Kazakh tent world's tallest tensile structure

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A 150-metre building that qualifies as the world's tallest tensile structure has been unveiled in Kazakhstan.

The Khan Shatyr Entertainment Centre, in the Kazakh city of Astana, was opened by the company's President Nazarbayev and is designed by Foster and Partners, the practice headed by renowned British designer Norman Foster.

The tent-like, cable-net structure is located at the northern end of the new city axis and soars 150 metres from an elliptical base to form the highest peak on the Astana skyline. The building encloses an area in excess of 100,000m² within an ETFE dome, with dramatic views over the city and the steppes beyond.

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The centre is a major new civic, cultural and social venue for Astana, and its tent structure provides shading and insulation, creating a sheltered climatic envelope that provides a comfortable environment all year round.

Temperatures in Astana can drop to -35 degrees Celsius in winter and climb as high as +35 degrees in summer. The three-layer ETFE envelope is designed to shelter the enclosed accommodation from weather extremes and to allow daylight to wash the interiors.

Nigel Dancey, a design director at Foster and Partners, said that the Khan Shatyr was an important new destination for the people of Astana.

"With the Palace of Peace and Khan Shatyr, we are proud to have designed the two landmark structures for such prominent points along the city’s main axis – their forms express the change of emphasis and function, from religion to entertainment, as you pass along this grand new boulevard," he said.