50 Years Ago
NSC 31
Mar 20
back with individual cantilever
roofs giving complete cover. The
stand provides a standing terrace
at the lower level consisting of 36
terraces 14in wide x 4in high. The
upper level consists of 36 seating
terraces 2ft 3in wide varying in
height from 16in at the front of
the stand to 18in at the rear of the
stand. The dimension from the
front of the standing terrace to the
rear of the stand is 109ft and at the
front of the standing terrace to the
touchline 27ft 6in. The cantilever
roof extends 126ft 6in from the
front to the rear.
The Cardiff Rugby Football Club
stand consists of 21 standing
terraces 14in wide x 4in high,
immediately behind will be 18
seating terraces 2ft 3in wide and
11in high. The nearest standing
spectator will be 20ft from the
touchline whilst the seated
spectator at the back of thestabd
will be 90ft from the touchline.
The cantilever roof will extend 65ft
from the front to the rear.
The entrance to the standing
and seating terraces in both
stands is by means of a concourse
12ft above the general ground
level. Access to the upper terraces
is by means of stairways at 60ft
intervals from the concourse level.
All seats are individual ‘tip-up’ type
18½in wide. The changing rooms
and toilets are located under the
seating terrace of the Cardiff
Rugby Football Club stand and the
committee rooms and club rooms
are located under the seating
terrace of the Welsh Rugby Union
stand at high level.
The foundations are in
reinforced concrete at a depth of
8ft below ground level. The main
frames and all structural members
supporting the terracing are in
reinforced concrete which is
cast in-situ. Reinforcement to the
main raker beams is in the form
of hot-rolled mild steel beams
welded into truss sections which
are bolt spliced. Hot rolled steel
was chosen for the reinforcement
as it facilitates erection and the
accuracy of line necessary to
receive the lattice roof trusses.
Formwork was carried off the
steelwork which was sufficiently
strong to support the shutters,
props and self weight of the wet
concrete. The seating terracing
consists of precast units.
The cantilevered lattice roof
structure is made from mild
steel universal actions and is
protected for long term durability.
Roof sledding spans between
the trusses without intermediate
supports and consists of purposemade
plastic coated sections.
The coloured coating ensures
long maintenance-free life for
the cladding while providing
an attractive appearance. The
trough sections are supported on
pressed steel rainwater gutters
which are underslung beneath
bottom chords of the cantilevered
truss.
Left: Construction of the
grandstand seen from the banks
of the River Taff.
Below Left: Several stages in
building are seen in this picture
of the North Stand. On the left
are the main raker frames at 20ft
centres; farther to the right they
are enclosed in the shuttering
used to cast the stepped terrace.
On the extreme right the ‘L’
shaped precast terrace units are
in place. Shuttering supported
by the terraces is being placed
for the upper frame sections to
right of centre while the 126ft
cantilever trusses have been fixed
around this end quadrant.
Top Right: Bottom boom for the
cantilever trusses showing the
suspended gutter on which the
cladding sheets are supported.
The 126ft trusses are 20ft c/c on
the straight and approximately
25ft at the springing round the
quadrant. Maximum depth is 18ft
6in while the free end is 2ft 6in
deep. Boom members are two
12in × 3in channels back to back
with a 6in gap. Internal bracings
are 6in × 6in universal columns.
Right: Top view of cladding sheets
showing fixings to the suspended
gutter. Cross section of cladding
sheets designed to span 18-23ft
FROM
Building
with Steel
February 1970