BAYLOR UNIVERSITY MCLANE STADIUM

Located on a 93-acre site, Baylor University McLane Stadium holds 45,000 spectators, with the flexibility to expand to 55,000, and features a bridge crossing the Brazos River connecting the stadium to the campus. In addition to moving football on campus, the Baylor Stadium project is helping to stimulate riverfront development, revitalize downtown Waco and bring jobs and economic development to the region. BuroHappold provided option studies of proposed building geometries and the organization of primary structural systems including superstructure, long span roof structure and foundation systems for the facility.

Baylor University’s stadium is an exemplar project where our process and use of advanced computation tools achieved a high performance design solution tailored to a very tight design budget. The stadium is a collegiate football venue and, uncommon for this type of facility, has a 90 foot long cantilevered canopy over the seating bowl. As a stadium located in Central Texas, the aim was to optimize the roof to provide maximum shade before and during sporting events and as such, resulted in an asymmetrical design. To minimize the weight of the structure, BuroHappold worked with wind-engineering consultant, RWDI, to establish wind loads and arrive at an appropriate level of stiffness in the roof shape. The team then used a parametric modeling tool to optimize the final section sizes of the roof trusses and to incorporate fabricator requirements for shipping and onsite erection of the structure.

The engineering team worked with the local contracting community to establish the best-cost solution for the superstructure and signature roof for the stadium and used BIM as a means to meet design aspirations while remaining mindful of budgetary constraints. The BIM model is built to reflect the sequence of construction and draw out material quantities to make sure the project remains on budget. Because the project was fast-tracked, the structures scope had to be within budget early to achieve an early start date. Using BIM enabled the project team to refine the design, focus on areas where budgetary numbers were perceived high and work collaboratively to find more cost effective solutions. The result is a relatively low cost, light-weight roof canopy, 90 feet in span, a feature that no other collegiate venue in the United States can claim.

Key facts

• Exemplar project which includes river bridge
• 45,000 spectator capacity
• High performance design solution tailored to tight design budget
• 90 ft long cantilevered canopy over seating bowl