Sports Stadiums – a PENETRON Specialty

One of many recent PENETRON stadium projects, the Arena Castelão in Fortaleza, Brazil recently opened to the public, just in time for next month’s FIFA World Cup 2014. PENETRON crystalline technology provides enhanced concrete durability and a longer life cycle for concrete structures – important aspects of the newest generation of sports stadiums.

Multi-purpose or dedicated sports complexes like Arena Castelão provide state-of-the-art training opportunities and attractive venues for events – and they also generate a tangible economic impact for a whole region. However, the construction of sports stadiums is costly. Once the necessary financing is ensured, finding the right design and specifying a reliable technology for the concrete structure demands experience and know-how.

Key Technology for Big Events

“We’ve done a lot of stadiums over the years. PENETRON has vast experience in the construction of complexes used for global sports events,” explains Christopher Chen, Director of The PENETRON Group. “Our crystalline technology stood behind the Summer Olympics 2008 in China, the FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa, and more recently, the Sochi Winter Olympics 2014 in Russia and the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2014 in Brazil – just to name some of the highlights.”

Large projects like the Arena Castelão in Brazil also increasingly feature environmentally-friendly construction processes. This stadium was expanded to over 60,000 seats to meet FIFA requirements. Notably, work was completed within budget and at a “lower per seat" cost than any of the other FIFA World Cup stadiums in Brazil. Located in close proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, about 60,000m²of concrete was treated with PENETRON crystalline technology.

Further recent showcase projects include:

• Olympic Sports Center Stadium in Qinhuangdao, China, with seating for 33,572, hosted soccer matches during the 2008 Summer Olympics. Over 10,000m2 of concrete stadium seating were coated with PENETRON.
• Green Point Stadium in Cape Town, South Africa, was a major venue for the FIFA World Cup 2010. As an all-weather, multi-purpose facility for 70,000 people, the stadium specified PENETRON ADMIX to treat 1,100m³ of concrete, including the precast seating.
• Bolshoi Ice Palace in Sochi, Russia, includes the Maly Ice Palace and a training rink built for the Winter Olympics; it has a 12,000 seating capacity for ice sports, including ice hockey. PENETRON ADMIX was used throughout the arena’s concrete foundation and walls.

Advantage for Specialized Stadiums

But beyond the well-known sports stadiums, PENETRON crystalline technology is also used in smaller sports venues that face similar structural challenges:

• Howard Lamade Stadium, Williamsport, PA, U.S.A., is the home of baseball's Little League World Series and now has seating for 40,000. PENETRON ADMIX was used in the walls and floor slabs of the reconstruction project.
• GCSU Wellness Center, Milledgeville, GA, U.S.A. The new 101,000 square foot (9,400m2) facility provides space for student fitness, and health services and counseling. PENETRON ADMIX was used for the storm water recycling system, the pool, and the walls and slabs of the structures.
• Cumming Aquatic Center, Cumming, GA, U.S.A., is a 50,000- square-foot facility with two indoor pools – a 50-meter competition pool and a 25-yard instructional pool, as well as an outdoor leisure pool featuring a water slide and lazy river – and the filter storage building (approx. 1,373 sq. feet).

“Sports are a large part of everyone’s lives and modern sports venues enjoy immense popularity around the world,” adds Robert Revera, President and CEO of The PENETRON Group. “That’s why developing more durable and long-lasting concrete structures has been the central focus of our company for almost 40 years. Our success in sports stadiums speaks for itself.”