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A purpose-built new 23,500 capacity music venue in Manchester has become the UK’s largest dedicated live indoor music space, with a world-leading engineering design by UK consultancy Buro Happold.
Co-op Live, the state-of-the-art arena next to Manchester City Football Club’s home on the Etihad Campus, is a music-first arena that also boasts the largest floor space of any indoor arena in the UK.
The venue’s unique design, including bespoke designed tiered seating enables fans to get 23m closer to the stage than at any comparable arena.
Cutting edge visual technology, exceptional acoustics and an innovative sound bowl design means the best show is possible whether standing or seated.
A multidisciplinary team from Buro Happold was engaged to provide expertise across structural, ground, civil and façade engineering, alongside acoustics, sustainability, people movement, security, waste, transport and mobility, and fire safety.
Buro Happold’s breadth of expertise was instrumental from the inception of the project. At the planning stage, Buro Happold’s team helped to navigate a complex brownfield site to provide an efficient foundation design on a site located above 18th Century coal workings and shafts.
As the project moved into its design phase, Buro Happold worked closely with architects Populous to deliver the engineering behind a music-focused arena, leading the rigging strategy and design to create a solution that is not only high, strong and safe but also enables fast show changeovers.
Buro Happold’s structural engineering experts also worked closely with the wider design team to engineer the structural cores in a twin wall construction. Using cantilever structures and embedded retaining walls, Buro Happold maximised both seating space and commercial areas.
A specialist team of acousticians and venue technology experts from Vanguardia, a Buro Happold company, created a world-leading audio-visual strategy for the arena. Vanguardia advised on sound insulation and noise reduction across the building, as well as mitigating against transmission of sound outside the venue.
Working closely with the wider design team, Vanguardia were able to ensure the best acoustics for amplified music were achieved in the bowl itself, mitigating against sound reflections, and ensuring acoustic treatment of all walls, seating and ceiling materials.
With sustainability also at the core of the new arena, Buro Happold developed and led the sustainability strategy placing the arena at the forefront of energy efficiency and best practice low carbon design and operation, as well as helping to guide the venue’s social values. Its sustainability and environmental experts also supported the development of the project’s BREEAM and Environmental Impact Assessment.
Buro Happold was supported in delivery by main construction partner BAM. Simon Sutcliffe, BAM Construction Director, said:
“BAM has been privileged to work alongside Buro Happold and the many partners involved in bringing this iconic structure to life. All of the BAM staff and our Supplier Network has contributed something truly special to delivering a live entertainment space that will be the pinnacle for anyone that gets to perform and visit there. From our senior leaders, to our project and construction managers, and the many dedicated apprentices that were at the heart of turning vision into a reality, we’re all incredibly excited to see the venue open to the public and for the first acts to walk out on stage.”
Commenting on the opening of the arena, Rob Amphlett, Partner at Buro Happold said, “Co-op Live represents a paradigm shift in live music venues within the UK. Its focus on the user experience and acoustic quality has set a new standard for live music. For performers and fans alike, Co-op Live really is best in class.”
Co-op Live is a joint venture between Oak View Group and City Football Group, inspired by Manchester’s reputation as a world-leading setting for music, sport and live entertainment.
For more than 45 years, Buro Happold has been involved in some of the most iconic projects across the globe including Singapore’s Jewel Changi Airport, Museum of the Future in Dubai, The High Line in New York, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, and Battersea Power Station in London, UK, and Varso Tower in Warsaw, Poland, and SAP Arena in Munich, Germany.
