Tag Archives: stadium

Is It a Sign or Cool Stadium Façade?

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Regions Field, Birmingham, AL

By: Jane Martinsons, Metal Construction Association

Technically speaking, it’s a façade. But either way, this eye-catching western exterior of Regions Field in Birmingham, AL, sends a clear message of civic pride to passersby, locals and visitors alike, who are driving along a nearby elevated highway.

The city has reason to be proud. First, its new minor-league stadium, clad in metal by CENTRIA, was named Ballpark of the Year by Baseballparks.com.  Second, the Birmingham Barons Double-A baseball club just capped off its inaugural season in the new ballpark by winning its division title.

According to an upcoming feature article in Metalmag, available mid November, the towering letters are cut with a unique, inside-out effect. Upper panels were cut to outside parameters; lower panels were cut to the inside parameters. CENTRIA’s EcoScreen® perforated screenwall helps limit sunlight exposure to the interior and creates an interesting aesthetic effect.

Birmingham baseball fans love the façade, of course.

Other design elements of the 245,000-sq-ft, 8,500-seat stadium include CENTRIA single-skin metal panels on a mixed-medium exterior.  Among other features, the metal panels help promote the southern city’s industrial heritage and complement brick, ironwork, and steel buildings in the surrounding area.

Ballpark shot WEB

High School Football Stadium, Texas Style

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Allen High School Football Stadium, Allen, TX

By Jane Martinsons, Metal Construction Association

Sure, everything is bigger in Texas, and that includes a high school football stadium so grand and high-budget that it garnered national attention last year. The $60 million Allen High School football stadium, located in the fast-growing Dallas suburb of Allen, TX, features many architectural bells and whistles, including concrete seats for 18,000, a towering upper deck, a spacious weight room, and practice areas for the school’s wrestling and golf teams. With its 100,000 square feet of metal composite material (MCM) panels, the structure looks more like a college stadium.

According to Zeke Miller, President , The Miller-Clapperton Partnership, Inc. @thepanelguys, Austell, GA, metal is a natural fit for stadiums of all types. “Obviously this project is like a dream assignment, where certain features lend pizzazz, and MCM panels fit the bill.” He adds that MCM panels are the modern day sheet metal because they do not oil can, are low maintenance and durable, and provide design flexibility. The paneling itself can be clad with decorative metal, which is perfect for all stadiums.

The only drawback to stadium projects is that there is no messing around with deadlines, Miller says, because the football season always begins on schedule. Miller-Clapperton, whose projects include the Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at the University of Florida, is currently hoping that his MCM panels will be incorporated into the design of the new Atlanta Falcons Stadium that is scheduled to open for the 2017 NFL season.

Since the stadium opened in August 2012, Allen High School’s Eagles football team hasn’t lost a single home game, but Miller resists attributing the streak to anything associated with the stadium’s metal composite paneling.  Still, with all the publicity surrounding the “most expensive high school stadium in America,” Miller says that he kind of wishes that the stadium was better known for its panels rather than the other way around.

Metal Construction in Denver: Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium

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Sports Authority FieldBy: John Ryan, Metal Construction Association

We promised to share some of our favorite examples of metal construction in Denver as we get closer to the AIA National Convention from June 20-22 at the Colorado Convention Center. Here’s our first:

Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium

Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium opened in September, 2001, and features insulated metal panels (IMP) from Centria, as well as Reynobond aluminum metal composite material panels (MCM) from Alcoa.

Best known as the home of the NFL’s Denver Broncos, Mile High Stadium has been home to the likes of Peyton Manning and Tim Tebow. The metal stadium also was the venue for the 2008 Democratic National Convention, as well as concerts from bands including U2 and the Eagles.

Formerly known as Invesco Field at Mile High Stadium, Sports Authority signed a 25-year agreement for the naming rights in 2011. That should be a safe investment because the metal wall panels on that stadium will be looking great and performing well for many years to come.