Design Concern For Seating Area In Stadium Structures

International Journal of Engineering Research Volume No.10, Special Issue No.1 ISSN:2319-6890 (online), 2347-5013(print) 7th&8thMay. 2021 Design Concern For Seating Area In Stadium Structures Devyani Kumavat Bharati Vidyapeeth College of Architecture, Pune, India. Email: devkmvt@gmail.com Ar. Mukta Latkar-Talwalkar Bharati Vidyapeeth College of Architecture, Pune, India. Email: mlt@bvcoa.in Abstract: Stadiums hold a variety of areas, where they require concern regarding the planning of seating area, roofing system, orientation, etc. Depending on the type of sports the concern for planning differs, whether the sports is an outdoor or indoor sports. Due to the growing popularity and participation, many provisions for the spectators are provided inside the stadium such as exhibitions, galleries, etc. The paper aims to study and understand the orientation of the playfield for an outdoor stadium and seating area for an outdoor and indoor stadium. Keywords: Stadium seating area, Orientation, Viewpoints, Playfield, Sightlines, Stands. INTRODUCTION The Stadium is an arena, where primarily it is used for outdoor sports and allows numerous spectators to experience the live sport simultaneously. Stadiums first were designed in ancient Greece and Rome for community gathering and display of strength and talent. The Greek stadiums were constructed in 2 ways cut out of a hillside or on flat ground. Building into the hillside provided natural seating along the banks with good sightlines. Examples of this type of construction are Olympia, Thebes, and Epidauros. The modern stadium, which can still be seen today, had seating and held 50,000 spectators in 46 rows. Like the stadiums, Hippodromes were U-shaped stadiums as shown in figure no.1, and were commonly built on the hillside for naturally rising tiers for the seating area. Similar in dimension to stadium 200m long and 37m wide. in various aspects such as planning a sports arena indoors or outdoors, additional facilities for the spectators inside the stadium, structural systems, roofing systems, etc. Planning a stadium in respect to indoors or outdoors has different specifications and concerns, where the type of sports and the playfield is different, the orientation of field is considered, spectators seating area, environment for the spectators, roofing system, sightlines are considered and differ accordingly. With the growing popularity and participation, different provisions are planned inside the stadium for entertainment and revenue purposes. Planning a stadium with galleries, exhibitions, offices, shops, cafes, banquet halls for VIPs, etc. provides an increased number of visitors inside the stadium even when there is no event held, however, this directly does not affect the seating area but accommodating the huge space below the seating area with these spaces help frequent use rather than dead space. The orientation of the playfield in an outdoor stadium is one of the major concern where it is necessary to consider the comfort of the players while playing the sports and protect them from the weather conditions. A major part of a stadium is the bowl ( Stands ) which is the seating area. Due to the huge scale and shape of the seating area, the viewpoints of the spectators differ technically and individually. The stands generally are placed at the longer side of the playfield but, when planning a stadium with a huge number of spectators the stands are planned around the playfield giving different viewpoints. This research paper gives an idea of how the seating area is planned based on the capacity, sightlines, and factors affecting the orientation of the area. MATERIAL AND METHODOLOGY Figure no.1 Stadiums at times also provide an arena for different events, concerts, festivals, etc., and serve adequate services required for the huge amount of spectators. Stadiums include different areas, specifically a field, safety margins, and a bowl which is a tiered structure surrounding the field for the spectators to stand or sit and view the sport. Over the past years, stadiums have evolved IJER@2021 The research paper is studied and analyzed by the reference of requirements and the reviews of the spectators regarding the stadiums. The specifications provided by the associations Federatio helps in the understanding of the technical aspects of the stadium, whereas the reviews regarding the stadium help understand the user experience. The study helps understand the required 86 International Journal of Engineering Research Volume No.10, Special Issue No.1 orientation of the playfield for an outdoor stadium, which provides an idea for the spectator seating area, where the segregation for the VIPs, spectators, and the media is zoned. The audience preferences define the viewpoints and the most preferred seating areas. To understand and analyze the effectiveness of the various concerns seating area, no. of case studies were analyzed. Reviewing the stadiums through case studies according to the sports arena, help understand the need for an indoor or outdoor provision of a stadium. Depending on the capacity, the increased number in the tiered structure specifics the distance of the last spectator from the