Riding The Wave Modern Steel Construction - October 2022

10/12/22, 7:39 PM Riding the Wave Modern Steel Construction : October 2022
Features
Riding the Wave

Kevin A. Kuntz, SE, And Terry Palmer, PE
Nashville’s upgraded airport will soon greet passengers with a signature steel
“airwave” roof and accompanying pedestrian bridge.
Nashville International Airport’s (BNA’s) iconic “airwave” roof. Courtesy Fentress Architects »
LAST YEAR, NASHVILLE made headlines when it topped the list of American cities experiencing
the most economic growth.
For proof, one simply needs to walk the city’s downtown streets and observe the cranes crowding
the skyline and construction sites transforming city blocks. This regional growth also has spurred
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Nashville International Airport (BNA) to pursue its “BNA Vision.” This bold, forward-looking
expansion plan creates a world-class facility serving the city’s booming population and the airport’s
record-breaking passenger volumes.
BNA Vision includes multiple elements—Concourse D, the Central Utility Plant, a three-phased
Terminal Parking Complex, an on-site Hilton hotel, a future Transit Connector, and the Terminal
Lobby and International Arrivals Facility (IAF) expansion. When completed in 2023, a pedestrian
bridge will connect the Terminal Parking Complex to the Terminal Lobby and IAF, which offer two
dozen passenger-screening lanes, six state-of-the-art gates for international travel, and a new
marketplace food court with clear airfield views and a stage for live music.
The signature feature of the Terminal Lobby and IAF project is a sleek, iconic “airwave” roof canopy.
This 150,000-sq.-ft, curvilinear structure completely reshapes the terminal’s form and volume,
creating a singular architectural mantra from the passenger dropoff at the roadway to the airfield
beyond.
To ensure a uniform campus design, the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority selected Corgan
as the “master architect” tasked with guiding the airport architecture, creating cohesive concepts for
each project, and phasing the construction to keep the airport fully operational around the clock. In
addition, a progressive design-build method for each project provided quick and efficient delivery.
Large cruciform columns were designed to support the gravity and la… »
Long-span spine trusses support the airwave roof. Image this page courtesy MKA »
The new Terminal Lobby and IAF expansion generated much construction-industry interest and
fierce competition. As a result, the design-build team—Hensel Phelps (HP), Fentress Architects, and
Magnusson Klemencic Associates (MKA)—searched for opportunities during the request for
proposals (RFP) stage to enhance the design concept, reduce cost, and minimize risks that might
interfere with airport operations.
Long-span spine trusses support the airwave roof. Image this page courtesy MKA »
Long-Span Spine
The airwave roof spanning the existing terminal and roadway. Courtesy MKA »
HP’s team proposed a key structural design enhancement: raising the proposed airwave roof up a
few feet to allow it to span the roadway and existing terminal. By doing so, the existing interior
columns above the departures level floor could be removed to achieve extraordinary openness,
enhanced views, and ideal day-lighting within. In addition, leaving the existing roof in place provided
two ancillary functions: weather protection until the new roof was built and a work platform to
install some of the new ductwork, lights, and sprinkler pipes. Moreover, the existing columns and
footings did not require retrofitting, saving over $5 million.
The original RFP concepts (above) compared to MKA’s design (below). The latter reduced the number of columns by 68%
and eliminated the braced frames. »
The proposed long-span roof was created by inserting two longitudinal “spine” trusses that
traversed the 660-ft-long airwave from the garage to the airfield. This solution minimized the
number of curved trusses, eased fabrication costs, and enhanced the roof’s stability during
erection.
The airwave roof’s third section being erected. Courtesy Hensel Phelps/Aerial Innovations »
With the roof concept finalized, the next crucial step was to identify locations to surgically place
columns without impacting airport operations whatsoever—a challenge, to be sure, given that they
needed to be placed within the adjoining garage egress core, through the existing roadway, inside
the terminal’s glass façade, and outside the existing terminal on the current airfield.
Cantilevered trusses taper down to a knife-edge resembling the shape of aircraft wings. Courtesy Hensel Phelps/Matt Good
(www.mattshootsforgood.com) »
The desire to minimize the number of columns also resulted in the innovative use of two W36s
welded together to create large cruciform columns to support the gravity load and lateral loads
against the wind during the roof’s erection and upon the structure’s completion. This clever solution
proved invaluable during a 90-mile-per-hour windstorm that occurred when the roof was 50%
erected! In addition, cruciform columns eliminated the need for temporary roof shoring and
minimized temporary braces during steel erection. The final steel portion was located directly
adjacent to the airfield. Since this area consists of all new construction, more moment frame
elements were installed to provide the final lateral stability for the entire new terminal.
Overall, the final structural design reduced the number of columns supporting the airwave roof
from 88 in the RFP concept to 28 in the final structural design—an impressive 68% reduction in
columns. This resulted in open spaces that yield incredible views, ample natural light, and a resilient
design that readily accommodates future floor plan changes without having columns or braces in
the way.
Supporting the Airwave
Early in the design, MKA worked closely with HP, fabricator Banker Steel, and steel erector Derr and
Isbell to vet fabrication, connection, and erection issues. In addition, the team studied geometric
