By R.V. Baugus

With a panel comprised of leaders of the Division I, II, and III ranks of the NCAA and representing various sports, it is safe to say that Bobby Goldwater, himself an across-the-board leader at Georgetown University Sports Industry Management Master’s Program Adjunct Professor; The Goldwater Group, President; and IAVM Academic Committee, Chair and Board of Directors, Universities Sector, has an all-star roster for the VenueConnect Universities keynote session Monday, October 26 from 1:15-2:30 (Central time).

Before the session kicks off, Goldwater wanted to share some further highlights about what attendees can expect in an interview with IAVM.

Give attendees an overview of the panel session that you will be moderating on October 26.

In recent years, the Universities sector’s VenueConnect keynote session has featured a conversation with an industry leader. Joining us virtually in 2020 will be a group of executives from the NCAA who cover an array of topics of interest to venue managers: Randy Buhr, who oversees Division I Baseball College World Series and water polo; Morgan DeSpain, Division II women’s soccer, women’s gymnastics and Division II softball; Laura Peterson, Division III track and field (indoor and out) and Division III cross country; and Niko Roberts, who handles aspects of the Division I men’s basketball championship. I will moderate the panel discussion as the Universities representative on the Board of Directors and as Academic Committee chair. Questions will be welcomed from the VenueConnect audience.

You have an outstanding panel of individuals representing NCAA Division I, Division II, and Division III. Was it important to have such a mix as we know that the three divisions are quite different from each other in how they operate?

IAVM and the Universities Committee are grateful to have established our collaborative relationship with the NCAA. The Universities sector consists of venues that host men’s and women’s intercollegiate athletic events in all three NCAA divisions, so having engaged executives representing that mix certainly is highly desirable and they will have illuminating insights for venue managers in our sector and for anyone interested in the inner workings of college sports.

If there is a good Bobby Goldwater sales pitch to draw in attendees, what would that be?

In the last several years, the Universities keynote sessions at VenueConnect have been informative interviews in which each guest has shared perspectives and experiences that have offered a depth of understanding and detail we don’t usually have access to. With four top NCAA executives joining us, we hope this year’s conversation will provide four times the value, which will benefit our IAVM audience.

Will attendees have an opportunity to ask some questions following the panel? You are likely to get quite a few with the ever-evolving environment in college athletics at this time.

VenueConnect attendees in the Zoom audience will definitely have the opportunity to ask questions of the panelists.

Is there a main takeaway that attendees can use when returning to their venues?

It’s hard to predict what a “main” takeaway for attendees will be but the Universities Committee, led by Chair David Bennett and Vice Chair Zakiya Smith-Dore, anticipates everyone will take from the keynote conversation an appreciation of how the NCAA operates, how the NCAA is handling the challenges related to the pandemic and how IAVM venues and the NCAA can work even more closely together going forward.

By Maren Dougherty

The San Diego Convention Center (SDCC) is the first of Centerplate’s North American venues to achieve the Rise SAFE hygiene verification label for food and beverage services. Rise SAFE is managed by Centerplate’s parent company, Sodexo, and Bureau Veritas, an independent world leader in testing, inspection, and certification.

To earn the label, General Manager Bobby Ramirez and his team passed a site audit and protocol review covering 36 checkpoints in four core areas: process, people/training, facilities, and hygiene/cleaning. The team demonstrated 100% compliance across these areas.

“We’ve been preparing and serving food seven days a week throughout the pandemic to support Operation Shelter to Home. Through this steady operation, we have fine-tuned our measures for staff training, physical distancing, cleaning, and PPE. Consequently, we had all necessary requirements in place well before going through the Rise SAFE review and site inspection,” Ramirez said. “We are confident in our ability to safely cater corporate and private events as soon as that activity resumes.”

The Rise SAFE label follows an accreditation SDCC received in July from the Global Biorisk Advisory Council (GBAC). SDCC was among the first convention centers in the United States to achieve the GBAC STAR Facility Accreditation, which requires a stringent program for cleaning, disinfection and infectious disease prevention. Centerplate’s protocols also contributed to this third-party process.

“Centerplate has been an incredible partner throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Their success in meeting or exceeding all standards of this Rise SAFE program is just one more demonstration of their thorough and careful commitment to safety,” said Clifford “Rip” Rippetoe, CVE, SDCC’s President and CEO.

Maren Dougherty is Director, Marketing & Communications for the San Diego Convention Center Corporation.

By Kristi Mexia

Willow, the world’s leading provider of digital twin technology, is partnering with Hollywood Park, a new, nearly 300-acre sports and entertainment destination in Inglewood, California, being developed by Rams Owner/Chairman E. Stanley Kroenke. The agreement stretches across SoFi Stadium, which will be the first major stadium to implement digital twin technology in the U.S. Using big data gathered from every aspect of the stadium and surrounding development, Willow will create a virtual copy of the facility to deliver an unprecedented level of analytical insight to create a truly world-class fan, resident and guest experience along with optimized levels of sustainability and future-proofing.

Digital twins, first developed by NASA for space exploration, are a bleeding-edge technology that converts all quantifiable aspects of physical buildings into living, learning and evolving virtual replicas. It is the most intuitive way to store, organize and access the incredible amount of data generated by complex smart buildings, allowing owners, facility managers and built environment professionals real-time insights to strategize and optimize every aspect of a building’s operations. Importantly, the system becomes more robust over time with the addition of new data.

