30 metres.
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