playfield which leads to the increase of the height of the seating area. The conclusion for the research paper is analyzed through the guidelines and reviews. The following table below explains the case studies in a comparative form based on visual analysis of the - type of field, capacity, the orientation of field and spectators, etc. Location - Marousi, Athens, Greece. Name of the Complex Athens Olympic Sports Complex. All the stadiums are Olympic stadiums and are located inside the complex. Name of the Stadium Type of Field Type of Stadium Seating capacity Orientation of Playfield Orientation of Spectators First-row distance from the Playfield End row distance from the Playfield Height of the first row from Playfield Olympic Aquatic center Olympic Stadium Olympic Indoor sports center Swimming pool Football Basketball Outdoor Outdoor (partly covered) 69,618 Spectators west of 20 north-south southeast 2 Tier structure around the field northeastsouthwest Indoor 11,500 Spectators 20 west of north-south southeast 2 Tier structure northeast southwest Side rows approx. 10m End row approx. 15m Side rows approx. 100m End row approx. 70m Above the Playfield 5m Side rows approx. 20m End row approx. 28m Side rows approx. 150m End row approx. 100m At the Playfield level 18,500 Spectators northwest-south southeast 3 Tier structure with 2 tier around the field and 1 tier at the longer side northwestsoutheast Side rows approx. 5-6m End row approx. 2-3m Side rows approx. 55m End row approx. 40m At the Playfield ISSN:2319-6890 (online), 2347-5013(print) 7th&8thMay. 2021 The orientation of the playfield The aim is to provide direction needs to be considered, and the natural factors such as wind direction, etc. Generally recommended in the North-South direction to minimize the effect of setting sun on the players. The following orientation is applicable for an outdoor stadiumI. Athletics, Basketball, Croquet, Handball, Lacrosse, Tennis, Netball Between 20 west of north and 35 east of north. II. Football, Soccer, Ruby league, Ruby union Between 20 west of north and 45 east of north. III. Hockey, Polo, Polocrosse - Between 45 west of north and 45 east of north. IV. Baseball, Cricket, Softball - Between 45 west of north and 35 east of north. Roof Covering for an outdoor stadium When planning an outdoor stadium the roof plays an important role to protect the spectators from the natural weather conditions so that the spectators do not get distracted from the game. Distance of the spectators (Indoor and Outdoor stadium) - When planning an indoor or outdoor stadium the distance of the spectator from the playfield is also important. Where an indoor stadium is an enclosed arena with a controlled environment and due to the roof span consideration there are no extra activities involved around the playfield which eventually leads to a closer seating area around the playfield. When planning an outdoor stadium, extra activity provision around the playfield such as Athletics, Pole vault, etc. are provided which increases the distance of the spectators, as well as height from the playfield. The optimal distance from the center of the playfield to the first row of the bowl is 90m and the maximal distance from one corner of the playfield to the end corner of the bowl is 190m. Concern regarding the Seating area (Indoor and Outdoor) Side stands (the ones along the playfield) offer a good view of the pitch (distance is less), specifically near to the center and relatively high. The end corners of the seating area of the playfield give a difficult view to the spectators and disconnect with the event. Whereas the end stands give the struggle to get the depth perception on the pitch. They provide an atmosphere for the vociferous supporters. When events are held in the evening at an outdoor stadium, the west side stands provide a glare-free view. The height for an ideal view is the middle section at the center, neither too high nor too low. Where too low down sense of the event. And too high Results and Tables IJER@2021 87 International Journal of Engineering Research Volume No.10, Special Issue No.1 Sightline - A fixed gradient where the seating area has less number of rows has a sightline of 1:2, but when the number of spectators increases the gradient takes a parabolic curve with superelevation of 12cm for standing places and 15cm for the ISSN:2319-6890 (online), 2347-5013(print) 7th&8thMay. 2021 ACKNOWLEDGMENT I strongly acknowledge Ar. Mukta Latkarfor guiding and inspiring me at every stage of my Architectural journey. I am grateful for this opportunity of appropriate approach, and how to frame the research paper was the major guida REFERENCES seating area. Refer the figure no. 2 Figure no. 2 i. https://www.ksi.is/media/mannvirki/FIFA_Football_Stadiu ms.pdf - ii. https://www.academia.edu/27095297/Neufert_Architects_ Data_Fourth_Edition_By_Wiley_Blackwell - iii. https://showupandplaysports.com/indoor-outdoor Interview question answer. CONCLUSION An indoor or outdoor stadium gives the spectators a different environment, where an indoor stadium provides the spectator a sense of involvement in the event in comparison to an outdoor stadium where the amount and distance are more and chances of getting lost is more. IJER@2021 88