China could expect to save up to 1.6 billion yuan (US$193
million) by redesigning the National Stadium, being built for the
2008 Games, according to a report in China
Newsweek.
Work on the project -- dubbed the “Bird’s Nest” for its giant
latticework structure of irregularly angled metal girders -- was
suspended earlier this month amid a nationwide drive to cut down on
white elephant projects.
The stadium’s new design is expected to slash the construction
bill from the 3.9 billion yuan (US$471 million) it had escalated to
within eight months after the ground was broken to 2.3 billion yuan
(US$278 million), according to China Newsweek.
Many experts believe the costs for the Swiss-designed stadium
could be scaled down further.
The original latticework design of the stadium called for up to
136,000 tons of steel, about four times the average requirement for
a conventional building.
A redesign task force plans to reduce the amount of steel needed
to just 32,000 tons, mainly by scrapping the originally planned
retractable roof and enlarging the size of the rooftop opening.
Under the new design plan, only the spectator stands would be
covered.
Li Xinggang, deputy chief architect of the China Architecture
Design and Research Group, explained that the original rooftop
opening was designed to be small to facilitate the opening and
closing of the retractable roof.
He stressed that the aesthetics of the stadium would not be
affected by the redesign.
(Agencies/China Newsweek, China.org.cn August
24, 2004)