Large-scale fabric façade: multifunctional tennis center in Madrid

The Centro Deportivo Multifuncional del Manzanares designed by Dominique Perrault was cloaked in 23,000 m² of stainless steel fabric from GKD. The fabric façade optically softens the dominance of the gigantic, 160,000 m² structure located in the midst of parkland and allows the building complex to enter into a symbiosis with the nature that surrounds it.

The centerpiece of the spectacular structure is the Caja Magica with its three tennis courts. The three-part roof construction of the “magic box” can be tilted up and moved as required and transforms the indoor courts into outdoor playing areas. The visually seamless outer façade was created using a custom version of the Escale 10.5 x 1.2 metal fabric. The Escale 7 x 1 fabric was used to clad the inner façade. What’s especially impressive about the spiral fabrics is not just their high-tech aesthetics but their robustness, virtually unlimited service life, and the fact that they require no maintenance. Used as a semitransparent fabric façade, they provide specific light and air permeability, serve as fall guard protection, and also protect athletes and spectators in the Caja Magica from driving rain and drafts.

Mounting of the fabric façade: The fabric panels were mounted at the top to the roof edge of the steel construction and tensioned at the bottom using clevis terminals. The horizontal displacement of the panels was minimized by intermediate mounting with horizontally inserted cables.