Jordan-Hare Stadium will soon be home to the largest video board ever displayed for college football fans and for Auburn students.
The video board’s construction began Feb. 27, and is scheduled to be completed Aug. 28.
According to Auburn Facilities Management’s April construction update, the video board will be a 10,830-square foot display. The video board will include a new sound cabinet above the display.
The video board was reported to be 15 percent complete at the time of the construction update’s release and included that the demolition of the old scoreboard and structural steel was finished.
The new structural steel for the display is currently under construction on the south side of the stadium.
Gregory Forthofer is a licensed professional engineer and the design project manager within Facilities Management. He said safety is a priority.
“Really the biggest challenge is the high voltage power line right in the middle of the site and safety,” Forthofer said. “I would say those are the two biggest challenges. Not that it’s an unsafe project. We have a full-time safety manager. You know, Brasfield & Gorrie has a full-time safety person.”
Brasfield & Gorrie, General Contactors is the construction manager for the $13.9 million project and is one of the nation’s largest private construction firms, according to their website. In addition to Brasfield & Gorrie, they are joined by other contractors such as Rabren General Contractors, Meredith Environmental, Inc., Morris-Shea Bridge Company, Inc., NAFCO International, Auburn Electronics Construction Co. and Daktronics. Daktronics specializes in LED scoreboards and video systems.
Forthofer said the structure must be built before the screens are placed.
“The crane is the most valuable piece of equipment on the site right now,” Forthofer said. “You have cranes for the construction. We’re using structural steel and high-strength concrete. Obviously the LED boards will go on once we get the structure in place.”
The screen is approximately 57 feet by 190 feet.
According to Forthofer, the structural steel comes from north Alabama. The LED panels come from South Dakota. The video board is designed to withstand hurricane-force winds.
Cassie Arner is the associate athletic director for strategic communication within the athletics department. According to Arner, the athletics department is the contract holder and is responsible for funding the entire project for the video board.
“It’s part of our revenue that we generate through a number of different ways,” Arner said. “Ticket sales, fundraising, television monies, those are the things that we generate in the athletics department.” The video equipment and services will work together, Arner said.
The staff that will operate the video board will also be working with the athletics department.
The cost of the video board is $3.5 million.
Lauren Van Tuyl, junior in human development and family studies, said she thought the scoreboard could be beneficial to the University.
“I think at first I thought it was going to be a waste of money,” Van Tuyl said. “In one of my classes, we discussed it and apparently the athletics department took out a loan for the University, but then they’re going to pay the University back. I don’t think it would make me go to the game. A scoreboard is not going to get me to go. But if it’s going to get other people to go, then I think it’s good.”
According to Arner and Forthofer, this video board should last 10 years. Future projects for Jordan-Hare Stadium may include premium seating, a new scoreboard, new locker room and other architectural upgrades on the north side of the stadium.
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