SEAA’s 2021 Project of the Year Honorable Mention Award

Belmont University, the owner of this 1,282-ton project, has spared no detail as they near complete construction on the new Belmont University Performing Arts Center. This state-of-the-art multi-purpose theatre in the Nashville area is projected to seat 1,700, while also housing two event spaces that can hold over 900 people. As this project was not a standard building or construction process, many months of planning were required to ensure the dome ceiling, arch entryways, stage house and auditorium trusses would be structurally sound while also creating a breathtaking aesthetic. Belmont’s goal for the project was to build the finest music performance hall on any college campus in the world, and the entire construction team was motivated to provide that final product.

Prior to ground-breaking, planning and attention to detail were heightened as the Cooper Steel estimating and design team worked diligently to create the logistics of steelwork for this project. This level of planning provided Cooper Steel the ability to smoothly coordinate with the structural engineer (RBA), steel detailers (SD, LLC), steel erectors (Sentry) and R.C. Mathews regarding any field or installation issues that arose, assuring those issues could be resolved quickly and the project kept on schedule.

An additional central focus of this project was the 14 total trusses that were erected. Each of these trusses individually weighed up to 21.5-tons and measured a length of 91-feet. With the minimal laydown area onsite, these trusses had to be erected directly off the trailer and the deliveries had to be available in an acute time frame. To speed up on-site delivery and erection activities, Cooper Steel was able to pre-fabricate large pieces of steel off-site, helping the project to continue at the preferred pace.

Following the roof trusses, the dome required specific angles, sizing, weight and erection sequences to ensure the look and functionality from every aspect. With the dome located above the open auditorium, the access for cranes and erection of the steel was known to be a challenge from the beginning. R.C. Mathews erected a 50-foot platform to access the complex multi-dome framing, which was nicknamed  ‘The Dance Floor’. This dome consisted of more than 400 individual pieces with an accuracy tolerance of  ½-inch to ensure each of the GRG components would fit correctly. The incredibly tight installation tolerances were maintained throughout the duration of the project, which allowed finish trades to keep their established benchmarks with minimal modification to their scope.

This project had to tie in the artistic vision of an elegant theatre while also requiring heavy trusses for backstage and rigging purposes. Challenges of precision and sequence are evident in every project, but this specific build created additional obstacles as each area was contingent on another. Though unforeseen challenges arose, those challenges provided the team new opportunities to learn and overcome, and we are grateful that this award shines a light on that accomplishment.