Location - Wales

Sector - Stadia

Products - Colorcoat HPS200® in Goosewing Grey and Hamlet (now superseeded by Colorcoat HPS200 Ultra®), Trisomet®, and Celsius® 355

Client - Swansea City Football Club and the Ospreys (Neath and Swansea) rugby team

Architect - TTH Architects

Roofing contractor - Allmass Cladding Systems

Year - 2003

Environment - Inland

The Liberty Stadium, Swansea, was developed to create a first class sporting venue for football and rugby in the region, catapulting the city into the premier league of sporting facilities. The stadium is the new home of Swansea City Football Club and the Ospreys (Neath and Swansea) rugby team. 

The building was designed with top class facilities, including 20,000 seats, 29 Executive Boxes, hospitality and Function Suites as well as office accommodation and the capacity to accommodate commercial exhibitions and wedding receptions. The pitch has been designed to stage at least 60 games per season. Four tunnels at each corner enable a consistent flow of air throughout the stadium. 

The challenge

TTH Architects were commissioned to create a stadium that would reflect the region’s passionate love of sport, ready for opening for the 2005-2006 sporting season. With a history of experience in building stadia, the architectural practice designed a state of the art structure, located in the heart of Swansea. 

The specification of steel as a cladding material was important to the design of the building. The architects wanted a material with the flexibility to adapt to the unusual design, which could mould itself to the bowl shaped stadium contours. The material had to provide high performance and durability but also accommodate a distinct colour strategy. 

The solution

Roofing contractors, Allmass Cladding Systems were responsible for the installation of the cladding to the roof and, according to Ray Massey of Allmass, Colorcoat HPS200® was the obvious choice. “We liaised closely with Building Systems UK (A Tata Steel Enterprise), to ensure the best cladding solution for such a prestigious building,” he commented.

The Trisomet® panels comprised double-sided Colorcoat HPS200® and were used for all areas of the roof exposed to the elements. The use of these panels meant that greater strength could be achieved from the interlocking liner providing greater resistance to loading and therefore allowing the product to span further distances.

The inclusion of the market leading Confidex® Guarantee was also a major asset for the building owners, providing peace of mind for 25 years.