Step 1 - Generative Design Framework
- Design Decision 1: Design/Optimize Stadium Supporter’s Seating Tier (seats behind the goal)
- Design Variables
- Angle/incline of tier
- Height of the stand (and maximum height)
- Supporter’s ticket price
- Evaluators
- Total ticket revenue
- Capacity of the seating section
- Average distance to the goal (center of the pitch’s end line)
- Most Important Tradeoffs to Consider
- Total ticket revenue vs supporter’s seating tier incline angle
- Supporter’s section minimum ticket price vs total ticket revenue
- Design Decision 2: Sustainability – Optimal structural material selection
- Design Variables
- The actual material(s) (concrete, steel, timber, etc.)
- What sub-type of material (e.g. OPC concrete, concrete w/alternative cement, etc.)
- Building/structure geometry
- Evaluators
- Embodied carbon
- Material cost
- Material appearance
- Structural performance (i.e. material efficiency)
- Most Important Tradeoffs to Consider
- Material appearance vs cost, constructability, embodied carbon
- Material cost vs embodied carbon
- Structural performance vs embodied carbon or material efficiency
- Design Decision 3: Construction planning– material procurement
- Design Variables
- Fabrication: Prefabrication or On-site fabrication
- Material storage on/off-site
- The actual material(s) (concrete, steel, timber, etc.)
- Evaluators
- Lead time
- Assembly/construction time on site
- Cost
- Material storage space needed
- Most Important Tradeoffs to Consider
- Assembly/construction time on site vs total material cost
- Transportation logistical “simplicity” vs material storage space needed vs cost
Step 2 - Generative Design Study
Design Decision: Optimize a stadium supporter’s tier (seats behind the goal) geometry to maximize the stadium/fan “environment” and also total ticket revenue from all sections, while minimizing the ticket price paid by fans in the supporter’s section
One design variable I used was the angle/incline of the stadium tiers. I considered that a steeper incline will help maximize the environment as opposed to a lower incline seen in the second picture below.
- Design Variables
- Angle/incline of tier
- Height of the stand (and maximum height)
- Supporter’s ticket price
- Evaluators
- Total ticket revenue
- Capacity of the seating section
- Average distance to the goal (center of the pitch’s end line)
- Actual supporter’s section ticket price:
- This ticket price changes from a maximum to a minimum value with exponential decay down to the minimum price as the supporters section gains more capacity relative to the fixed capacity of the entire stadium
- Most Important Tradeoffs to Consider
- Total ticket revenue vs supporter’s seating tier incline angle
- Supporter’s section minimum ticket price vs total ticket revenue
Here are the inputs/constraints I used for this preliminary study:
Step 3 - Generative Design Study Results
- Scatterplot Graph illustrating the tradeoff:
This scatterplot shows the tradeoff between the total ticket revenue and the inclination of the supporter’s stand seating tier. The size of the points represents the total capacity of the supporter’s section. The colored points represent the minimum ticket price required for the supporter’s section (red = lowest, dark blue = highest). The plot indicates that ticket revenue can still be maximized along with the tier’s incline, but the section’s capacity takes a significant hit (smaller circles). Also, there is a large gap between outcomes with lower tier angles (< 24 deg) and outcomes with larger angles (28-30+ deg.) This tier incline gap would make a design decision more difficult. I would want to design at an angle near the maximum (35 degrees), but I would likely end up selecting an angle closer to 24/25 degrees so ticket revenue is strong and the section’s capacity is also higher.
- Dynamo Study Graph Image:
