For NAIAS 2007 the Ford Motor Company made some changes to the previous year's enormous 110,000sq.ft. ceiling structure, with the entire ceiling moving 15ft. upstage to allow lighting troughs to be repositioned over the new floor layout.
One of the cross stage trusses now fell under an air-wall and the top of the truss at trim sat above the low position of the air-wall track. Total Structures had to make a 240ft. dummy truss 2" thick (essentially a ladder lying flat) and lift it with the rest of the grid and then secure it using custom made hangers to the air-wall track. The dummy truss maintained the symmetry of the ceiling and provided an edge connection for the fabric used to create the ceiling of the booth.
In addition, the 8 x 30ft. traffic openings in the wall had to remain in position on the ground so some clever manipulation of the components (a vertical ladder and node grid) allowed this to happen with minimal fuss. Total Structures also added some additional lighting truss.
The General Motors booth posed a similar if not grander challenge. The ceiling structure needed to be reconfigured to match the booths new radial pattern (which each GM brand having its own space centred around a large opening, dubbed the "amoeba") yet for obvious financial reasons using as much of the prior year's truss as possible.
The solution required Total to manufacture a 200 x 70ft custom radiused triangular truss to form the central amoeba which has six different radiuses throughout its circumference. From this structure twenty-seven truss spokes radiated out at various angles to create a main booth footprint of over 350 x 240ft. The structure is then contained within a truss ladder perimeter, which helps maintain the position of the truss spokes when being lifted as well as provide structure for the exterior dressing of the stand.
In order to connect the radiused spokes to both the amoeba and the ladder perimeter Total manufactured over fifty different angled corners to accommodate the various radiuses being created.
Finally just like with the Ford project it was necessary to produce custom components to allow trusses that clashed with the air-walls, building columns and the Detroit People Mover (its tracks go directly over the top of both the Ford and GM booths) to remain structural and in place throughout the lifting operation and subsequent exhibition.
NAIAS opened its doors to industry press on 7 January, and to the general public on the 13, closing on the 21 January.
(Chris Henry)
