TENNESSEE TITANS

The Tennessee Titans commissioned a replacement air structure to be installed at their Saint Thomas Sports Park practice facility. The Titans felt their previous structure was not up to par for NFL facility.  The outer fabric was deteriorated and extremely dirty, the interior 1000 watt halogen light system created a dim atmosphere, the HVAC systems did not provide adequate and even temperature rise within the building and the biaxial cable system left the building swaying and vulnerable in storm conditions.

To meet their expectations, we provided TEDLAR coated outer fabric for the project – both translucent fabric for the skylight over the field, and an opaque coated one for the side walls of the dome. Planning for the lighting needs of a professional sports team was done by utilizing the combination of natural and artificial light. The structure was outfitted with the only dome specific LED lighting system on the market - providing 60 foot-candles of indirect light on its own. This lighting system’s success was bolstered by the skylight, which provided hundreds of extra foot-candles of natural lighting into the dome during daylight hours.

Upgrading from the existing coaxial system to the full bias cable net greatly reduced the risk posed by inclement weather conditions. This cable net system is the only cable-reinforced system that reduces the fabric loads in all directions. The full bias net allows for greatly increased structural rigidity during snow and wind loading which prevents the building from swaying, eliminated the possibility of collapse and even prevents tears from propagating. The heating and cooling issues experienced by the previous building were addressed by implementing a triple wall construction to increase the buildings thermal value from R-4 to R-8, and by supplying an additional HVAC unit. The energy efficient HVAC unit provided featured wind and snow sensor automated controls to automatically increase building pressure and temperature in storm conditions.

The project was completed successfully and to the satisfaction of the client; the Titans experienced no interruptions or delays as they seamlessly transitioned to their new facility while in the midst of preparation for the upcoming NFL season.