S TA N D O U T S TA D I U M S When it comes to design and engineering, stadia have taken centre stage for Maffeis Engineering. We find out more with Massimo Maffeis, CEO of the multi-disciplined Italian firm Writer: Jack Salter | Project Manager: Sam Love
2 | EME Outlook issue 46
MAFFEIS ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION
S CEO, Massimo Maffeis
port is a theatrical spectacle, and stadiums are the ultimate box office. From football grounds to tennis courts and multi-purpose sports arenas, Maffeis Engineering (Maffeis) specialises in consultancy services for the design of niche, complex buildings and structural systems. Based in Solagna with 12 more branches spread across the world, this Italian engineering firm also provides
services for civil and commercial buildings, industrial facilities, and other types of infrastructure such as façades and bridges. Services range from project conception to project handover, covering engineering disciplines that include steel and cables, tensile structures, façades, bridges, timber, geotechnical, foundations and marine works, and mechanical/retractable structures.
EME Outlook issue 46 | 3
TENSOSKY® ETFE SYSTEMS
MEMBRANE STRUCTURES
Taiyo Middle East LLC A TAIYO GROUP OF COMPANIES
TENSILE ARCHITECTURE
• • • • •
TENSOTHERM ™ INSULATED TRANSLUCENT MEMBRANE
Preconstruction Services Engineering / Design Fabrication Installation Maintenance
info@taiyo-europe.com taiyo-europe.com
MAFFEIS ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION
“Most of our work is done worldwide; last year, close to 90 percent of our jobs were generated around the world,” states Massimo Maffeis, the CEO of Maffeis, whose leadership skills have allowed him to successfully lead a large design team on both a technical and managerial level. Indeed, employing over 180 professional architects, civil, mechanical, façade and structural engineers, Maffeis’ unique blend of engineering excellence and construction sector expertise has allowed the company to successfully deliver projects in 38 countries worldwide. The broad range of professional design and engineering services offered by the team at Maffeis is supported by highly motivated in-house software developers, draftsmen, and well-organised office staff. Having worked on important projects that involve fabric, ETFE and PTFE for more than two decades, stadiums and arenas are now very 6 | EME Outlook issue 46
much the focus for Maffeis, whose highly qualified structural engineering team specialise in the likes of retractable roofs, facades, structures and moving mechanical systems. “We are very well subdivided into different niche markets. Right now, our core business has expanded to stadia and arenas, that is really where we have major expertise.”
WORLD CUP PROJECTS As a leader in the field of stadia and arenas, Maffeis contributed to the structural engineering of eight football stadiums for the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups in Russia and Qatar, respectively. Maffeis’ expertise in tension structures and membranes resulted in the company being appointed to redesign the roof of the Khalifa International Stadium, Qatar’s oldest and most historic stadium with a capacity of 40,000 people and venue for eight matches at the upcoming World Cup. Part of the existing stadium was dismantled, and the new lightweight
spoke-wheel system and PTFEfiberglass fabric roof was designed to cover the bleachers, whilst a singlelayer EFTE ‘half-moon’ roof portion was added to the cable net roof to improve the natural growth of the turf. Maffeis has also helped to complete the structural design of brand-new venues purpose-built specifically for
Taiyo Middle East LLC
F
ounded in 1922 in Japan, the Taiyo Kogyo Corporation is the leader of the Taiyo Group of Companies, which includes Birdair, Inc. (North & South America), Taiyo Europe GmbH (Germany), Taiyo Middle East (UAE), Shanghai Taiyo Kogyo Corporation (China), MakMax Australia (Australia), and 24 other companies worldwide.
and renderings in order to turn a client’s idea into a signature design. This early design support allows the project’s architects and structural engineers to determine the most effective details for an elegant tensile fabric structure. Our experience and expertise in value management allows us to create complex structures economically.
Supported by our global network of offices and production facilities, as well as a cutting-edge R&D testing centre in Japan, and with projects completed in more than 50 countries on all seven continents, we dynamically merge global solutions to local individual regional needs.
