U.S. Bank Stadium
Minneapolis, MN
- 240,000-square-foot roof
- 1.75-million-square-foot stadium
- Catch basins 125 feet above ground
- Six radiant zones embedded in the slab
Durability
Safety
Innovation
Products Used
- 70,000 feet of ¾" Wirsbo hePEX™
- Radiant Rollout™ Mats
- ProPEX® Fittings
- Engineered Polymer (EP) Heating Manifolds
- Uponor Construction Services
"This is a unique project, the first of its kind, at least in North America."
Joe Grubesic
Uponor Midwest Sales Director
Stadium Benefits From Snow Melt System
Located in the heart of Minneapolis, U.S. Bank Stadium was designed with a slanted glass roof, allowing snow and ice to slide off into catch basins located around the roof’s perimeter. With winter temperatures rarely rising above freezing for months on end, engineers were tasked with addressing the snow and ice accumulation that could potentially rise to several feet. They worked closely with Uponor designers to create a snow and ice melting system embedded into the concrete slabs of the catch basins. The system features six zones that are adjustable to accommodate sun, wind, snowfall, and temperature changes to prevent snow and ice from accumulating.
Because the roof of the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Stadium famously collapsed in 2010 due to the stress of heavy snowfall and wind, this elevated concerns for the new design. Uponor Midwest Sales Director Joe Grubesic stated, “This is a unique project, the first of its kind, at least in North America.” At the time of construction, two other football stadiums had Uponor snow melting as well as turf conditioning systems in their open-air stadiums — Soldier Field in Chicago and Lambeau Field in Green Bay. Today, the U.S. Bank Stadium is considered one of the most innovative designs with a unique solution to melting snow and ice more than one-hundred feet off the ground.