The new sports arena of the city of Salvador, designed to host the 2014 FIFA World Cup Soccer games in the state of Bahia, brings new horizons for the local population with opportunities for employment, ‘social insertion’ and environmental commitment even before it is ready
It’s about 11 A.M. on this Friday, April 27th in Salvador (Bahia). The weather is very hot. Thermometers are reading about 33oC (91.4oF). The sky is almost cloudless and a fine layer of dust seems to cover everything, penetrating our pores. Looking down on the scene from high above, the movement - the incessant coming and going of men and machines - makes it seem like what we have before us is a gigantic anthill. All this activity is caused by little more than three thousand men, hired at this peak phase of work on the construction of the new Arena Fonte Nova (Fonte Nova Arena).
The initiative is cause for pride among the citizens of the state of Bahia who repeatedly assert that their arena ranks second in progress in the race against the clock among the stadiums scheduled to receive the 2014 FIFA World Cup games. With over 60% of physical progress in construction, the Fonte Nova Arena came in second only to the stadium of city of Fortaleza, in Ceará, according to the last assessment made by FIFA. "But Fortaleza’s stadium is just a refurbishing job. It didn’t start from scratch, like ours," say natives of Bahia who are always on hand, ready to set things straight. At this time, the works which were assigned to ‘Consórcio Fonte Nova Negócios e Participações S.A’ - a consortium established between the Norberto Odebrecht and OAS companies - are at the phase structural construction with all of the spectator stands almost concluded (around 95%), and completion scheduled for the end June.
Provincial boosterisms aside, there’s no denying that what we have here is one grand job that is already victorious when we consider the challenges that have been overcome and those still to come. To begin with, there was the controlled demolition (aka implosion) of the old Octavio Mangabeira Stadium; inaugurated back in January 1951 and closed in 2007, after the partial collapse of its upper stands due to absolute lack of maintenance. The demolitions of the lower ring of the Fonte Nova spectator stands and of the Antônio Balbino Sports Gymnasium and the water park, both located beside the Fonte Nova stadium, had already been performed in the first half of 2010 using a mechanized system. What remained to be done was to demolish the large structure of the upper ring of the stadium using the method of building implosion which was chosen following assessment that it was safer and more economical. About 700 pounds of dynamite were enough for the whole thing to come tumbling down in just 17 seconds, as desired, on August 29th, 2010.
The location of the project - in the densely populated urban center of Salvador, surrounded by government and residential buildings - made this work of engineering even more challenging. Various measures to mitigate risk had to be taken, such as rerouting of vehicle traffic in the region, evacuation of the area, training of the population in the vicinity - as well as tips on care to be taken with regard to windows and breakable objects. Information was disseminated through presentations providing details on the project and the phase that would follow, distribution of pamphlets to the population, and announcements in mass media such as TV, radio and newspapers. In addition, there was even the establishment of a structure to provide medical care in the event of emergencies. Fortunately, the few cases that required assistance were those of people who were emotionally impacted by the images of the old stadium turning into a mountain of rubble.
José Luis Góes, director of engineering for the construction consortium says that the operation was a complete success. So much so that it has become a case that is continually presented by Arcoenge - the company in charge of performing the implosion, and CDI - a U.S. company that was responsible for providing consulting for the operation.
The next challenge was to find a way to make good use of the solid debris that resulted from demolition of the old structure. This was among the premises that were set by the construction consortium under the sustainability program for the project. Result: No less than 95% of all such material - 77,000 tons of concrete and steel - was recycled. All the concrete was crushed at the jobsite itself and turned into gravel for the replacement of soil and for paving of roads and service areas, especially those where there is traffic of very large equipment - there are cranes of as much as 550 tons at work in the project.
Steel that was separated from the concrete was sent to steel mills in region for reuse as a raw material. This level of reuse of material helped to avoid countless trips by trucks to dispose of the material in dumps and landfills, thus reducing emissions of carbon dioxide by such vehicles into the environment. To José Luis Góes, this was a great lesson in sustainability.
With the advancement of work, another challenge presented itself: the foundations. The topography of the area of construction is very uneven (with different levels) and is very heterogeneous from a geotechnical standpoint. Furthermore, proximity with the ‘Tororó’ dike meant the presence of underground water tables which required a variety of solutions in terms of the arena’s foundation.
