Optus Stadium has transformed the way fans experience major sport and entertainment events in Perth, Australia – re-shaping Western Australia and its landscape in the process.
It is a world-class multi-purpose venue capable of hosting a range of sporting and entertainment events including AFL, cricket, rugby union and rugby league, soccer, and concerts.
The stadium has the capability to host major events consistent with requirements for Commonwealth Games and international athletics too. And it’s designed to increase the seating capacity within the existing structure, adding up to 10,000 additional seats.
Every design decision for the multi-purpose, 60,000-seat stadium was to meet one requirement – an unsurpassed visitor experience every time, every event.
The stadium’s innovative design – a collaboration between Hassell, COX, and HKS Architects – feels distinctly local, with architectural and landscaping that reflects the State’s proud sporting, cultural, and Aboriginal heritage.
Some of the key design elements include:
- The unique bronze façade which reflects WA’s unique geology by day and, using state of the art LED lighting, home team colours by night.
- The seating bowl maximises the atmosphere, gives fans exceptional views and brings them close to the action, providing a special home ground advantage for local teams.
- The lightweight fabric roof covers 85% of seats and responds to Perth’s climatic conditions. At night, it presents a spectacular glowing halo effect.
- Start of the art team facilities include flexible warm-up and recovery areas.
The transport strategy ensures the safe and efficient movement of 83% of a capacity crowd within an hour of an event finishing.
New infrastructure includes the six-platform Stadium Station and the Swan River Pedestrian Bridge.
Special Event Bus Stands provide access to city car parks and areas not currently serviced by rail.
Construction of Optus Stadium and the surrounding Stadium Park commenced on Sunday 7 December 2014. The 36 months of construction ended in December 2017, three weeks ahead of schedule and ready for its first official event, the Optus Stadium Open Day on Sunday January 21 2018 for 110,000 people.
The project was one of the most expensive ever built in Western Australia, with the total cost of the stadium and required transport infrastructure around $1.6 billion. The stadium itself cost around $900,000,000.
Multiplex was the builder.
Although feeling uniquely Western Australia, Optus Stadium is a destination that holds its own against other major venues around the world.
Project Awards
- World Title, Sports, Prix Versailles, 2019
- George Temple Poole Award, Best in State, Australian Institute of Architects WA, 2018
- Mondoluce Lighting Award, Australian Institute of Architects WA, 2018
- Colorbond Award for Steel Architecture, Australian Institute of Architects WA, 2018
- Wallace Greenham Award for Sustainable Architecture. Australian Institute of Architects WA, 2018
- Jeffrey Howlett Award, Public Architecture, Australian Institute of Architects WA,2018
- Best Practise in Collaboration between Government and non-Government Organisations, Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA WA) 2018
- Best Practise in Collaboration Across Government Agencies. Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA WA), 2018
Project Details
Project size – 175,000 m2
Site area – 410,000 m2
Project budget – $900 million plus $700 million for transport infrastructure
Completion date – 2017
Project Team
Architecture
Cox Architecture
COX is a design-focused contemporary architectural practice with studios located in every major Australian city and a history spanning 60 years.
Key to their ethos is supporting the public life of our cities. Cox does this by ensuring each project makes positive contributions to its public realm – giving more than it takes.
Hassell
Hassell brings together the best designers and thinkers in a unique collaborative process that results in both beautiful design and measurable value.
They work across architecture, landscape architecture, interior design, and urban design – a rich multi-disciplinary mix of skills and perspectives that unlocks the economic, social, and cultural value of projects.
HKS Architects
HKS Architects is an interdisciplinary global design firm that’s expanded beyond architecture and interior design to now include a deep bench of in-house professionals in the areas of research, urban design, nursing, anthropology, graphic design and more.
HKS believes that design should build trust between their collaborators, their clients, and those who inhabit the places they design. HKS aims to inspire and empower the people and communities who encounter their work. To preserve and respect our natural resources, HKS create places that conserve and rejuvenate our planet, too.
Construction
Multiplex
Established in Australia in 1962, Multiplex has successfully delivered over 1,000 iconic projects around the world, with a combined value in excess of US$80 billion. Multiplex brings leading expertise and strong global relationships to every job and their workbook spans several sectors.
Multiplex is known for collaborative, flexible working, and maintaining a shared focus on clients’ goals. Their global workforce shares knowledge and applies international best practice across all projects.
Multiplex is backed by the financial stability and global relationships of their parent company, Brookfield Asset Management.
Photography
Peter Bennetts
Peter’s work regularly features in the Australian publications Architecture Australia, Artichoke, Belle, Inside, AR, Monument, inside, and Vogue.
He is a frequent contributor to Wallpaper*, Frame, Mark, Dwell, Domus, Casabella, and other international publications too.
Peter’s photography has appeared in numerous books including four monographs and the two volumes of the Phaidon Atlas of Contemporary World Architecture.
Peter’s architectural images have been described as having “a remarkable crystalline stillness” and he is known for his “straight-shooting” style of architectural photography, focusing on the formal, material and atmospheric qualities of a project.
Photo Gallery
Click on a thumbnail image to enlarge.
Design © 2020 Cox Architecture, HASSELL, HKS. All Rights Reserved.| Images © 2020 Peter Bennetts. All Rights Reserved.
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