Gelredome Stadium, the Netherlands

Gelredome Stadium in the city of Arnhem (the Netherlands) is a multifunctional events arena and home to local football club, Vitesse. The 30,000-seater stadium offers not only the latest in retractable roof and turf technology, but has introduced environmental features covering energy, water and even recyclable seats.

Designed by Alynia Architecten Harlingen BV, the multi-functional venue was first conceived in 1986, but the foundation stone was not laid until ten years later. Gelredome has a movable roof weighing 800 tonnes. The Gelredome pitch is in a container. Four computer-controlled hydraulic machines bring the container weighing 11 million kilos into the stadium at a speed of 90 centimetres a minute; this takes just a few hours. In the construction of Gelredome, every possible consideration has been given to the environment, with an environmentally friendly heat and cold storage system providing heating in the winter and cooling in the summer.

The energy and water company NUON appeared as a main sponsor of the football stadium and their environmental features attracted a European Commission grant to demonstrate their application for similar large-scale building projects. Groundwater extracted from aquifers through 80-meter-deep wells is the primary heat source for the heat pumps whose 410 kW capacity supplies 70 percent of the heat required for the arena and playing field. The remainder comes from solar-assisted gas-fired boilers. Summer cooling is limited to the air handling system serving various function rooms around the arena perimeter. Using ground energy storage with heat pumps, says groundwater advisor IF Technology, offers a 45-percent energy savings compared with a conventional installation of gas-fired boilers for heating and chillers for cooling. A 112-square-meter array of solar panels produces hot water for showers, toilets, and kitchens and a natural gas savings of 8,000 cubic meters per year. A 320-square-meter array of photovoltaic cells augments the building's power needs and generates a 30,000 kWh surplus for sale to the grid. And, of course, the fans sit on recycled plastic seats.

As well as being a high-tech, cutting edge sports stadium and home to SBV Vitesse, who played their first match there in March, 1998 (defeating NAC Breda 4-1), it is also an entertainment and events center. Anticipating the effect of such a facility on the surrounding environment, a number of measures were also introduced to reduce the level of noise pollution and the impact the development would have on the surrounding area.

LINK:
http://www.vitesse.nl/