Most of the 7 million visitors who come to the vacation mecca of Branson, Missouri each year are families, couples, and groups holding small meetings and reunions. That will change next year as thousands of conventioneers attend trade shows at the mammoth new Branson Landing and Convention Center.

The 220,000 sq. ft. center is a showcase of long span structural laminated timber. It contains a 50,000 square foot exhibit hall and a 23,000 sf ballroom as well as spacious conference and meeting rooms. These amenities are tied together with a elegant concourse adjacent to the new 294 room Hilton Hotel.

Specifying the prefinished 80 foot glulam timbers over the public spaces saved the contractor hours of time that would have been required for construction and applying finishes. The finished ceiling is structural glued laminated decking. The glulams were shipped from Timberweld
Manufacturing in Billings, MT.

According to TVS Architects of Atlanta, the facility designers, "The primary reason for specifying glulam is that the material provided a way to tie the building's appeal to the natural setting of the Ozarks. It created a contemporary and unique building design for the Branson area. The use of wood conveys an honest and warm expression that in a hospitality facility will leave visitors with an inviting and memorable experience. The integrity of using a structural system that is also the building's "image generator" has considerable cost benefits that worked with the modest budget."

"The undulating shape of the east elevation is inherited from Lake Taneycomo, which offered a chance to create a dynamic facade that strethes over 900 feet and binds the Convention Center and hotel into a unified architectural expression," they added.

The glulam beams are 8-3/4" wide up to 31" deep spanning 45 to 80 feet in the concourse. The V braces are heavy timber, circular turned log poles, 15" in diameter. The glulams are cantilevered up to 19' overhanging the curtain wall structure, supported by the V-braces. Another dominant feature of the design is the 25 fooot curtain wall.

Serpentine in plan, the focal concourse extends 900 feet along the convention center and hotel.

Structural Engineer Walter P. Moore says the V brace system fuses two diverse materials into a unified, warm composite with neither material overpowering the other. The 29 sloping V braces march along the curved concourse to support the glulam beams.

A pedestrian bridge connects the center and hotel to a 475 car parking deck.

Branson Landing also includes a Bass Pro Shop, ten restaurants and
numerous shops in the waterfront location on Lake Taneycomo.

The developers report that the building opens August 17 and the first meeting group, the Missouri School Board, is booked for August 24-27. Over 150 events are already scheduled for 2008. About 59,000 visitors checked their web site bransonconvention.com within the past 12 months.