clarity for the radial arcs and tangents of the desired roof form to determine the most cost-effective
way to bend and connect the roof members.
Ten-ft-deep Pratt trusses with W36 chords oriented in their weak axis comprised the 660-ft-long
spine trusses, thus providing a naturally stable truss readily pre-assembled in the shop and
transported via truck to the site with minimal field splices. Secondary transverse trusses fill in the
rest of the airwave roof between and outside the spine trusses. Early on, MKA proposed using
straight secondary transverse trusses spanning 130 ft to frame into the curved spine trusses. This
framing layout resulted in the minimum number of curved members, thus saving considerable
fabrication cost and, most importantly, creating an elegant roof form that delicately curves to create
the true roof structural shape. Workers positioned 50-ft-long wing trusses outboard of each
transverse truss. These cantilevered trusses contain W10 chords and double-angle webs configured
in a modified Warren truss profile and taper down to a knife-edge resembling the shape of aircraft
wings.
As mentioned, column locations had to be coordinated closely with the existing terminal. The spine
trusses did not land directly on a column in some areas, so support at these offset locations was
provided with tapered plate girders 10 ft deep and spanning the cruciform columns, thus creating a
colossal moment frame. The robust plate girders were fabricated from grade 65 (ASTM A913) plates
with 1-in.-thick webs and flanges measuring 20 in. wide and 2.5 in. thick.
A Grand Entry
A pedestrian bridge spans the roadway and connects the terminal parking complex to the terminal lobby and IAF. Courtesy
MKA »
Another design opportunity for the team involved connecting the Terminal Parking Complex to the
Terminal Lobby and IAF using a steel pedestrian bridge spanning the roadway that creates a
dramatic first impression for passengers and gives them tremendous views as they enter the
terminal.
A pedestrian bridge spans the roadway and connects the terminal parking complex to the terminal lobby and IAF. Courtesy
MKA »
Initially, the concept design envisioned a pedestrian bridge hung from the roof via cables. However,
after studying several design options, MKA opted to move the bridge’s support columns to avoid
penetrating or reinforcing the existing roadway below. In addition, to alleviate bridge vibration
issues and deflections, as well as reduce steel tonnage, MKA determined that 14-in.-diameter round
hollow structural sections (HSS) could replace the cables and create full-height trusses.
The resulting bridge structure, which is 48 ft deep, is efficient, meets AISC Design Guide 11:
Vibrations of Steel-Framed Structural Systems Due to Human Activity criteria (aisc.org/dg), and easily
spans 170 ft with no perceivable vibration or deflection. In addition, stainless steel castings
provided by Cast Connex provide an elegantly exposed diagonal connection to the top and bottom
chords.
Airport officials made it clear the roadway could never shut down, and traffic restrictions to install
temporary shores were prohibited. Therefore, MKA worked closely with HP and Derr and Isbell to
develop a phased structural analysis of the pedestrian bridge. This analysis considered the top two
trusses supporting the roof above the bridge as independent members that initially support some
roof loads. These trusses connected to the floor girders via diagonal web members to create a deep
truss, and Derr and Isbell elected to field-measure the diagonals and “cut to fit” to achieve the
precision needed for the pin connection installation.
Trusses erected at night over the roadway. Courtesy Hensel Phelps/Matt Good (www.mattshootsforgood.com) »
The project contains 6,255 tons of steel, with 4,418 tons erected in 2021 alone. Placing that much
steel is challenging, especially when erecting steel over an operational airport terminal, requiring
precision planning and microphasing. Site constraints further complicated construction and
required more than half of the roof steel to be staged across the airport roadway and erected from
a Demag CC 8800 crane. This mammoth crawler crane, with a lifting capacity of 3,200 tons and a
main boom reaching 384 ft, allowed for the precise installation of major steel elements over the
operating terminal and roadway below.
The steel structure for the Terminal Lobby and IAF Expansion was topped out in May 2022, and the
new terminal will open in phases starting in January 2023 and fully open by the end of 2023. This
new world-class facility will be the major gateway to Nashville and the region, one that proudly
defines and represents Music City.
Owners
Nashville International Airport Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority
Design-Build Lead
Hensel Phelps
Architect
Fentress Architects
Associate Architect
TM Partners
Master Architect – BNA Vision
Corgan
Lead Structural Design
Magnusson Klemencic Associates
Substructure Design
Logan Patri Engineering
Steel Team Fabricator
Banker Steel Company , Lynchburg, Va.
Erector
Derr and Isbell (now a subsidiary of Schuff Steel)
Bender-Roller
Chicago Metal Rolled Products Chicago
Kevin A. Kuntz »
Kevin A. Kuntz ([email protected]) is a senior

design engineer at Magnusson Klemencic Associates,
and Terry Palmer ([email protected]) is a senior
principal who leads the firm’s Aviation Market Sector.
Terry Palmer »

Riding The Wave Modern Steel Construction - October 2022

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10/12/22, 7:39 PM Riding the Wave Modern Steel Construction : October 2022

Riding the Wave

Supporting the Airwave

Nashville International Airport Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority

Master Architect – BNA Vision

Lead Structural Design

Magnusson Klemencic Associates

Logan Patri Engineering

Steel Team Fabricator

Banker Steel Company , Lynchburg, Va.

Derr and Isbell (now a subsidiary of Schuff Steel)

Chicago Metal Rolled Products Chicago

Kevin A. Kuntz ([email protected]) is a senior

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