Cas d’application
Arena Riga exclusively employs Grundfos pumps
Latvia, Riga: The capital of Latvia is famous for its cultural and art traditions, its beautiful nature and is praised by many as the European capital of art-nouveau architecture. However, as the host of the 2006 IIHF World Championship, Riga welcomes the world’s greatest ice hockey teams and their passionate fans in the two ultra-modern arenas: the reconstructed Arena Skonto and the new, spectacular and multifunctional Arena Riga. Today, multifunctional arenas resemble museums, libraries, opera houses and theatres in that they are, an inviolable component in the cultural infrastructure of major cities.
Accordingly, after the Ice-Hockey Championship, the city will have state-of-the-art facilities for concerts, shows and major sports events, and thus become part of the global chain of multifunctional
arenas and the related industries.
The Situation
With a total floor space of 22,750 m2 and a capacity of 12,500 spectators Arena Riga is one of the largest and most important new buildings in Latvia. Accordingly, the public-private partnership behind the project wanted more from the new and prestigious monument than a gigantic skating hall.
However, a multifunctional arena that must be able to transform from an ice-hockey stadium to a concert hall or basketball arena in a matter of a few hours requires an extremely flexible and reliable pump solution. And that is exactly what the Grundfos team presented to the contractor.
The Grundfos Solution
Based on the innovative Grundfos solution and very positive experiences with Grundfos as a partner in the past, the contractor chose Grundfos pumps for the heating, air-conditioning, fire-protection, and ice-cooling applications. In close cooperation with the system designers, Grundfos designed a complete solution with a total of 39 pumps and pump systems for the prestigious project.
The keyword throughout the project was flexibility and reliability. Flexibility, because the pump solution should be able to adapt to constantly changing events – reliability, because pump failure could turn an ice-hockey match into a water polo match.
During installation, the Grundfos team followed up with best practice processes and good advice. And to prevent the ice from melting during the Ice-hockey Championship, the Grundfos solution included backup pumps that kick in if the primary pumps fail.
Because Grundfos’ variable speed pumps automatically adapt to the immediate demand, they fit perfectly with the challenge of the considerable fluctuations in demand. The pumps run only when necessary and only at the speed that is required. As a result, the pumps last even longer, are virtually maintenance-free, and among the most energy-efficient on the market.
The Outcome
In a matter of a few hours the multifunctional Arena Riga can change from being an ice hockey stadium to a basketball arena or a concert hall. And because of the flexible Grundfos installation the pumps will automatically adapt to the changing events and secure optimal conditions for the visitors at all times.
In addition to significant energy savings the Grundfos solutions provided unmatched reliability and flexibility – exactly what the customer had requested.