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“The University definitely wanted the folks in the skyboxes to be able to connect more to the stadium, to the outside, to the game,” said Buddy Sexton, co-owner of HomeChoice Windows + Doors and window dealer for the project. “Every time [the Volunteers] score a touchdown, there are fireworks that go up. They wanted them to be able to smell the smoke from those fireworks.”
With the existing window configuration in the suites and skyboxes, a connection to the outside world — and the fireworks — was an uncommon occurrence. In most cases, each suite or skybox had just one operable window, but it was often up high and out of the reach of patrons.
“You had to reach up and really stretch out to open it up. So, it was rarely used, rarely open,” said Steven Whitmore, project manager, MHM Architects. “We were looking for an automation option, something where people didn't have to do all that for it to function.”
The solution the team selected? Marvin Connected Home featuring Modern Automated Awning windows. Nearly 400 units in total, all automated, all able to be opened with a push of a button, and all custom for the project — customizations that included prescribing how many windows could be opened at a time, a full reconfiguration and removal of the control buttons on the frames, and all finished with a very specific beige exterior color to match the stadium’s existing color scheme. In short, these Marvin units were designed and manufactured to meet the exact specifications the design and build teams needed.
Though in the end, the project wasn’t about the windows themselves, but the memories they help to create. Connecting with the cheers, the band, the concessions, and yes, the fireworks. It just means more, after all.
“Now, with the windows being open, everybody feels like they're much more a part of the game,” Sexton said.
For the complete story of how Marvin helped open the Neyland Stadium suites and skyboxes to the outside world, check out this case study video.
Video Transcript
Buddy Sexton, Co-owner, HomeChoice Windows + Doors: We don't have professional teams here in Knoxville. And even when you're little, everybody's a University of Tennessee fan. Just thinking that, in a really cool way, there's something here in this stadium that I was able to be a part of. That just, you know, especially with some gray hair, it starts to mean a lot to me.
Steven Whitmore, Project Manager, MHM Architects: The athletic department approached us and really they were looking at how can we heighten the fan experience within the suites.
Sexton: The folks that have these skyboxes pay quite a bit of money for them and they feel removed from the game. It's a lot of glass, they're up high, so the university had promised we're going to provide some solutions to help bring the game more into the skybox.
Peter Ludman, Principal, Cope Architecture: Almost in every suite, there were manually operated awning windows. Each typically would have one that would be operable. So that's your baseline, that's where you start.
Whitmore: We were trying to find multiple options that we could present that just provided an automated system, something that was really clean, something that was thin profile, and there was very little on the market.
Sexton: You had to have the product that's a motorized awning window. You've got to create a mock-up very quickly, and we're gonna have to have custom sizes, gonna have to produce so many windows every single week. We're gonna have to install those windows every single week and then make sure all of them are operating correctly. So there was a lot of chronological logistics that had to really be thought through.
Ludman: To have that premium experience in a suite, the most important aspects were gonna be the ability to let sound in, the ability to operate easily and efficiently, as well as being able to blend in with the rest of the stadium.
Whitmore: We had gotten in touch with Casey, with Marvin, and he presented some options for us and really sold us on the customization of the product.
Casey Lobdell, Regional Manager of Architectural Sales, Marvin: Ultimately, what made Marvin Connected Home the best solution was we were willing to say yes on a lot of things. We were willing to make adjustments and modifications and customization. We were very responsive. When something needed to be changed or added or adjusted, it was a very quick turnaround time.
One of those problems that we were trying to solve was to make sure that the attendees here in these skyboxes could feel a part of the game. They could see it, they could smell it, they could feel it, whether it was the PA system, the fireworks, but now you have that convenience of just pushing a button.
Somebody being here and taking in this game and seeing something automated opening, it just looks like a simple awning window. Somebody's gonna say, "I've never seen that before." It is the future, it is something that revolutionizes the fenestration industry, and yeah, this is actually meant for your house too. It's not just a stadium product.
Sexton: This job would not have happened without Marvin. A job this large, with almost 400 customized windows, with tilted walls in a stadium. We have deadlines. We cannot get behind, and I say all that to say Marvin got it done.
Lobdell: I was very proud of how it all had culminated and that we had an opportunity to do something very different and we had an opportunity to do something Marvin's never done before.