steel company behind louvre abu dhabi's incredible dome structure declares insolvency

waagner-biro, the steel engineering company who constructed the remarkable steel dome over jean nouvel‘s louvre abu dhabi, has announced insolvency. the austrian firm’s financial issues are reportedly due to late payments and unexpected costs incurred by louvre abu dhabi for the steel structure. the dome, which stretches 178 meters in diameter and is made from steel and aluminium, cost €80 million to construct.

image by mohamed somji (also main image) / all images © louvre abu dhabi

waagner-biro was founded more than 160 years ago by rudolph philipp waagner and as well as the louvre abu dhabi, has worked on a range of notable buildings, such as the sydney opera house, berlin’s reichstag and the british museum. the company, which began in as a locksmith’s workshop now employs more than 1,300 people across 17 locations in europe, the middle east and southeast asia.

image by mohamed somji / all images © louvre abu dhabi

the huge dome by waagner-biro is undoubtedly the centrepiece of the louvre abu dhabi. the structure, comprised of 7,850 ‘stars’, repeats at various sizes and angles in eight different layers, resulting in the floating sensation of the roof. light filters down through the complex geometries, resulting in the incredible ‘rain of light’ that dapples the covered interior spaces of the museum.

image by mohamed somji / all images © louvre abu dhabi

waagner-biro’s high-prestige projects included the new stage engineering at sydney’s opera house and at state opera house in berlin, the roof of the queen elizabeth II great court at the british museum, the dome of the reichstag in berlin, the botlek bridge in rotterdam, …

image by mohamed somji / all images © louvre abu dhabi

image by roland halbe / all images © louvre abu dhabi

image by roland halbe / all images © louvre abu dhabi

image by roland halbe / all images © louvre abu dhabi

source: the art newspaper