The site

The new stadium, built at the site of the old Carrara stadium on the Gold Coast, will be the home of the Gold Coast Suns AFL team, as well as form a part of the Gold Coast’s 2018 Commonwealth Games bid.

Technical details

The distributed installation comprises 16 SMA Sunny Tripower inverters grouped geographically. Each inverter feeds back into the local (stadium) low–voltage reticulation system at one of six switchboards. Utility class metering is provided at each of the six low–voltage supply points to allow calculation of renewable energy generated. A single high–voltage net export meter is located at the connection between the Stadium distribution system and the utility grid.

Communication with the SMA inverters is from a central monitoring and control computer and a system of Sunny Web box interface controllers. Proprietary software has been used to facilitate maintenance and monitoring of the solar system from onsite or from a remote location.

Efficiency measures

The stadium’s redevelopment incorporates a solar photovoltaic (PV) roof that has been designed to generate 20 per cent of the stadium’s forecast annual energy consumption, in line with the Federal Government target.

In a Queensland first, the installation of solar panelling will generate approximately 275 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity per annum. This is the equivalent to powering more than 250 homes in Queensland.

The PV panelling, which is 5 metres wide, will be installed over 450 metres of roofing.

Other energy efficiency measures already incorporated into the design of the stadium include high efficiency air conditioning, energy efficient lighting, and water harvesting. Materials from the previous stadium, which was demolished, have been recycled.

Solar technology

The stadium’s solar panelling uses Scheuten Optisol sandwich glass panels, providing excellent visibility from below. The cell spacing has been widened to ensure sufficient light is passed to prevent a solid shadowline on the field; this was a key consideration for the design team.

Reliability and safety were also key considerations. Scheuten was able to demonstrate a proven track record and undertake comprehensive testing demanded from the design team while delivering against the stringent installation program.

Energy generation

The solar roof is expected to produce at least 275 MWh of electricity per annum, and will be connected to an Energex electricity network.

Other distinguishing features of the project

Integration into the existing roof design proved to be an interesting task for the team, and a number of options were investigated. The initial option was to mount the panels almost–flat with a uniform leading edge and having the panels sloping down slightly towards the rear of the stands to capture the stormwater. The final solution involved 39 individual bays, each comprising 8, 14 or 18 solar panel mounts over a curved bay. Viewed from the front, the bays present as a series of curved elements best understood by viewing the pictures. Each panel slopes to the side and backwards to allow capture of stormwater.

Because of the horseshoe-shaped roof, each bay presents at a different azimuth or orientation to the sun, while each of the panels that make up the bay present at a range of inclinations to the sun. The complex geometry required to incorporate the solar panels into the roof’s iconic architectural design made the assessment of power generation time-consuming, however after it was demonstrated that the electrical generation would not be adversely impacted, the decision to proceed with the curved solar roof was justified.

Detailed investigation showed that the potential generation of the curved solar roof is 1–2 per cent less than the almost-flat roof design; however the majority of panels have improved angles for self-cleaning, which makes the curved roof on par or marginally better in terms of overall generation efficiency.

Future outlook

Concept plans have been drawn up for approximately 1 megawatt of peak capacity on the site, and implementation is subject to funding.

The Gold Coast Stadium Redevelopment is ˝a very exciting project for Norman Disney & Young and also for me personally, but most importantly a very good result for the Stadium stakeholders,˝ says Connan Brown, Senior Associate – ESD Manager, Norman Disney & Young.

˝Full credit to the architect and design team in achieving a fully-integrated solar solution within a unique and iconic roof form – an outstanding aesthetic result.˝

Funding arrangements and acknowledgements

The Gold Coast Stadium Redevelopment received direct funding from the Queensland Government, via the Office of Clean Energy.