Super Bowl Stadium Draws Parallels To Local Stadium Needs

Feb. 3, 2011 - PRLog -- Though the retractable roof and end zone walls will likely be closed on February 6 during the Super Bowl, fans and attendees at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas can still marvel at the world’s greatest sports stadium and the iconic equipment designed by Uni-Systems, LLC, that helps make the stadium so versatile.

Working closely with the architect, general contractor, and structural engineers that designed Cowboys Stadium, the cross-disciplinary engineering team at Uni-Systems, a local firm in Robbinsdale, Minnesota, designed the components that allow the stadium’s state-of-the-art scoreboard, massive end zone window walls, and incredible retractable roof to move with the push of a button.

The retractable roof provides an opening of 256x410 feet and travels along the stadium’s challenging 23.9-degree sloped arches using a rack-and-pinion system. Exactly 128 toothed wheels (pinions) fit and rotate along a toothed bar (the rack), driving the entire mechanized system with a remarkable amount of power as the roof climbs its steep incline. When the roof panels retract, moving down the slope, the gearing uses regenerative braking to generate power that is fed back into the stadium’s power grid while gravity does the work.

The roof, when open, mimics the classic hole that was in the Texas Stadium roof, the previous home of the Dallas Cowboys. With the roof closed, however, fans and players are protected from heavy rains and winds, as well as cold weather. Super Bowl attendees will enjoy the climate-controlled warmth inside the stadium while the cold temperatures sweeping across the nation are kept outside.

“Cowboys Stadium represents one of our greatest successes” said Bart Riberich, president of Uni-Systems. “Cowboys fans get to watch their team in one of the world’s most beautiful stadiums surrounded by the very best that modern architecture and engineering has to offer. And when the weather permits it, the roof and walls can be opened up, giving the fans a true outdoor football experience.”

The collapse of the roof at Mall of America Field and negotiations taking place for a new stadium present Minnesotans with a similar possibility. Though many Minnesota football fans are excited by the idea of watching the Vikings play in an outdoor stadium, Pete Fervoy, business development manager at Uni-Systems, argues that Minnesotans can get a much greater impact with a new retractable-roof stadium.

“Once the decision is made to build a stadium with a roof,” said Fervoy, “the additional cost for making that roof retractable is only 1 percent to 2 percent of the overall cost of the stadium. We don’t have to take away outdoor football from the fans. The benefits of a retractable roof are easily attainable and would come from a well established company in the Twin Cities’ own backyard.”

Uni-Systems was established in 1968, but became involved with retractable stadium roofs in 1996 when the company designed systems for Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. Since then, Uni-Systems has become internationally recognized for its expertise with those mechanized systems, having designed, fabricated, and installed six of the last seven retractable roof mechanization systems in North America, including the famous Cowboys Stadium.

“We’re eager to get involved with any new stadium plans,” said Riberich. “We’re here, and we’re a part of the community. We want Minnesota to have the best stadium it can get, and we’re ready to do our part to give the Vikings a stadium legacy that can rival that of the Cowboys.”

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Uni-Systems is internationally known for its innovative designs in kinetic architecture, in which transformative, mechanized structures change with climate, need or purpose. Its engineers work with clients to develop unique solutions that suit exactly what their clients require. Uni-Systems has become especially recognized in the professional sports industry for its numerous retractable roof mechanization systems and consultation services. www.uni-systems.com