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Mr Monkey tours the Bridgewater Hall, 12th October


"It's all very technical and very clever"

Mr Monkey in the undercroft of the Bridgewater Hall Mr Monkey looking at the springs supporting the Bridgewater Hall

Down in the undercroft Mr Monkey found out why the auditorium of the Bridgewater Hall is so soundproof. The auditorium doesn't actually touch the ground at all; instead the 22,500 ton building is held up a little above the foundations by a series of columns and hundreds of strong steel springs. This makes the building earthquake proof as well as acoustically perfect. Even the air conditioning pipes are far larger than they need be, so that the air moves slowly and with little vibration. Mr Monkey was fascinated to see the gap between the Hall and its foundations and to see the springs keeping the gap steady.


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Copyright Rik Shepherd and Mr Monkey. This page last modified 21 October 2007