The new home of the Nashville Soccer Club, the largest soccer-specific stadium in the U.S. and Canada, overcame pandemic-related issues and even a tornado that destroyed more than 500 light fixtures to finish below budget and seven weeks early, allowing the team to host its first event of the season on May 1, 2022.

For the 30,109-seat stadium, the project team utilized tracking software that outfitted 7,500 primary steel members and more than 12,000 other components with RFID tracker and QR code to track items from fabrication to erection, and used a nearby warehouse to store materials and coordinate just-in-time deliveries.

After the December 2021 tornado destroyed a trade partner’s warehouse, contractors worked with Gephart Electric and Maryland Electric Co. to install temporary light fixtures and keep the project on track, while measures had to be implemented through the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, such as limiting team size and dedicating team members to track safety protocols.

Judges remarked on the strong safety record for the project, which logged almost 105,000 worker hours with no lost-time accidents or recordable cases and a 0.19 recordable incident rate. Crews started every workday with daily stretches and the discussion of trending hazards, weather impacts and high-risk activities.

The stadium reflects the industrial heritage of the Wedgewood-Houston neighborhood with its high canopy structure and the brick-clad ground levels represent the neighborhood’s residential homes. Also, in true Music City form, contractors built a corner stage in the stadium bowl.