Foxboro, MA
Gillette Stadium
Scope/Solutions
Gillette Stadium serves as home to the New England Patriots and the New England Revolution. The stadium has 68,000 seats on three decks, eighty luxury suites, and over 6,000 club seats. SGH consulted on several problems encountered during the final stages of construction.
Some of the items SGH consulted on include the following:
- Cracking and deterioration of structural precast concrete stadia units and their supporting beams
- Ponding throughout the stadium
- Strength of the curtain wall of the luxury suites to resist wind loads
- Leakage from expansion joints
- Cracked glass handrails
- Apparent mold growth in the curtain wall surrounding the concourse
- Valve joint failure in the pump-assisted high zone grey water system
Highlights of SGH’s work include the following:
- Surveyed structural stadia units using an onsite data capture system that helped streamline the investigation and report the extent of the problems to the owner
- Performed a petrographic examination of concrete in our laboratory to determine the causes of cracking and deterioration
- Evaluated construction tolerances to determine the cause of ponding on the stadia units
- Constructed a scale stadium model for a wind tunnel study to determine wind loads on luxury suite walls for comparison with design assumptions
- Monitored and evaluated grey water system operation, simulated testing of component failure, coordinated hydrodynamic analysis of the system, and determined the probable cause of the failure
Model used for wind tunnel testing
Extracted pipe samples
Concrete bond testing
A C-5 Galaxy performs a flyby over Gillette Stadium, Foxboro, Mass., Nov. 11, 2012, just before kickoff, to an estimated crowd of more than 68,000. The C-5 is assigned to Westover Air Reserve Base, Mass. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Kelly Galloway)
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Project Summary
2003
Completion Date
Solutions
Failure Investigation
Services
Building Enclosures | Advanced Analysis | Structures | Applied Science & Research
Markets
Culture & Entertainment
Client(s)
Monahan & Associates PC | Goodwin Procter LLP
Specialized Capabilities
Repair & Strengthening | Roofing & Waterproofing | Failure Analysis | Materials Science | Microscopy
Key team members
Dean Rutila
Building Technology Division Head, Houston, and Safety Director
Additional Projects
Northeast
Trinity Stadium
After years of use and exposure, the stadium was deteriorating and needed repair. SGH assessed the condition of the 1930s grandstand and designed a rehabilitation program for the concrete structures as part of a major stadium renovation.
Northeast
The Cooper Gallery
SGH was the structural engineer, developed and physically-tested a custom timber moment-resisting connection, and consulted on the building enclosure.