Wembley Stadium, London UK | PPG Protective Coatings

OVERVIEW

Opened in 2007, Wembley Stadium was built on the site of the previous 1923 incarnation. The earlier stadium, originally called the Empire Stadium, was often referred to as ‘The Twin Towers’ and was one of the world’s most famous football stadiums until its demolition in 2003. The 90,000-capacity venue (105,000 combined seating and standing) is the second largest stadium in Europe, behind only the Camp Nou in Barcelona, and serves as England’s national stadium. It is the sole home venue of the England national football team, and hosts the latter stages of top-level domestic club cup competitions. Designed by Foster and Partners and HOK Sport (now Populous), it includes a partially retractable roof. A signature feature of the stadium, following on from the old Wembley’s distinctive Twin Towers, is the 134-meter-high (440 ft) Wembley Arch. With a span of 317 meters (1,040 ft), this steel arch is the longest single-span roof structure in the world and, uniquely for a stadium, requires beacons for low-flying aircraft. To answer the complex brief, PPG proposed and supplied the complete anticorrosive and fire protective coating system for all externally and internally exposed steelwork of the stadium. A combination of SIGMAFAST™ 302, SIGMACOVER 435, SIGMACOVER 456 HS and SIGMADUR™ 520 coatings were applied to the steel structures in order to provide a high level of anticorrosive protection. For the required fire protection, a full three-coat fire system was used to meet the various environmental conditions around the stadium. The STEELGUARD 3146 primer and STEELGUARD FM560 solvent-based intumescent coating were chosen because they provide the required 60-minute fire rating. The topcoats used were STEELGUARD 2458 & AMERCOAT® 450SG to guarantee optimal aesthetics. The three-coat system was applied at a dedicated offsite contractor’s premises and delivered to site ready to erect. The new Wembley National Stadium was handed over in 2007, in time to host the 2007 FA Cup Final. PPG was successful in providing a solution that still protects the exposed steelwork for the arch, roof structure and internal steelwork for the bowl structure, and will do so for many years to come.