But the main challenge in the arena’s project is the race against the clock. To have the stadium ready in December 2012 for the start of commissioning by FIFA, a decision was made to set up a plant at the jobsite to manufacture precast construction elements on location. "The structure of the stadium is mixed. About 70% consists of precast and 30% of cast in-situ elements. It is precisely the peripheral pillars that are all cast in situ (on location). We have two major partners to supply us with precast elements manufactured off the site. One is located on the outskirts of Salvador, in Simões Filho. Our other supplier brings parts from as far as Recife, in the state of Pernambuco. But since we have to accelerate the work for the Confederations Cup, we had to set up this structure," said José Luis Góes, who has some 2,000 precast elements in stock today, ready for installation.
To further speed up work, a concrete plant managed by Filirent was also set up at the jobsite. "We have a plant with a nominal production capacity of 50 m3 per hour. This is a sizable plant which fully meets our needs and enables us to mitigate any risk of delay in the execution of services due to delays by a supplier. We are self-sufficient in our supply of concrete, celebrates the director of engineering for the construction consortium Fonte Nova Negócios e Participações S.A..
He reveals that a very important phase of the work has now begun and will determine the completion of the project at the end of this year - the beginning of the assembly of the roof structure. "We are beginning to install the compression rings for the roof of the arena. And that gives us confidence that we can meet the deadline for conclusion of the work," he says.
José Luis Góes explains that the solution adopted for covering the Fonte Nova Arena is unprecedented; it has never been attempted in Brazil. "It consists of a tensile-structure that is, in part, a metallic structure but has a compression ring consisting of cables and a tensioned membrane. The fact is that this material is not produced in Brazil. Thus, the construction consortium's decision was to hire a turn-key solution abroad, instead of spitting up the purchase of parts of the roof covering. By doing so, we are mitigating the risk involved in placing orders piecemeal and instead buying a ‘package solution’. Since the cables are made in Italy and the membrane is made in the United States, for example, we hired a company capable of integrating all of this.
Environmental sustainability
For the managers of the new Fonte Nova Arena project, ensuring proper disposal of solid residues resulting from the demolition of the old structure was not enough. They hired a consulting firm to meet other requirements so as to achieve LEED certification granted by non-governmental organization the Green Building Council (GBC) to environmentally sustainable projects.
The first goal of the project managers has already been achieved: of the 110 possible points to be scored, 45 have already been achieved. Since May 2010, all of the clay that has been removed from the site has been used to cover landfills. Soil has been reused in several social projects such as community vegetable gardens. The only waste is not reused is sanitary sewage. The stadium itself will be covered with a translucent membrane which will provide more natural lighting and generate energy savings. The type of structure to be used in the roof reduces the consumption of steel by 30% to 40%. In the design of the project, rainwater will be collected for use in cleaning, toilets and watering of lawns in addition to the use of solar energy for water heating. Rainwater collected from the roof of the stadium will be diverted to a large reservoir and saved for reuse. The same thing will happen with the water drained from playing field.
The total rainwater storage capacity in the design of the Arena Fonte Nova is 698,060 liters. Annually, 37 thousand cubic meters of rainwater will be collected by this system, which means savings of 72% during the rainy season and 24% during periods of drought.
In addition, the stadium will be equipped with energy-saving lighting and water-saving low-flush toilet systems.
The project will also provide preferred parking for low CO2 emission vehicles, such as those equipped with flex-fuel engines that run on ethanol, and for vehicles used in carpooling/ride-sharing.
Consumption of power by the Arena Fonte Nova was optimized compared to a standard industrial electrical installation. In this new equipment, lamps providing greater energy-efficiency and durability, such as 25W T-5 lamps, are to be used with greater efficiency and durability of the type 25W T-5, resulting in savings of 35% in power. By using electronic ballasts instead of electromagnetic ballasts we can ensure savings of about 30%. One can therefore consider a total reduction of about 32.5%, using 25W T-5-lamps and electronic ballasts, compared to a traditional system (40W T-10s) with electromagnetic reactors. The flood lamps illuminating the field also have state-of-the-art energy efficiency.
For the construction consortium, it is estimated that in seven and a half years all the investments made in sustainable actions will result in profit in relation to the amount of capital invested.
