By: Jabina Shrestha
University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale with retractable roof and roll-out field is its kind in North America. The exterior theme of the stadium is barrel cactus designed by architect Peter Eisenman. The stadium occupied 25 acres of land and stadium field is 26 feet below the ground level and structures rises up to 207 feet above the ground level. The stadium has 63,400 seats with expandable limit of 73,719 seats. The construction of stadium began on July 30, 2003, starting with the excavation of 860,000 cubic yards of dirt. The stadium was completed in August 2006. The cost of stadium was $ 455 million in which stadium alone cost for $395.4 million, $41.7 million for site improvements, and $17.8 million for the land. The major contributions for stadium were from the owner Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority followed by the Arizona Cardinals and City of Glendale.
Before the construction started in Glendale, the project itself was in lawsuit, funding challenges and location changes between Mesa, Tempe and Glendale. Due to the flight path of Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, the proposed location at Tempe was cancelled. Finally, after a year and half the location was final in Glendale. Although the site/location has been changed and different physical condition has been changed. Retractable roof and moving field remain the same.
Retractable Roof: There are two large panels that act as the retractable roof. The roof consists of Brunel roof trusses and Bird Air fabric (a translucent fabric best known in Mountain America for its use on the main terminal building of Denver International Airport). The roof was built on the ground and lifted in place. Heavy-lifting specialist Mammoet, based in The Netherlands, was brought in to lift the roof into place during a rainy week in February. The procedure went smoothly, at a 20-ft-per-hour pace.
Moving Field: The stadium moving field weighs 17 million pounds, which moves over 13 rails using 542 steel wheels powered by 76 one horse power motors. The field reside most of the year and get its nourishment, maintenance, and grooming. The field tray will be 234 feet wide by 403 feet long, and take approximately 65 minutes to move into/out of the stadium.
The Stadium was built in sections like pie rather than building the facilities in layers from the foundation up, making construction more economical and efficient. The construction activities were parallel. Many activities were constructed side by side, to finish project on planned date. After finishing the installation of roof most of the in-site activities were carried out.
The contract was design/ build. The general contractor for the construction was Hunt Construction Group. According to contract the Owner Arizona Tourism and Sports Authority can penalized the both Hunt Construction Group and the Arizona Cardinals if the stadium is not finished according to the contract. And the overrun cost has to be bear by both Hunt Construction and the Arizona Cardinals. So the construction was schedule driven. It had to be finished by the August 2006. Finally it was completed by the planned date and was ready for the 2007 Fiesta Bowl College football game.
References:
1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Phoenix_Stadium
2) http://constructor.construction.com/coverStories/archives/2006-09.asp
3) New Stadium for Arizona Cardinals- Rocky Mountain Construction
4) http://www.precisionheavyhaul.com/PHH/Pg/ProjectsAzCardinals.htm
Before the construction started in Glendale, the project itself was in lawsuit, funding challenges and location changes between Mesa, Tempe and Glendale. Due to the flight path of Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, the proposed location at Tempe was cancelled. Finally, after a year and half the location was final in Glendale. Although the site/location has been changed and different physical condition has been changed. Retractable roof and moving field remain the same.
Retractable Roof: There are two large panels that act as the retractable roof. The roof consists of Brunel roof trusses and Bird Air fabric (a translucent fabric best known in Mountain America for its use on the main terminal building of Denver International Airport). The roof was built on the ground and lifted in place. Heavy-lifting specialist Mammoet, based in The Netherlands, was brought in to lift the roof into place during a rainy week in February. The procedure went smoothly, at a 20-ft-per-hour pace.
Moving Field: The stadium moving field weighs 17 million pounds, which moves over 13 rails using 542 steel wheels powered by 76 one horse power motors. The field reside most of the year and get its nourishment, maintenance, and grooming. The field tray will be 234 feet wide by 403 feet long, and take approximately 65 minutes to move into/out of the stadium.
The Stadium was built in sections like pie rather than building the facilities in layers from the foundation up, making construction more economical and efficient. The construction activities were parallel. Many activities were constructed side by side, to finish project on planned date. After finishing the installation of roof most of the in-site activities were carried out.
The contract was design/ build. The general contractor for the construction was Hunt Construction Group. According to contract the Owner Arizona Tourism and Sports Authority can penalized the both Hunt Construction Group and the Arizona Cardinals if the stadium is not finished according to the contract. And the overrun cost has to be bear by both Hunt Construction and the Arizona Cardinals. So the construction was schedule driven. It had to be finished by the August 2006. Finally it was completed by the planned date and was ready for the 2007 Fiesta Bowl College football game.
References:
1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Phoenix_Stadium
2) http://constructor.construction.com/coverStories/archives/2006-09.asp
3) New Stadium for Arizona Cardinals- Rocky Mountain Construction
4) http://www.precisionheavyhaul.com/PHH/Pg/ProjectsAzCardinals.htm
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