Article on drogs new stadium
Drogheda to show way with new stadium
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from todays Indo
Gerry
McDermott
EIRCOM League clubs are losing thousands of euro every year because of the poor standard of facilities at most grounds.
They are struggling to rectify the situation because the majority are cash-strapped entities living on a week to week existence and unable to generate the large amount of capital funding need to undertake ground developments.
Under the FAI Licensing programme clubs were asked to draw up a club infrastructure plan which must deliver the criteria looked for by 2010.
This includes a set number of covered seats, bigger dressing rooms, improved floodlighting, proper turnstiles, effective ticketing systems, control rooms, first aid rooms and media facilities.
Meeting their licensing requirements is the primary objective of all clubs and so tight are their budgets that there is usually no money left to include the type of facilities that could generate income for clubs outside of match days like bars, restaurants, conference centres and meeting rooms.
Little wonder then that the FAI and clubs are closely looking at a revolutionary new system that can cut the costs of building sporting infrastructure by up to 50 per cent.
Drogheda United are set to announce that their new 10,000-seater stadium on the edge of the town is to be built by Sports Facilities International.
Permission
Within six months of planning permission being granted, Drogheda United will be handed the keys to a brand new stadium which will be ready to move into and will come with a guaranteed life of at least 60 years. SFI will do everything from building the stands, laying the pitch, installing the floodlights, erecting electronic scoreboards and providing a ticketing system and all for around €10m, or €1,000 per seat.
That's a lot cheaper than the redevelopment of Lansdowne Road which is going to cost €7,300 per seat and that's why SFI are set to revolutionise the sports stadium markets by being able to deliver affordable stadiums up to a capacity of 40,000.
Drogheda United director Chris Byrne explained that the cost savings were a huge attraction for them.
"We have been working on this project for the last two years and went all over Europe looking at stadiums. We saw SFI's work when we visited Gloucester Rugby Club and saw the new stand they had built there for 55 per cent of the cost of a conventional building."
SFI was born after its Project and Operations Director Edward McCarthy was involved in a plan to build a new stadium for Brazilian club Corinthians in Sao Paulo. The project collapsed because the costs were prohibitive and it was while searching for a way to build a stadium without breaking the bank that McCarthy discovered a new way of tackling the project.
"We use steel which is pre-engineered in a factory and then erected on site. We don't need deep foundations.
"The foundations of an orthodox stadium could be 13 metres deep whereas ours would only require foundations that are one or two metres deep.
Savings
"There are huge savings using this modular approach and we offer a turn-key package as well as building stadiums in steps depending on the clients' budget and plans for the future.
"It's basically like working with a Meccano set and we can dismantle a stand and erect it elsewhere if necessary. The flexible construction means that seating capacities can be increased at a later stage by simply removing the roof, raising a tier, and replacing the roof."
SFI are currently building a new 6,000-seater stadium for Scottish club Gretna and a 20,000-seater for Royal Antwerp which will also include a casino plus retail and commercial facilities.
They have also made presentations to UEFA, the FAI, the GAA and the World Cup Cricket Committee and gained approval from each organisation for their stadium concept.
The FAI are also likely to look at the SFI method when it comes to building the proposed 20,000-seater stadium at Abbotstown.
FAI Licensing Manager Bob Breen admits that Eircom League clubs could find the method an attractive way of implementing their club infrastructure plans.
"We are looking at this very closely to see if it can be more cost efficient than the traditional methods because it would have great appeal by delivering better value for money especially as most clubs use government grants to fund their projects," said Breen