FABRICATION AND QUALITY CONTROL: Our commitment to excellence meets our client expectations with quality and quantity, putting us in an advanced position to secure relevant commercial aspects.
Our reputation is built upon high-quality awardwinning projects across the globe: from temporary to permanent applications, with structures in all shapes and sizes, our Group has the experience and knowhow to make our client’s vision reality. Some historic benchmarks include the Sports Science and Athletics Pavilion at the University of La Verne (California, USA, 1973), the world’s first PTFE-coated fiberglass tensioned structure, and the ThyssenKrupp Testtower (Rottweil, Germany, 2017), with a height of 230m, the tallest membrane-clad building in the world. As partners to our clients at every stage of the project, architects, engineers, contractors, owners and developers have relied on Taiyo Europe for services that range from preconstruction support to field installation and maintenance of their tensile structure. DESIGN ASSISTANCE: Taiyo’s in-house team of engineers and designers works with clients during the design development phase, presenting material options and samples, design solutions
INSTALLATION: Offering a complete end-to-end solution, our expert installation team executes ontime delivery with minimal impact on your venue’s activities. Installation takes place according to the project quality standards and specifications, considering all HSE measures in different regions and temperatures. After intensive coordination with the site team, all parts are delivered prefabricated, enabling all installation activities to be carried out smoothly and efficiently. MAINTENANCE SERVICE & WARRANTY: Our commitment to customer service doesn’t end when the project is completed. Taiyo offers clients a wealth of postproject resources and assistance, ensuring building owners have their structures looking as breathtaking years from now as they did the day it was completed. As partners to our clients at every stage of the project, we offer a complete set of solutions. We love collaborating with our clients, combining the vision of an outstanding and elegant architecture with our expertise and experience in executing them. If you have a vision for a membrane structure, Taiyo is your partner to bring it to life.
E info@taiyo-europe.com | taiyo-europe.com
MAFFEIS ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION
the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, most notably the Al Janoub Stadium. Boldly futuristic in shape to mirror the innovative, ambitious spirit of Qatar, Al Janoub Stadium’s roof structure consists of four main steel arches confined by an outer ring truss. The unique, retractable roof provides shading to spectators before matches, whilst enabling the ground to properly precool. The scope of Maffeis’ work was extended to all structural components of the stadium, including the concrete bowl and dismountable steel structures for the upper tiers of Al Janoub Stadium. “We are working on several World Cup stadiums, and to do that we are
also pushing a lot of R&D investment related to software development and optimisation tools,” notes Maffeis.
ONE SINGLE MODEL One of such tools is the company’s One Single Model (OSM) framework, an innovative system that aims to seamlessly integrate the different design stages. This approach implements parametric design tools and data to reduce the amount of architectural and structural design uncertainty by running iterative analysis and improving project collaboration and execution. The main advantage of OSM, compared to traditional design processes, is the reduction of design
EME OUTLOOK: HOW IMPORTANT ARE CLIENT RELATIONSHIPS TO THE SUCCESS OF THE COMPANY? MASSIMO MAFFEIS, CEO: “Most of our clients are always the same. When we have started to work with a client over the years, they have always come back to us, which is a good sign. “Normally when we enter into a project, we like to operate not as a supplier, but as a partner with our clients. We try to be involved in bringing new ideas and value to clients and their projects, and they are therefore key to the success of Maffeis. “Project by project, we address the heartfelt desires of our client. This is really important for us, and I think it is the reason why we have established such longterm relationships with all of our clients.”
