On April 24, the construction site of the International Pavilion at the International Horticultural Exhibition 2019 Beijing (2019 Beijing Expo) was open to the public for the first time. Construction authorities are targeting September for completion of the pavilion, one of the three major pavilions located at the expo's core scenic spots. This pavilion will exhibit landscaping models from multiple countries, regions and horticulture organizations.
The total building area of the pavilion is 22,000 square meters, with two floors above the ground and one floor underground. The International Pavilion stands close to the China Pavilion and the Performance Center, with the three encircling the Guishui Lake.
A main design feature for the International Pavilion is known as "a sea of steel flowers." The pavilion is held up by 94 sets of steel columns and beams, each shaped into an umbrella of flowers. Wu Bo, a person in charge of its construction, said the pavilion's flower umbrellas are designed to blend it harmoniously into its surroundings. The 94 flower umbrellas connect to each other by their flower pedals to form the sea of steel flowers and the roof of the pavilion.
The roof provides shade and natural ventilation for the pavilion, while also integrating functions such as photovoltaic power generation and lighting at night. On top of each flower umbrella lies snow-melting cables, and within the steel column of each flower umbrella are rain pipes, which can collect rainwater for future use. The International Pavilion is the largest pavilion at the horticulture exhibition, and its construction uses the most amount of steel – approximately 7,600 tons of steel is used to forge the flower umbrellas and the main framework. Each flower umbrella weighs 30 tons on average, with the heaviest weighing 33.7 tons.
To create a well-proportioned flower field that resembles the real thing, each flower umbrella is elevated to a different height. In total, there are more than five thousand lines of elevation for the construction of the pavilion, and Wu said that establishing each flower umbrella is its own miniature steel structure installation project.
At present, engineers are pushing forward the construction of the pavilion by installing two flower umbrellas every day. By autumn, the International Pavilion will complete building of all the flower umbrellas and its flower roof. From the outside, visitors will find the pavilion covered all in white. And at night, the pavilion will be illuminated with lighting effects with colors aplenty.
With the mission of "meeting friends worldwide via plants and gardening," the International Pavilion will be one of the core buildings for the 2019 Beijing Expo, to be held from April to October 2019.