Brambuk continued

Here are some images of the Brambuk Cultural Centre being constructed from this website: http://oak.arch.utas.edu.au/projects/aus/163/cbram.html. They show the organic forms that can be created with a bit of ingenuity in the timber framing. The website also has technical information about the project outling the process and the materials utilised. Here is an extract:

"Local sandstone was used for the base of the walls and lower floors of the central area. The display area floor and the walls of the main gathering space are of consolidated earth.

Twenty four 200 mm diameter Grey Box poles, many with bark intact, encircle the hearth and carry parts of the roof structure as well as the spiralling ramp which winds its way up through the building. The principle roof structure is supported on the massive undulating segmented ridge beam which, like a back-bone, runs between two large timber posts at the extreme ends of the building, where the major space of the theatre and display room are located. The segmented ridge beam is constructed from short lengths of straight material (LVL) lapped and nailed to form the complex curve of the roof profile. Nail gusset technology, derived from industrial building practice, thus provides a role in the organic expression of the building.

The ridge beam supports one end of the series of inclined 360mm x 63mm LVL rafters, that form the roof profile. Segmented timber stud walls support the other. Pre-fabricated in 1200mm wide panels, the walls were designed as a tilt-up system that deploy Radiata Pine framing, and a plywood skin that also functions as the interior wall lining. The external cladding is Cypress Pine boards, steamed to fit the curve and fixed horizontally in a lower band and vertically above. All of the curved timber elements, including the Victorian Ash handrails of the spiralling ramp, were steam bent on site.

The rafters carry a timber board ceiling, insulation and the sheet metal roof".

So there you go. They said it all. Cool building.