fischer fixing systems in the Louvre Abu Dhabi

High art of building: fischer fixing systems in the Louvre Abu Dhabi

For the first time, a museum outside France bears the illustrious name Louvre. Just like the 600 exhibits, the newly built exhibition temple in Abu Dhabi is a unique work of art. fischer helped lay the technical foundation for it. A new marvel adorns the coast of Abu Dhabi. Its dome glitters in the sun.

With its collection of different works of art from the Middle East and the West, the building on the Persian Gulf is considered the first universal museum in the Arab world. The futuristic building is the Louvre Abu Dhabi, which opened its doors to visitors in November 2017 to much acclaim.

Object cover letter

Opening:

November 2017

Construction:

Building complex consisting of 55 ashlar buildings with a 180 m² dome

what was fastened with fischer products?

Various fischer systems for fixing power lines, as well as pipes for sanitary facilities, heating, ventilation and air conditioning.

Area of the museum:

approx. 24,000 m² total complex, approx. 8,000 m² exhibition space

Object type:

Building, dome complex

Project partners:

Joint venture between the companies DRAKE and Scull International PJSC and Habtoor Leighton Specon (HLS)

Architect:

Jean Nouvel

Spectacular dome

The building, designed by French star architect Jean Nouvel, is almost as spectacular as the collection.

It is particularly eye-catching because of its flat, silver dome with a diameter of 180 metres, which spans 55 white ashlar buildings.

It consists of superimposed layers of steel and aluminium in a star pattern, creating an irregular network of openings.

Rays of sunlight fall through these holes, casting points of light onto the buildings below and giving the dome a lightness that makes it appear to float.

Island of culture

Inside the museum, visitors will find the largest art collection in the Arabian Peninsula with an exhibition area of 8,000 square metres.

The permanent exhibition alone comprises an impressive mix of exhibits from antiquity to the 21st century and from Chinese bronze art to classics from the West with key works by Leonardo da Vinci, Édouard Manet and Jackson Pollock.

Exhibition pieces by Henri Matisse and Vincent van Gogh stand next to Ai Weiwei's chandelier model in the shape of the Tatlin Tower.

The museum is located on the edge of Saadiyat Island with its new museum district, which has been enlarged by landfill.

Zusätzlich zum neuen Louvre sollen hier weitere Kunstsammlungen entstehen wie das Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, das Scheich Zayed Nationalmuseum von Norman Foster und ein Meeresmuseum von Tadao Ando.

Stability during earthquakes

Of course, building such a palace of culture in a region with natural extremes brought architectural challenges. These include possible seismic impacts and temperature-related changes in the length of pipelines.

Thanks to fischer, however, it was possible to put the technological framework of the building on a secure footing. A specially founded joint venture between the companies DRAKE and Scull International PJSC and Habtoor Leighton Specon (HLS) benefited from this. The experts in the joint venture decided to use fischer fixings to securely fix power lines and pipes for sanitary installations, heating, ventilation and air conditioning.

For this purpose, fischer application engineers also use earthquake simulations and stress analyses. "Among other things, our team managed to carry out more than 150 earthquake cases and stress analyses in about four months," explains Jayanta Mukherjee, Managing Director of fischer Fixing Middle East.

The new Louvre may be built on sand, but thanks to fischer it stands like a rock.

For MEP applications (mechanical, electrical and sanitary work), fischer fixing systems such as FUS mounting channels and many others were used, for example for water supply and waste water drainage.