This September, the 21,000-seat Little Caesars Arena is scheduled to open in downtown Detroit. The $732.6 million arena will be the new homes to the Detroit Red Wings professional hockey team and the Detroit Pistons basketball team.
The Red Wings is owned by Illitch Holdings, whose Olympia Entertainment division will operate the arena, and whose other holdings include the Detroit Tigers baseball team and the Little Caesars pizza chain.
The eight-story arena, owned by the Downtown Development Authority, will anchor The District Detroit, a 50-block, $1.2 billion, 650,000-sf revitalization project that, when completed, will energize five neighborhoods—Columbia Street, Columbia Park, Woodward Square, Wildcat Corner, and Case Park Village—with new businesses, parks, restaurants, bars, offices, retail, and residential spaces. The District’s event destinations will include six theaters and three multi-use sports facilities.
A unique glass-roofed concourse will connect the arena to the offices and shops around it.
Little Caesars is expanding its headquarters in the District with a new $150 million, nine-story, 234,000-sf office building, the first newly built global headquarters in Detroit in a decade. (Blaze Contracting is this building’s GC. Its completion is expected next year.)
To drum up interest in The District Detroit—which is projected to generate $2.1 billion in local economic impact and 1,100 new permanent jobs—Olympia partnered with Detroit-based Zoyes Creative Group to create The District Detroit Preview Center, whose main feature is two large 3D printed models: one of the arena and one of the District.
The arena is the centerpiece of The District Detroit, a revitalization of 50 blocks in downtown Detroit that will add 650,000 sf of new offices, retail, residential, sports and entertainment space. Image: Stratasys Direct Manufacturing
These are among the most intricately detailed 3D printed models ever created. They include light columns, office interiors, vehicles, and—the piece de resistance—a representation of every fan who would be seated in the arena at capacity.
Zoyes uses a Fortus 450mc 3D production system printer. But it quickly realized that it needed help to complete this project on time. So it hired Stratasys Direct Manufacturing, based in Valencia, Calif., whose arsenal includes a Fortus 900mc 3D printer, to assist in the concept modeling.
“No other company would have been able to jump on board as quickly as [Stratasys] did,” says Rich Rozeboom, who directs Zoyes’s imaging department.
The decision to create such elaborate 3D models “changed everything,” says Tom Wilson, Olympia’s president and CEO. Olympia’s original plan was that it would take six months to complete the models, after which it would start selling suites within the arena. But Zoyes and Stratasys completed the suite models in 40 days. “That changed all of our methods, all of our success models,” says Wilson.
He adds “3D printing makes the arena come to life just by making it real. That model puts you in real Detroit.”
The Building Team for the Little Caesars Arena includes HOK (designer), Barton Marlow/Hunt/White (GCs), Magnusson Klemenic Associates (SE), and Smith Seckman Reid (services engineer). A live webcam of the construction can be viewed here.
Related Stories
| Oct 8, 2013
Toronto Maple Leafs arena converted to university recreation facility
Using steel reinforcement and massive box trusses, a Building Team methodically inserts four new floors in the landmark arena while preserving and restoring its historic exterior.
| Oct 1, 2013
13 structural steel buildings that dazzle
The Barclays Center arena in Brooklyn and the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C., are among projects named 2013 IDEAS2 winners by the American Institute of Steel Construction.
| Sep 26, 2013
6 ways to maximize home-field advantage in sports venue design
Home-field advantage can play a significant role in game outcomes. Here are ways AEC firms can help create the conditions that draw big crowds, energize the home team to perform better, and disrupt visiting players.
| Sep 24, 2013
8 grand green roofs (and walls)
A dramatic interior green wall at Drexel University and a massive, 4.4-acre vegetated roof at the Kauffman Performing Arts Center in Kansas City are among the projects honored in the 2013 Green Roof and Wall Awards of Excellence.
| Sep 19, 2013
What we can learn from the world’s greenest buildings
Renowned green building author, Jerry Yudelson, offers five valuable lessons for designers, contractors, and building owners, based on a study of 55 high-performance projects from around the world.
| Sep 19, 2013
6 emerging energy-management glazing technologies
Phase-change materials, electrochromic glass, and building-integrated PVs are among the breakthrough glazing technologies that are taking energy performance to a new level.
| Sep 19, 2013
Roof renovation tips: Making the choice between overlayment and tear-off
When embarking upon a roofing renovation project, one of the first decisions for the Building Team is whether to tear off and replace the existing roof or to overlay the new roof right on top of the old one. Roofing experts offer guidance on making this assessment.
| Sep 17, 2013
Healthcare project will merge outpatient clinic with YMCA to promote wellness and prevention
Penrose-St. Francis Health Services and the YMCA of the Pikes Peak Region announce collaboration, along with developer The Boldt Company, to create next-generation wellness facility.
| Sep 16, 2013
Study analyzes effectiveness of reflective ceilings
Engineers at Brinjac quantify the illuminance and energy consumption levels achieved by increasing the ceiling’s light reflectance.
| Sep 11, 2013
BUILDINGChicago eShow Daily – Day 3 coverage
Day 3 coverage of the BUILDINGChicago/Greening the Heartland conference and expo, taking place this week at the Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza.