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Asia

The Storm Coaster

A world first rollercoaster integrated directly into the structure of the building, pushing the boundary of all aspects of engineering design.

The Storm - Dubai Hills' indoor coaster inter-connected track and building

Services (8)

Location

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Client

EMAAR Entertainment

The award-winning indoor rollercoaster is a unique entertainment attraction and the first of its kind. It has a 670m track and 50m high vertical launch with a track that is integrated directly into the building. Cundall was the Lead Design Consultant, designing and coordinating all building aspects across six different time zones. Close collaboration with creative consultant (Thinkwell), the rollercoaster supplier (Intamin), project manager (JLL MENA) and the main contractor (ALEC) was the key to making this structure a success.

Our Structural Engineers played a vital role in the formation of the building and rollercoaster with all aspects of the shape being dictated due to the track and structural requirements. The track is extremely complex geometrically, as it rotates on all axis within the three-dimensional space of the building. Due to such challenges, parametric modelling was a necessity and was implemented from day one of pre-concept design.

Lee French, Partner, commented "This is a unique and ambitious project in many ways and an extremely exciting one both from a construction, theming and end user experience perspective."

Key fact

Over 30 digital engineering initiatives were implemented in the design phase alone.

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Key fact

Unique scripts were written to incorporate each discipline into the parametric design of this project.

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Key fact

Every element of the building was designed in a collaborative BIM environment.

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Lee French in office

Lee French

Partner, Operations Director MENA

View bio

This iconic project pushed us to truly challenge ourselves and showcase the power of digital engineering, creating a world-first for EMAAR Entertainment.

Awards

Winner

Digital Project of the Year

Construction Technology Awards

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