Lanaro Srl Lanaro Srl is an Italian company specialised in steel manufacturing. It is highly-valued and qualified to handle different kind of projects, structures and materials. The company has particular experience in facades, roofs and tensile structures, interior architecture and stairs in particular for what concerns construction, but it has a strong expertise in the development and realisation of mechanisms. Each structure realised is completely customised according to client’s demands and the services that Lanaro can offer, as consultation, design, production and site installation, allow to identify special solutions on a range of different businesses. Following this principle, Lanaro is constantly striving towards the future to offer innovative solutions to meet any possible challenge in today’s market. The collaboration with Maffeis Engineering SpA, consolidated for years, has incentivised this ambition and has permitted to create iconic and astonishing structures and to improve and elevate the company’s expertise. The company’s growth continued in 2019 with the foundation of Lanaro’s first department outside the Italian territory, Lanaro Middle East, based in Dubai (UAE) with the clear scope to increase the services on the whole Middle East area, with a project management closer to the customer activities and by supporting the installation and the maintenance teams on site.
www.lanarosrl.it
8 | EME Outlook issue 46
www.lanarosrl.it
MAFFEIS ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION
MAFFEIS ENGINEERING’S SERVICES Maffeis’ offered services range from tenders to concept, preliminary, detail and construction design, covering all project phases. In the concept phase, collaborating with architects, designers, and general contractors, Maffeis provides feasibility studies, material definitions, value engineering solutions, and digital prototype models that clearly represent the technology chosen. Schematically, the dimensions of principal components are then fixed, the main materials defined, typical details studied, the main construction and installation issues solved, and the building’s performance through structural, thermal and acoustic analysis are assessed. During the detail design phase, the project is refined into its final design. Here, it becomes important to give individual attention to each aspect, geometry and detail, for this is the part of the project where technical problems are solved and details are discussed with the architects, while finalising the related documentation that can be used as the full tender package. Last but not least, during the construction phase, the team at Maffeis can provide the full set of specialist drawings for approval and production drawings. The company’s rich experience in this area allows it to support clients during specific approval procedures, such as CSTB certification.
10 | EME Outlook issue 46
cycle latency and the allowance of further analysis integration, enabling the evaluation of more design alternatives. This reduces the chance of mistakes and integrates engineering knowledge into the creative process, right from conception. OSM allows for an unlimited, automated exchange of information throughout all phases of the project, and based on custom software developed in-house, the process is highly customisable and adaptable to client requests. By creating automation in the workflow between different software during the design process, it is also possible to increase design options for architects, while at the same time reduce design and construction time, optimise the use of materials, and improve construction safety. “We develop our own tools that only we are using internally. With OSM, it is very easy to interact, modify and run different analyses simultaneously in real time,” Maffeis observes. This unique analysis methodology is based not only on Maffeis’ extensive experience of working with contractors and manufacturers, but also on the comprehensive use of parametric modelling and visual programming for all stages of design. Parametric modelling, an algorithmic approach that allows specific variables or parameters to be manipulated to alter the outcome of an equation, was applied to the Museum of the Future in Dubai, one of the most complex construction projects ever attempted and an otherwise impossible undertaking. The Museum of the Future reflects Maffeis’ commitment to designing the most extreme structures, by means of cutting-edge software that it develops to deal with the engineering challenges it faces and solves every day. In Australia, meanwhile, Maffeis
Tamimi Tamimi steel is one of the leading steel and membrane structure companies in the Middle East specialised in the field of special structures. It has a root of more than 60 years as a reliable quality family business. We can design, fabricate and install any complex structure using PVC,PTFE and ETFE materials. Some of our work has been chosen as the best architectural design in façade structures, namely King Fahad national library in Riyadh. Our products cover wide range of special structures, such as: football stadiums, airport and train stations roof, shopping malls covers, retractable roofs and many other roof structures. We are one of few companies in the world who can design, fabricate both steel and fabric under one roof. This advantage (fabricating steel and fabric under one roof) is essential to eliminate common conflict problems between steel and fabric especially during erection time. Furthermore, we have the ability to make and swage structural cables up to 32mm with tensile strength reaching 45 tonnes. Due to our long family legacy, one thing that is unique about Tamimi Tensile structures, is the assurance that we are always there when our clients need us. Hence, we are not like some companies who disappear or fade from time to time.
tamimistructures.com
We connect the past to the future From goat hair tents manufacturing to a leader in special Steel and Membrane Structures.
