Retractable roofs ensure that a stadium can be used for purposes besides sporting events, such as concerts, exhibitions and shows. Clients and developers need to carefully weigh in on the legacy of a stadium – in other words, what will the stadium be used for after a prestigious event has passed? Very few retractable roof stadiums are alike, and each one has their own support, traction and control systems that enable the roofing panels to safely and reliably fold back, retract or slide off the top of each other in order to expose the area they cover.īuilding a solid business case for a retractable roof is key. Retractable roofs require clever design because they need to be able to move hundreds of thousands of kilograms of steel, glass, cladding and ceiling material, and mechanical and electrical services in a matter of minutes. This provides flexibility in creating the level of required level of weather protection while maintaining optimum play conditions, fan experience, and conditions for natural grass to grow. Today, retractable roofs – the next-generation of roofing systems – are convertible and can be opened up to let the sun shine in on good weather days, and closed during bad weather. In the past, many popular, multi-purpose stadia roofs were simply domed.
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In this article, Aurecon explores the successful design of these roofs in order to maximise both fan experience and all-important return on investment. Many modern stadium roofs are retractable because this creates maximum flexibility however retractable roofs present their own set of unique challenges. Stadia roofs are complex structures which require significant architectural and engineering effort. Fans flock to local and international sports stadiums to see their favourite sports team challenge their competitors, to watch concerts, attend national celebrations and record highlights on their smart phones in real-time – and a stadium’s roof can make or break the experience that they have.