Materials Used:
Stadium seating is aluminum planking with a structural steel frame. The suite floors at various concourse levels are concrete over metal deck. Conventional concrete pad footings were utilized at the foundation.

Project Highlights:
The Ford Tower addition to this D-shaped super speedway is over 180 feet high. The addition entails almost 11,000 new stadium seats and blends in with the existing speedway grandstands. The task of adding suites to existing concrete grandstands is very complicated due to the dynamic interaction between the two structures. We analyzed the double-deck seats using 3D modeling in order to characterize the behavior of the new seats and how they interface with the upper and lower grandstands. In addition, this project had a fast-track construction schedule because all on-site work had to occur within the five month window between racing seasons.

Materials Used:
Aluminum planking with a structural steel frame. Foundation structure is concrete caissons.

Project Highlights:
This half mile oval super speedway is one of the largest capacity speedways in the country. The 160 foot tall grandstand provides seating for 160,000 fans with 22 sky boxes. Brooks Ransom Associates has completed 43,826 stadium seats at the Bristol Motor Speedway, including two new seating levels, two concourse levels and two stair towers. In addition to the speedway construction schedule constraints, this project presented a number of interesting challenges. The new structures had to be isolated from the existing grandstands, which required modeling of both the new and existing structures. Between turns 2 and 3 there were complex challenges in mating the new foundation with existing retaining walls and at-grade level facilities. Along one stretch, the site grading varied so significantly that 16 different frame lines had to be modeled.

Materials Used:
Stadium seating materials are aluminum planking with a structural steel frame. Concourse floors are constructed with concrete over metal deck. The foundation system consists of conventional concrete pad footings.

Project Highlights:
Brooks Ransom’s role in this new speedway project included the stadium seating, the Race Control Tower, the VIP Seating Area, concourse design, stairs, ramps, and elevators. There are only a handful of structural engineering firms in the country with the experience and expertise to design these enormous and complicated structures in an economical manner. Please see information on our Full Scale Bleacher Testing on the Special Project Profile page.

Materials Used:
Stadium grandstand seating materials are aluminum planking supported by structural steel purlins and horizontal beams.  Steel columns with conventional foundations support the stadium grandstand seating materials.  All structural steel is hot dipped galvanized to deter corrosion from weather and protection against dissimilar materials such as aluminum.

Project Highlights:
The grandstand seating structural framing system is labeled as "Horizontal Beam Bleacher" which provides the following benefits for fast track projects:

• Stringer design is usually limited to two designs
• Horizontal beam design is usually limited to two designs
• Column spacing in length of grandstands is typically 18'-0" o.c. with varying bay spacing in front to back direction of grandstand
• Fabrication is reduced due to modular or repetitive design
• Weight of required steel is optimized

The lateral resisting system consists of stringers and horizontal beams.  These transfer wind and sway loads through combined strong and weak axis of the members.  Dead Man foundations are utilized at the low end or front of grandstand for front to back, transverse direction, wind shear loads.  The sway loads parallel to the length of the grandstands are resisted by alternating vertical tension rod bracing between the structural steel columns at 18'-0" o.c.

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