Social Sustainability
Along with measures to reduce environmental impacts, the consortium in charge of building the Arena Fonte Nova has been adopting a series of social programs. One is the Inclusion Program for the Homeless/Street Dwellers. In partnership with the Comunidade Igreja da Trindade (Trinity Church Community), the consortium developed the program which provides for the identification, training, creation of self-sustainable means, and professional qualification of such individuals. At first, 25 former street dwellers were admitted to work as helpers in production. In the second phase, another 88 homeless people received vocational training with courses for Masons, Carpenters, Assembler of Scaffolding and Hairdressers.
In addition, a training program was established in partnership with the Department of Justice of the State of Bahia for the employment of prison inmates serving their sentences under a semi-open, probation regime. Besides salaries, these prisoners get a three-day reduction in their sentences for every day of work they put in.
The consortium also developed actions focused on digital inclusion, a digital literacy course with basic training in the Internet, Word, Windows and Excel, with 15 hours of class. The aim is to foster the democratization of access to information and digital communication and open up new prospects for the labor market. The course will benefit 200 people who live in the area surrounding the jobsite and have incomes below two minimum wages. Currently, over 26 students have completed the course.
The Arena Fonte Nova in partnership with SETAD - Secretaria Municipal do Trabalho, Assistência Social e Direitos do Cidadão (Municipal Department of Labor, Social Welfare and Citizens’ Rights) and the SETRE - Secretaria do Trabalho, Emprego, Renda e Esporte do Estado (State Department of Labor, Employment, Income and Sports), implemented the Federal ‘Next Step Program’ with professional courses in the area of civil construction (to train mason’s helpers, carpenter’s helpers, carpenters, rebar setters and scaffolding assemblers) for people residing in the are surrounding the project, beneficiaries of the Federal ‘Bolsa Família’ Program. Over 120 people attended the courses and 24 graduates have been hired and are already working in the construction of the arena. Another seven are in the process of being admitted.
There is also a partnership with ‘Projeto Axé’, an NGOs in the city’s historic center, which transforms all the salvageable fabric from old uniforms used by the Arena’s construction workers into handbags, backpacks, coin purses, etc.. The proceeds from sale of these objects goes to the NGO and its members.
PPP with 35 years of validity
The project for the Arena Fonte Nova was awarded by the state government of Bahia under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP). The concessionaire is ‘Fonte Nova Participações’ which has the participation of the OAS and Odebrecht companies. Besides building the stadium, the consortium holds the rights to operate and commercially exploit the stadium for a period of 35 years. To render the venture financially sustainable, providing a financial return on the investment, the consortium is adopting the concept of a multipurpose arena for the project, so that it can be can used only for the soccer matches, but also to hold shows and other types of events.
In the same space, the people of Bahia and visitors will have a varied program, with events ranging from small to medium and large: national and international shows, photo exhibitions, business meetings, conferences, seminars and talks, extreme sports events, besides weddings, graduations etc. (these are a few of the ideas that are being studied as regards events). The goal is to establish a calendar of 80 events per year.
The capacity of the stadium established in the original project design is seating for 50,000 thousand spectators, including ‘business’ seating and reserved enclosures/balcony areas. But another 5,500 removable seats are being incorporated into the project design in order to increase the capacity of the stadium for games with a greater public demand. A study was conducted to determine what the possible seating capacity would be considering the load-bearing capacity of the structure and the ultimate capacity was approved.
The design of the new arena capitalized on the architectural concept of the old stadium, which was shaped like a horseshoe with the opening facing the direction of the Tororó Dike. The removable seats will therefore be installed at the opening of the horseshoe, which is an area that does not have stands. The project provides for the construction of buildings that will house vehicle parking, a shopping area, hotels and theater for shows.
The figures for the Arena Fonte Nova
• Original budget: R$ 597 million (US$ 341 million) of which R$ 323.6 million (US$ 184.9 million) is in federal loans;
• 50 thousand permanent seats;
• Around 5,500 removable seats;
• 2,100 VIP seats;
• 71 enclosures/balconies with one thousand seats;
• 94 restrooms, 23 of which for users with handicaps;
• 39 food kiosks;
• 1 panoramic restaurant;
• 1 press area;
• Covered parking for approximately 2 thousand vehicles;
• 1 soccer museum.
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Telefone (11) 3662-4159
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