Construction facts

Construction Numbers

530 foundation piles driven to a typical depth of 16.5-18 metres.

3,200 tonnes of structural steel and 2,000 tonnes of steel reinforcing

22,000 cubic metres of excavated fill

524 precast concrete seating bleachers in South and North Stands (1,840mconcrete)

1,000 precast concrete flooring units in South and North Stands (11,343m3 floor area using 1,500m3 concrete).

Capacity

 For a main pitch event, the overall venue capacity is 30,500 fans:

South Stand 10,800

North Stand 8,500

West Stand 6,000

East Stand 5,200

In major concert mode, the venue capacity is 35-38,000 fans.

Facilities

Four stands around a rectangular pitch (South, North, West, East)

The Main South Stand has 5 levels including 2 seating tiers

5 lounges and 21 Corporate Suites (South Stand)

12  food and beverage outlets/bars (8 on South Stand, 4 on North Stand, plus additional outlets on East and West Stands).

Stadium Footprint

The Stadium footprint (including buildings, pitch and service yards but excluding University Plaza) is 31,050m2 (3.1 hectares or 7.7 acres).

Construction Timeline

The main roof construction occurs during 2010. The following is an indicative order of construction, actual timings may differ in accordance with the overall construction programme:

• First main steel for roof column arrives on site        Friday 12 February
• First roof column erected                                          March
• Second roof column erected                                      by April
• Main roof truss lifted into place                                May
• First roof arch on site                                                May
• Place first roof arch at the western end                    end June
• Remaining roof arches placed                                   August-December
• Pitch preparation                                                       November onwards
• Roof complete                                                            by January 2011
• Turf preparation                                                         January/February 2011.

ETFE Technology

Forsyth Barr Stadium will have the first ever permanent roof over a natural playing surface using cushions of ETFE (ethylene tetrafluoroethylene) inflated with low-pressure air. ETFE is a transparent thermoplastic polymer chosen for its properties of being lightweight (around 1-2% the weight of glass), resilient, self-cleaning (as its surface is non-stick) and able to transmit sunlight. Grass is able to grow underneath ETFE, as it lets in around 95% of UV from sunlight. The roof structure is also designed to maximise sunlight, angled towards the north to optimise sun in the Southern Hemisphere winter.

• Area of fixed roof: 27,200m2
• Area of ETFE roof 20,558m2 in air-inflated pillows 20 metres long by 5 metres wide
• Main truss length (South Stand): 130 metres
• Five roof arches each with a 105-metre span
• Maximum external height of the main roof is 47 metres, equivalent to a 12-storey building.

Iinternal Roof Height

Forsyth Barr Stadium will be New Zealand’s largest indoor arena. The internal height of roof has been carefully designed to allow room for rugby balls to be kicked. The highest up-and-under rugby kick observed in international and Super 14 games at sea level was 29.4 metres, well within the roof height on the centre line of the pitch at 37 metres. By way of comparison, the usual height of rugby goalposts is around 16 metres.