The ICSS Complex at SGPC, Rakabganj Sahib Gurudwara Will Have A Unique Dome-Like Auditorium Inside It | Delhi

The ICSS Complex shall have a new auditorium constructed inside Gurdwara Rakabganj Sahib premises, which is a historic Gurdwara near Parliament House, New Delhi. The engineering team from Skeleton Consultants Pvt Ltd Noida, under guidance of Er Dr Abhay Gupta & led by Er Nitesh Agrawal & Mr. Joby Joseph has done a marvellous job in creating another iconic structural engineering marvel in the historic city of Delhi. Excellent architectural concepts from Renu Robin Design & SGPC have been made possible by structural engineering from Skeleton & Construction by MTFS. The design team has deployed an innovative concept of shell-type dome construction to give a sense of floating light space within the core of the building. The main challenge was to customize connections considering the existing structure. The construction sequence was meticulously designed so as not to adversely affect the strength and stability of the existing building. The design team has shared more information about the project with SURFACES REPORTER (SR). Scroll down to read:

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Significance Of Structure 

The Gurdwara Rakabganj Sahib is a historic Gurdwara near Parliament House in New Delhi. Built-in 1783, the structure is one of the religious shrines constructed during the brief stay of Sikh military leader Baghel Singh in Delhi. 

The inception of this project led to the construction of an auditorium in the premises of Gurudwara glorifying the sacred principles of the community with the indigenous blend of today’s time.

Floating Light Space

An innovative auditorium was created giving the sense of floating light space within the core of the building itself. This illusion was created with the help of hanging columns. It led to creating an open space for gathering on the ground floor leading up to the auditorium structure with ramps, making the building barrier-free. 

The innovative dome on top again gives a new outlook to the existing dome of the main Gurdwara building. The project consists of auditorium, gallery, and VIP lounges along with amenities. 

Made of Structural Steel

Requirements of erection-friendly structure in the existing building and time constraints, steel was a unanimous choice by the team.

This building shall be mainly used for exhibition purposes; hence architects deployed an innovative concept of shell type of dome construction along with other amenities/services to meet the civic project requirement. 

Also Read: This 380-Meter Long Pedestrian Skywalk Improves The Dakshineswar Kali Temple Traffic in Kolkata | Design Forum International

The lower frame of the dome is erected as a hemispherical dome having 16.6m diameter & 7.5m height. The area inside the dome shall be utilized as an auditorium. A Pentagon RCC slab inside the whole dome has been constructed for sitting purposes. 

The entire auditorium has been housed inside a big hall which had a 225mm thick concrete slab earlier and a large opening of 22m diameter is cut at roof level and covered with a steel dome structure. The benefit considered for the design of the dome is the ability to cover a large column free space with minimum thickness. Structural steel hollow tube sections from APL Apollo have been used for the construction of the dome. The dome has been designed in such a way that curvature in both, radial & tangential, directions is maintained.

Accommodating a domical auditorium inside an existing RCC building by cutting 4 main RCC columns and replacing the existing 9” thick slab to cover again with a lightweight large column-free span element, Steel is the perfect solution. "We used closed hollow structural sections and designed an elegant & sleek-looking design, matching with architectural aesthetics n functional requirements," mentioned Er Dr Abhay Gupta.

Major Challenges:

• The challenge of this project is to develop a concept design for the construction of a dome in an existing building. The entire construction sequence was meticulously designed.
• The whole construction must be performed in such a way that it does not adversely affect the strength and stability of the existing building.
• Being designers, the toughest part was to customize the connection considering the structural members of the existing building. 
• The dome has been erected in such a way that it maintained the curvature in both directions, i.e. radially & tangentially.
• First the RCC roof approx. 22m diameter has been cut and heavy slab pieces were carefully removed outside the building without any impact on lower slabs with the help of an expert concrete cutting agency.

• Then the roof-level steel dome curved pieces were fabricated and erected. These were supported over steel brackets specially designed and fixed at the periphery columns. Then the lower hemispherical dome radials were erected and finally the horizontal curved members.
• Finishing work on the roof and in the auditorium are in progress.

Project Details

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