View of the Fota Sheraton Hotel and lawn
The hotel structure, due to its complicated curved geometry, posed
a particular challenge when adopting efficient structural
solutions.
The main fabric of the building consists of a concrete podium
transfer slab, which supports two to three stories constructed
using Fusion's cold rolled prefabricated wall panels. The use of
the panels were key to speeding up the construction process,
because while the podium slab was being cast on site to a curved
plan shape, the wall panels were being fabricated in the Fusion
factory in Ringaskiddy, along with fully finished bathroom pod
units which were constructed in conjunction with the walls.
View of the entrance to the hotelLarge spans
such as the areas over the ballroom and the main reception area
were created by the use of large span bridge beams approximately
18.5m in length which support two to three stories overhead. The
bridge beams allowed the architect the flexibility to create large
open spaces without the restriction of internal columns.
3-D modelling was used extensively for the detailing and design of
the structural steelwork elements of the hotel such as the glazed
entrance canopy, lobby, swimming pool and roof sails. Each of these
structures consisted of complicated curved geometric shapes which
would have been extremely difficult to achieve in the allotted time
using traditional methods. The roof sails in particular posed a
significant challenge, since the architect wished that the roof
would have a slender appearance, even though the north eastern
corner consisted of a 6m cantilever. 3-D modelling allowed us to
manipulate the roof's shape to give the appearance of a slender
structure from the ground.
