Sports complexes including athletics, swiming, cycling, gymnastics, tennis, basketball, hockey and other large enclosures.
These structures will often involve tensioned membrane roof panels, large span trusses, arches, cablenets or other forms of lightweight structures.
The following articles are in random order:
Entered in the LSAA 2011 Design Awards (Cat 4, 4003)
This project was ambitious from the beginning; a large scale elevated cover over three grandstand seating structures presented a few structural challenges.
The purpose as with many tensile membrane projects was a combination of shade and weather cover. Each seating section required these basic needs met while maintaining a uniform style and aesthetic appeal through out. Our client, The Tamil Nadu Cricket Association, requested minimal connections to the supporting grandstand structure, leaving more space beneath for spectator seating.
The project was designed to create a unique feature to the venue. Often large scale tension membrane roofing contribute a large amount to the look and feel of a venue, it’s a prominent feature and one that needs to be eye-catching and unique.
First Day-Night Cricket Test at the Rennovated Adelaide Oval
The first day-night cricket test was held at the recently renovated Adelaide Oval.
A swinging pink ball was a factor in the very close and low scoring game which Australia managed to win.
Another factor in the success of the inaugral day-night test was the Adelaide Oval with its recently completed new stadiums.
This type of stadia are the kinds of iconic structures that our members are passionate about.
Here are some images that I took in July 2015 - unfortunately not during the test.
The Optus Stadium is the brand new 60,000 seat sports stadium in Perth.
Two of the LSAA member companies - Arup and MakMax - have been involved in the design and construction of the roof structure.
The Arup design team attended the cracking one day cricket game between Australia and England for the first major event at Optus Stadium. The feature of the stadium is the lightweight cantilevering roof that has a clean fabric membrane soffit and those huge speakers pack a punch. Unfortunately we lost the day only by a few runs but the atmosphere was great.
Read more: LSAA Members at the First ODI at the New Optus Stadium
The LSAA 2007 Conference held at the Gold Coast included a site visit to the nearby Robina Stadium which was under construction. The stage of construction was the installation of the tensioned fabric roof panels.
The following are some images taken during that visit.
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium roof in Delhi, India.
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium (JNS) was originally built in 1982 in honour of India's first Prime Minister. Mr. Nehru is credited as the founder of modern India through political and social reform. In preparation for the upcoming 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi this facility is receiving a dramatic update. The crowning achievement to the stadium's rebirth will be the tensile membrane roof, supported by a vast cable net. LSAA members MakMax were awarded the contract to supply and install an ambitious fabric and cable roof design, the structure is now near completion with 50 of the 88 fabric panels installed. Schlaich Bergermann & Partners are the structural engineers.
The following table of Largest Stadiums was found on: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_stadiums_by_capacity
A source of information about Stadiums can be found at http://www.stadiumdb.com
Current Stadiums
The Adelaide Oval is a world class cricket facility that was the focus of a $535 million redevelopment completed in 2014.
The first Test of the 2018-19 season between India and Australia was played at the Adelaide Oval. Congratulations to India for the win but it does seem as though the Aussies have a bit of fight in them. Onto the new stadium in Perth!
Various LSAA Members have been involved in the new roof structures at Adelaide. See this article for example.
Photo Credits: Peter Kneen














Entrant: Tensys Engineers Pty Ltd
- Location: Doha, Qatar
- Client: Lakhwiya Sports Club
- Completion Date: February 2013
This project was entered in the 2013 LSAA Design Awards (Cat 4, #6515)
The development is to create a new stadium for the local Qatar League team ‘Lakhwiya’. The works involve creating a 15,000 seat stadium with 4 grand stand sun shading roofs.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
Lakhwiya Football Club is local league champions in 2012 and 2013. The development is to create a new home stadium for this team. Al Khayyat Development were provided with the brief to carry out a design and build facilities for (not only) the stadium but associated facilities of car parking, gymnasium and ancillary buildings
Structural Design of the Arch and Roof of Wembley Stadium
Kourosh Kayvani, PhD, FIEAust, CPEng
Aurecon, Sydney, Australia
ROOF DESCRIPTION
The aim of the new Wembley Stadium was to design and build a state-of-the-art national stadium, unlike any other in the world. The new stadium, with its elegant exposed steel structure arch, is an international icon as was the old stadium with its twin towers which was built in 1923.
The design brief required the roof not to cover the playing field which lead to one unique aspect of the roof in that it partially retracts over the seats to allow the daylight to reach all points of the pitch and thus a shadow-free playing field.
The retractable roof is formed by seven separate independently driven roof panels totalling 15,000 sqm that move in a parallel motion to the south as they "open" and stack on the top of one another when in a fully "open" position.
With the retracting roof panels all moving to the south, the roof design exploits the opportunity to have a tall, structurally efficient structure on the north side to support the north and south roofs. The solution was to have an elegant and structurally efficient arch which spans the entire width of the stadium's seating bowl (Figure 1).
Email for complete paper.
Entrant: Tensys Engineering Pty Ltd
Location: Robina, Qld. Client: The State of Qld. Major Sport Facilities Authority
Architect: Populous (formerly HOK SVE) Struct. Eng.: SKM Specialist: Tensys Engineering Pty Ltd
Others: Beenleigh Steel Fabrications Pty Ltd Builder: Watpac Limited Fabricator: Hightex GmBh
This project was entered in the LSAA 2009 Design Awards, Category 3 #3066
Skilled Park, located in the suburb of Robina on the Gold Coast, was officially opened in March 2008 and is the home ground of NRL club Jetstar Gold Coast Titans and new football club Gold Coast United Football Club who joined the A-League in 2009.
The multi-purpose sporting and entertainment stadium was constructed over a two-year period and includes seating for 27,400 spectators.
Designed to be suitable for all rectangular field sports including Rugby League, Rugby Union and Football, the stadium includes 100 open corporate boxes
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