Project Outline: Bartal, Brubaker, Paladino

Future Building Comparison

Description of Project:

In our project, we propose to study the current state of the art sports arena, and compare it to what an arena will look like in the future. Football stadiums, baseball fields, and basketball / hockey arenas house leagues with products worth billions of dollars and service tens of thousands of people at a time. As such, these arenas are typically able to spend money exploring new technologies to better present the products and give fans a more enjoyable experience. Newly constructed stadiums typically have features that aren’t feasible in other buildings, and it can be assumed that in the future, stadiums will continue to be on the cutting edge of incorporating intelligent design aspects. We will look at stadiums constructed or renovated within the last 5-10 years and point out unique technological features (such as the fantasy football lounge currently being constructed in the new San Francisco 49ers’ stadium) or aspects of intelligent design. We will then project what stadiums will look like in the future and provide specific examples of how intelligent design features could be incorporated.

Why Chosen:

            As a group, all of us are sports fans who have been to several stadiums throughout our lives. We all have distinct memories of these stadiums, and we all have had thoughts about how we could improve a stadium to better serve the fans and players. As a result, we wanted to look at some examples of new stadiums to see what they got right, and to have an opportunity to write about how these structures could still be improved through future technologies.

Relation to Intelligent Buildings:

            Our project is directly related to intelligent buildings because we are projecting how stadiums will add more intelligent features to improve fan and player experiences. We will be looking at new technologies, as well as current technologies which are not currently utilized in sporting arenas.

Challenges:

            The major challenge for our group will be in trying to come up with new ways to use technology in stadiums, as state of the art stadiums are generally already very advanced. Another challenge may be in finding information on future stadiums’ construction plans, as owners and design firms may wish to hide this information until the stadiums are ready to open.

Outline:

• Introduction – purpose of paper
• Description of “normal” state of the art facilities
• Specific examples of modern stadiums and cutting edge technological features
• General overview of how stadium needs will change / how these needs can be met in the future
• Specific example of new intelligent features that could be added to stadiums
• Conclusion

References:

Honeywell. Case Study: Wembley Stadium. Building Solutions . Honeywell. Honeywell Building Solutions, July 2007. Web. 31 Jan. 2014. <https://buildingsolutions.honeywell.com/NR/rdonlyres/7B0049E2-4C04-4B2D-926C-01A983367074/116859/7b0049e24c044b2d926c01a983367074.pdf>.

Sherlock, Greg. "The Emergence of the Intelligent Venue." POPULOUS. Populous, 13 May 2013. Web. 31 Jan. 2014. <http://populous.com/posts/the-emergence-of-the-intelligent-venue-stadium-design/>.

Sherlock, Greg. "USA Today Sports Weekly and Populous Designing the Future College Football Experience Comments." POPULOUS. Populous, 16 Jan. 2014. Web. 31 Jan. 2014. <http://populous.com/posts/usa-today-sports-weekly-and-populous-designing-the-future-college-football-experience/>.

Comments:

Signe –

Great topic Signe! I feel like people so often don’t realize how much of an impact natural light can have on their experience in a room and ultimately an entire building. That’s an amazing fact that you told Brian about stores selling 40% more when they use natural daylight, and I can personally testify to not being as productive when I’m not in natural light – on my last co-op I worked in a bay of cubicles in a room with no windows, not tall enough to stand up in but not wide enough to sit down in, and let me tell you, it did NOT help me be productive.   One might even say it was…torturous.

Ah but I digress.

I think I would be interesting for you also to comment on how much architects consider the sun when designing a building. I know that when I was in Spain for my architecture trip, the sun was always commented on and how it influenced natural light. Perhaps touch on some architectural “strategies” in utilizing the sun! Great idea though and best of luck!

Brian –

Brian, great idea! The question you pose is one that should undoubtedly be considered. With all of the study being invested toward intelligent building design and sustainability alike, it’s important to analyze how they are developing and whether or not they are diverging or complimenting each other. Your investigation could very well provide an educated analysis of just that. My group is very interested in seeing what you conclusion you ultimately arrive at, good luck!

Ian -

Great topic, Ian. 3D printing is the first technology in our generation that I feel our generation is really impressed with, if that makes any sense. It's truly revolutionary in its potential and can truly impact the world in so many ways. Your project will help not only educate us about the basics of 3D printing, but also delve in deeper into a new and quickly expanding technological field.