When choosing protective coatings for a major seating expansion at Penn State University Beaver Stadium in 2002, designers executed the perfect game plan by signaling for a proven two-coat system from Tnemec. “It was an excellent project,” acknowledged Tnemec coating consultant Lee Zeigler. “It required four fabricators to manufacture the structural steel, which was both primed and topcoated in their shops.”
The fabricators commercial blast-cleaned the steel in accordance with SSPC-SP6/ NACE No. 4, then spray-applied coat of Series 90-97 Tneme-Zinc, a zinc-rich polyurethane that provides excellent corrosion resistance. The primer has been used at several stadiums including Lambeau Field. A topcoat of Series 530 Omnithane, a moisture-cured aromatic urethane, was spray-applied and provides a silver metallic finish, along with excellent abrasion, moisture and corrosion resistance.
After the steel was erected, field applicators touched up damage to the coating system which was caused during shipping and construction. They decided on a tie coat of Series 27 F.C. Typoxy, a polyamide epoxy, which offers fast-curing and rapid handling capabilities. Coatings were not allowed to be sprayed inside the stadium due to concerns that overspray would land on student and faculty vehicles parked on campus, so both the Typoxy and Omnithane were brush- and roller-applied.
Nearly 8,000 gallons of coatings were required to complete the project, according to Zeigler. “The job went well,” he added. “It was fabricated in the winter and coated in the shops, then erected in the spring, summer and fall. It’s a beautiful stadium.”
The overall project included the addition of approximately 6,000 general admission seats and an estimated 4,000 club seats, as well as 48 enclosed skyboxes in a three-level pavilion. The expansion brought the stadium’s seating capacity to 107,282, making Beaver stadium the second largest collegiate stadium. Other renovations included improved restroom and concession facilities, improved access for the physically challenged and pedestrian circulation patterns, upgraded locker rooms and the addition of new scoreboards with instant-replay capability.