New NBA Facility and Mixed-Use Community Hub

The new $90 million, 185,000-sf Henry Ford Detroit Pistons Performance Center is the first of its kind – a mixed-use community hub and NBA facility that offers publicly accessible food and beverage and fitness retail areas alongside basketball training areas, corporate headquarters, and comprehensive sports medicine, treatment, and rehabilitation services.

The project is a partnership between the Detroit Pistons and the Henry Ford Health Systems, the healthcare provider for the team. The basketball practice facility is connected to the 55,000-sf William Clay Ford Center for Athletic Medicine through a 125-foot enclosed glass walkway, providing players with easily accessible treatment and care. The facility also includes a grocery store, Planet Fitness center, and event space that is available for team-hosted private events and community networking activities.

Other amenities include:

• Player locker room and lounge
• Full-service kitchen/dining facilities
• Spacious weight room facility with the latest performance technology and training equipment
• Film and study meeting rooms
• Production studio and media/interview rooms
• Advanced training room capabilities with full hydro and cryogenic treatment systems
• Green space and courtyard locations for outside access and views of the city
• Private and public parking structure to be used by both Detroit Pistons and Henry Ford personnel

IMEG provided structural engineering design and services for the new facility. Engineers were challenged with controlling vibration in the second-floor fitness center. To meet the facility requirements, engineers optimized the thickness of the slab, spacing of beams, sizes of beams and columns, and area of the bay. These strategies saved the tenant time and money.

Engineers  also worked with the architect to meet the tight project schedule while working on the three projects (performance center, associated parking garage, and the center for athletic medicine) congruently. The project was ultimately delivered on schedule.