As the first stadium to ever have both a natural grass playing surface and a retractable roof, Reliant Stadium has forever changed the paradigm of major sports stadium design. Finished in 2002, Reliant Stadium is home to the NFL’s Houston Texans, as well as the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.
Because of Houston’s near year-round sunshine, Uni-Systems was tasked with creating a stadium that could offer a live grass playing surface, as well as protection from unpredictable Texas weather. Uni-Systems created an operable roof built to withstand a variety of wind loads and thermal conditions. The roof panels were designed to allow movement both back and forth laterally and left to right upon the superstructure rails. Uni-Systems’ patented 4-bar linkage assembly makes this a reality.