SERVICES PROVIDED:
DESIGN FABRICATION INSTALLATION P.O. BOX 93979 - RIYADH SAUDI ARABIA 11683 T +966 11270-33-77 | F +966 11244-21-78 Admin@tamimistructures.com Tamimistructures.com
MAFFEIS ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION
recently developed the tender solution from concept up to design development for the ANZ Stadium, one of the country’s busiest sports and entertainment venues and a powerful icon of the Sydney landscape, while also developing its erection methodology through 4D analysis. “We are not like a standard engineering company. We are involved in special projects where we are pushing our competencies, so we invest a lot to try and optimise our workflow and develop our own tools,” says Maffeis. “Iconic, landmark projects are something that we are very keen to get involved in, and there is now a natural synergy between Maffeis and complex engineering challenges. Luckily we have built a good reputation, and this means it is easier to do so.” One truly pharaonic and iconic project is the Al Wasl Plaza, the beating heart of Dubai Expo 2020 in which Maffeis had the privilege of designing the method statement and steel pipe connections. “Al Wasl Plaza was another important job for Maffeis, where we were involved in the design, erection and engineering of glulam works.”
SUSTAINABLE STRUCTURES Also dedicated to façade engineering, Maffeis specialises in the design of sustainable building skins and advanced curtain wall systems, able to design any building envelope system no matter how complex it is. “We are not a generalist engineering office; we service difference niche fields, and we are really specialised in what we do,” emphasises Maffeis. “This is also with a view to reducing risk, because sometimes we are very busy with our core business of stadia and arenas, and sometimes we are busy with façades.” Maffeis adheres to all modern 12 | EME Outlook issue 46
façade requirements, focused on innovative solutions to architects’ design concepts. No matter how innovative Maffeis’ façade consultancy services are, however, they are always based on sound design and engineering principles. Nowhere better is this demonstrated than at Europe’s largest green façade, Kö-Bogen. In collaboration with Frener & Reifer, a full-service supplier for premium façades and special constructions worldwide, Maffeis executed the full design of the façade and roof system of this challenging project with inclined and curved façades, two
of which are completely green and planted with hornbeam hedges. Elsewhere, in London, Maffeis is involved in the façade engineering for The Forge, the UK’s first net zero carbon commercial building offering innovative solutions to the climate crisis. “We are involved in projects from a structural point of view, as well as from a sustainability perspective,” Maffeis explains. “Structural aspects such as the façade are at our core, but most of all we are looking into the embodied carbon assessment of every solution that we do, from construction through to the end of a structure’s lifecycle.
“Embodied carbon assessments are being integrated into our projects through our OSM, to make sure that they have a positive impact on the environment.” Sustainability is a key area of Maffeis’ operations and this not only stems from an environmental point of view, but also the sustained continuity and longevity of the company going forwards, for example through the co-division of shares with employees. Having been CEO for more than two decades, Maffeis himself recognises the need to guarantee the future of the company and the people working there. “We have to build
something for our employees that can proceed without me in the future, I think that’s the most important thing,” he acknowledges. “Our main goal ahead is to guarantee the sustainability of Maffeis based on environmental and socioeconomic principles, enlarging the management of the company to guarantee the future of the families that depend on our work and our decisions.” A fortress of stadia and façade engineering, Maffeis is certain to ensure engineering excellence in this niche, specialised industry for years to come.
MAFFEIS ENGINEERING Tel: 0424-558361 info@maffeis.it https://www.maffeis.it/ EME Outlook issue 46 | 13
MAFFEIS ENGINEERING Via Mignano 26, 36020 Solagna (Vicenza) - Italy Tel: 0424-558361 info@maffeis.it www.maffeis.it
PRODUCED BY EME OUTLOOK MAGAZINE