ANZ Stadium Project, Sydney - Case Study Example

ANZ Stadium Project, Sydney Executive summary ANZ Stadium formerly known as Stadium Australia is the largest Olympic Games facility ever built. The project was designed by Architecture Bligh V. Nied and it is the most outstanding architecture in Australia (Daryl Kerry, 2014). This report carefully assesses how the project was planned and performed. The project was developed to host more fans and more visitors for various games such as rugby, football, cricket etc. An analysis of the project stakeholder proved that the project was successful. Some of the key stakeholders of the project include sporting codes such as the National Rugby Union, NSW governmental departments like planning and environment department, and international Olympic committee. The project design contract was given to Architects of Populous and Bligh Lobb Sports Architects who were to plan the largest stadium ever with a capacity of 118,000. However, a critical analysis of the project indicated that the objective of attaining a capacity of 118,000 was not achieved, but it only attained a capacity of 110,000 which is the largest ever in the world. This is because of the challenge of coming up with a sustainable solution. Introduction In 1993, it was announced that Australia was going to host the 2000 Olympics. Australia was faced with the challenge of providing an optimal venue for an approximated capacity of about 118,000 (Horne, 2012). Architects of Populous and Bligh Lobb Sports Architects designed a solution of removing the upper-end tiers and end roof post-games were to be added. ANZ is the largest ever Olympic stadium in history. ANZ stadium project was funded by the constructers and phase one of the projects cost $690 million while stage 2 was about $80 million. The construction contract was given to Obayashi Corporation/Multiplex Constructions. The construction of the stadium began in September 1996 and was completed in March 1999 with a workforce of 1,500 workers. The main aim of constructing ANZ stadium was to host 2000 Sydney Olympics and Paralympic Games with the objective of providing safety for the visitors. The scope of the project included: to construct a stadium which covered 16 hectares piece of land and it was raised to about 58 metres above the ground, to accommodate a capacity of 118,000, environmentally sustainable stadia which is cost effective, and to accommodate professional sports including Cricket, Tennis, Rugby, and Football (Darcy and Taylor, 2013). Project stakeholder analysis Project stakeholders include project leader, sponsor, project members, customer and functional management. Every stakeholder has a role to play, and their expectations must be met for the project to be successful. The main stakeholders of the project were Multiplex construction, Hambros Australia, Obayashi Corporation and Macquarie Corporate Finance who were the major sponsors of the project. These stakeholders were the formal authority of the project, and they were responsible for the project regarding overseeing it and coordinating other stakeholders (Jefferies, and Chen, 2004). The other stakeholder who played a significant role in the construction of the stadium is the NSW Government. The state government negotiated the project contract for design and construction, funding and the maintenance of the stadium. This was then approved by the Olympic Committee and the government then allowed the beginning of stadium construction. Other important stakeholders who took part in the construction process of ANZ include members of Sydney Cricket and Sports Ground Trust, Coca-Cola Amatil Ltd, Architects (Bligh) who are responsible for aesthetics of the stadium, engineers, spectators, construction workers, and the overall community who will use the stadium. These stakeholders contributed to the construction through their representatives. For example, the spectators anticipate an environment which is safe, reliable and comfortable and therefore the constructors will aim at producing quality seats. (More details on the role of stakeholders is provided in the appendix). How the project was managed The stadium design and planning was done by Bligh Lobb Sports Architects. ANZ Stadium construction plan was divided into two stages. ANZ stadium was designed as a multipurpose facility so that it could be financially viable. The roof of the stadium is retractable so that it can be used in any weather (Subramanian, 2012) The first stage commenced on 13th September 1996 and was completed in March 1999 which accommodated a capacity of 110,000. The project started with the construction of a foundation, and about 55,000 cubic metres of soils were removed, and the rest of the structure was constructed. In 1997, there was an extension for the offer period as the Olympic committee agreed but this did not affect the construction plan. The second stage commonly known as post-Olympic was completed in 2002. The second stage reduced the capacity of the stadium to about 80,000 because the top tier ends of the stadium were removed. The athletic track was removed, and the lower bowl was taken to a different place, a roof was erected, and surface shape was made rectangular to fit football matches (Abrahams, 2012). Critical analysis of the project ANZ Stadium is regarded as one of the largest Olympic facilities in the world despite the fact that the intended capacity was not attained. The project offered safety to the users during the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games and also other events held in the stadium after the Olympics. The stadium has hosted more