“Our goal is to deliver a new type of fan and visitor experience, and to do that, we need a comprehensive, data-driven view into how all the pieces of this project connect,” said Jason Gannon, managing director, SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park. “For such a large-scale and complex asset like a stadium, this is a pivotal undertaking. Willow’s Digital Twin will enable us to collect and analyze real-time big data across the lifecycle of the development, from construction to ongoing operations.”

SoFi Stadium is setting a new bar for smart buildings in the sports and entertainment sector. Designed to be a sustainable, future-forward facility for years to come, the venue is the new, joint home of the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers and Los Angeles Rams and will also host a variety of events throughout the year. Willow’s comprehensive solution, used by some of the world’s most prominent real estate owners, will enable SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park’s operators to gain complete transparency and a single source of truth on data from across the facility’s complex systems. By accessing this data, SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park will be able to solve problems before they happen, manage risk and identify previously impossible integrated strategies.

“By accessing data that was once lost between project phases or in multiple systems, Willow can assist SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park in identifying opportunities they never knew they had,” said Shaun Klann, President and Global Head of Real Estate at Willow. “Stadiums are an amazing opportunity to apply the lessons we have learned in commercial real estate, but on a much larger scale. It’s an incredibly exciting project and we are honored to partner with the ambitious and innovative team at SoFi Stadium.”

At present, SoFi Stadium is slated to host Super Bowl LVI in 2022, the College Football Championship Game in 2023 and the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the 2028 Summer Olympics. Located on the site of a former racetrack, the approximately 70,000-seat stadium will serve as the centerpiece of the state-of-the-art, reimagined Hollywood Park, featuring a full live-work-play experience, from retail, offices, hospitality, residential units and outdoor park spaces.

SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park was represented by Legends Global Partnerships division, which sourced, negotiated and represented SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park in securing this partnership.

Kristi Mexia is Director, Corporate Communications for SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.

By Tyler Koonce

Henderson Engineers, a national building systems design firm with more than 800 employees nationwide, welcomes Chris Constant, PE, as director of code consulting within Henderson’s fire and life safety group. Constant is a fire protection engineering veteran with more than a decade of industry experience.

“Chris brings a wealth of knowledge from his involvement on a wide variety of complex projects,” said Paul Villotti, Henderson’s director of fire protection engineering. “He will continue to expand the services and direction of the fire and life safety team by providing the best solutions to challenging building and fire code problems.”

Constant is a licensed fire protection engineer with expertise in code analysis, fire and smoke modeling, egress modeling, fire resistive analysis of structure steel elements, and developing building code variances for alternate design approaches.

“We are excited that our great clients will now have access to the knowledge and problem-solving abilities Chris features to solve life safety and code issues on their projects,” said Chris Culp, Henderson’s director of fire and life safety.

Constant earned a bachelor’s degree in architectural engineering at Kansas State University, where he was a member of the Society of American Military Engineers, National Society of Collegiate Scholars, and Architectural Engineering Institute. Clients can reach him at chris.constant@hendersonengineers.com.

Henderson’s fire and life safety group is one of the largest in the industry with more than 50 engineering experts. Henderson fire protection engineers know design, life safety technology, and construction. Our diverse group of fire protection specialists includes licensed engineers with backgrounds in fire protection, mechanical, chemical, civil, and architectural engineering; NICET certified technicians; and fire service professionals. We provide thought leadership and expertise on multiple code and standards technical committees for the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), and other national organizations.

Tyler Koonce is Communications Manager for Henderson Engineers.

By MLB.com

Major League Baseball and RB, the makers of Lysol, today announced a new multi-year partnership to help reinforce and promote healthy habits and disinfection protocols for the league’s players, staff, and fans. The partnership will leverage Lysol’s 130 years of germ kill expertise and innovation to help maintain a high standard of healthy habits and hygiene for MLB personnel across the league, during both games and training sessions.

As MLB concludes its 2020 season and looks toward the first pitch of the 2021 campaign next spring, disinfection and germ prevention will continue to be top of mind to help protect those in ballparks across the league. MLB’s partnership with Lysol will include multiple touchpoints and areas of focus over the coming seasons, including:

• Disinfecting Protocols, Best Practices and Germ-Kill Expertise: Microbiologists and germ-kill experts from Lysol will work with MLB to reinforce ongoing protocols for disinfection in ballparks, with a focus on high-touch germ hotspots, to be put in place for the 2021 season.

• Lysol Professional Solutions: Starting with the 2020 Postseason, Lysol has begun to provide Professional grade disinfection solutions to MLB, to be made available to players and staff in dugouts, bullpens and clubhouses as well as in fan areas. Lysol products are also included in Postseason hotel welcome kits for players, staff and their families.

• Community & Outreach Initiatives: MLB and Lysol will work to identify opportunities to provide Lysol product and educational materials to schools across the country, engaging with young fans and promoting healthy habits in the classroom.

The US Environmental Protection Agency recently approved both Lysol Disinfectant Spray and Lysol Disinfecting Wipes among the first to test effective against the novel coronavirus when used as directed on hard, non-porous surfaces.

“The addition of Lysol’s expertise and disinfecting products will help further strengthen efforts to create a safe environment to play Major League Baseball,” said Jon Coyles, MLB Vice President, Drug, Health and Safety Programs. “As a brand that is synonymous with cleanliness, the Lysol brand will be an important partner in our management of the evolving pandemic as well as in amplifying health and safety messages around baseball.”

“We’re thrilled to partner with MLB to help support and promote hygiene in some of the world’s most iconic sporting venues,” said E. Yuri Hermida, EVP North America Hygiene for RB. “At Lysol we also understand that one of best weapons against the spread of germs is knowledge, and we look forward to helping MLB develop an even higher-standard of cleanliness and disinfection.”