than 22 million fans who attend various major events ranging from professional sports, athletics, and other sports. The project was successful because of the following factors (Magub and Hampson, 1999): Adequate funding from the private sector Proper interaction between designers, constructors, and all project stakeholders High level of innovation because of the competitive consortium bids The consortium members were committed through equity position The cost of designing and constructing the project was fixed, and Unity of all the stakeholders The stadium has the following features which make it outstanding: The roof which is made from translucent material to allow maximum natural light to seep in. This provides visibility to the players and the fans. The roof also protects them from hostile sunlight and rain and also reducing the effect of shadow in the field, effective stadium amenities, the seat tiers are organized in such a way there is easy access to toilets, food, beverages, etc., and the stadium is environmental friendly. Project planning is also very important. The initial phase allows the stakeholders to engage in a relationship so that they can agree on how the project will be carried out. In ANZ Stadium project, the NSW Government undertook a study to identify the resources that they required in the construction of the Stadium in 1993. Stakeholders offered their recommendations such as the expected number of spectators. The government also needed to reduce the cost of the construction. Identification of risks is a significant step in the process of project planning. Risk identification in early stages of a project contributes to its success. For the ANZ stadium project, many comments were made about risk control measures. The NSW Government was concerned about financial risks and not on the design of the project. The success of the project is attributed to the winning consortiums who were involved in almost all other risks. Despite that, the government was involved in this project compared to other public infrastructures (Jefferies, M., and Chen, S.E., 2004). Conclusion Reflecting on the project, it was successful, but there are some opportunities which the government lost. One is that the project was not tied up adequately to protect the interests of investors, the other is involvement of parallel architectural teams delayed the construction process, and the government did not negotiate enough with tenants, and they considered consortia. Apart from these shortcomings, the project was successful, and this is because of the good project stakeholder relationship. The constructors Obayashi and Multiplex highly contributed to the success of the project because of their commitment. OCA was also investigated the progress of the construction process, and there was clear communication among all the project partners. References Abrahams, T., 2012. The Stadium, Machine Books, pp 38 Darcy, S. And Taylor, T., 2013. Managing Olympic venues. In Managing the Olympics (pp. 99-126). Palgrave Macmillan UK. Daryl Kerry, 2014. http://www.anzstadium.com.au/footer/about-us/corporate-policies/ Horne, J., 2012. Sydney Olympic Park 2000 to 2010. History and Legacy, Richard Cashman. Sport in Society, 15(9), pp.1307-1310. Jefferies, M. and Chen, S.E., 2004. Identifying risk factors of BOOT procurement: a case study of Stadium Australia. The Australian Journal of Construction Economics and Building, 4(1), pp.11-19. Magub, A.T. and Hampson, K.D., 1999. Procuring Sydney’s Olympic Stadium: a world class event?. Searle, G., 2012. The long-term urban impacts of the Sydney Olympic Games. Australian Planner, 49(3), pp.195-202. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07293682.2012.706960 Subramanian, N., 2012. Design Trends of Sport Stadiums. Appendix A: Principle Stakeholders Principle Stakeholder Role Government of New South Wales Responsible for providing stadium site and to hire contractors. Through the ministry of sports, the government granted capital to Sydney Cricket and Sports Ground Trust to pay the debts accrued in the project. Olympic Coordination Authority (OCA) OCA is responsible for supplying all Olympic facilities. The Minister of Olympics authorized OCA to perform its duties in the construction process. Multiplex constructions Responsible for project design and contraction of the project Obayashi Corporation Managing contractor of the project. Part of the equity investors of the project. Hambros Australia Ltd It is one of the merchant banks in Australia. It acted as the financial adviser to the consortium of the project. Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (SOCOG). Their primary role was to organise the venue for the Olympic Games. They are responsible for contracting the project. Appendix B: Corporate Policies (Daryl Kerry, 2014) Policy Description Environmental policy The project was designed to promote green environment. ANZ is dedicated to promote environmental management according to international standards. It continuously ensures compliance with environmental legislation and regulation policies. The management is sponsoring these policies and provides relevant resources. This policy benefits the entire community. Health and safety policy ANZ provides management to services and events that take place in the stadium. Therefore, it ensures that the workforce, visitors, and contractors are protected. The company implemented Work Health and Safety management system as required by the Australian Government Privacy policy Pty Ltd manages the stadium as the agent. ANZ stadium through Pty Ltd protects private information of individuals. Read More