Stainless steel continues to be the material of choice for commercial kitchen equipment, meeting and exceeding the rigorous demands of busy food service operations.
Dubbed as the ‘Home of Sport in Western Sydney’, Bankwest Stadium opened in April 2019 in the heart of Parramatta. The 30,000-capacity, multi-purpose rectangular stadium features a steep tiered seating arrangement across five levels, offering the best viewing quality of live events. Sport matches including rugby league, rugby union and soccer are some of the arena’s main events. To complement the unparalleled live event experience, the stadium’s clever design ensures spectators are never more than 30 metres away from onsite food outlets and amenities.
The stadium features 16 food and beverage outlets, 11 kitchens and five bars. ASSDA Member and Accredited Fabricator Stoddart delivered a bespoke solution for the 32 food and beverage areas with the fabrication, supply and installation of an extensive range of stainless steel commercial kitchen and food service equipment.
The major kitchen fit outs by Stoddart included the supply of Halton ventilation exhaust hoods manufactured under license at their Karawatha site in Brisbane. Food service equipment supplied included commercial combi-steamer ovens, Adande refrigerated drawer systems and Anets deep fryers, brands exclusively imported and distributed by Stoddart in Australia.
Stoddart’s own Culinaire range of commercial kitchen equipment was custom fabricated, manufactured, supplied and installed. This included vertical and standard hot cupboards, bain-maries, hot food slides and cold food displays. In addition, wash basins, work benches, counters, shelves, wall sheeting and spine walls were also manufactured and supplied.
TIG welding techniques were used across the different goods and services provided. As an ASSDA Accredited Fabricator, Stoddart’s strong expertise in stainless steel design and fabrication ensured the strict requirements of food equipment manufacture were met. Correct surface finish, avoiding cross-contamination of materials, and hygiene and cleanability of stainless steel food equipment are some important considerations in delivering quality products expected to perform in busy food operations.
Overall, a significant amount of 304 grade stainless steel was used for the project, including 8,500m2 of coil, 3,987 linear metres of tube, 158 flat sheets (1.2mm thick, 914mm and 1219mm wide sheets in various lengths) and perforated sheets (1.2mm thick, 500mm wide in various lengths). Stainless steel coil and tube was supplied by ASSDA Member Dalsteel Metals, while the stainless steel sheet was supplied by ASSDA Member Midway Metals.
Stainless steel is a versatile and attractive material offering corrosion and heat resistant properties. It has a non-porous surface, therefore it is less reactive and does not affect the taste of food.
Commercial kitchens are the busiest places in the hospitality industry, and stainless steels meet the high-level standard for delivering excellent hygiene, cleanliness and durable equipment. In addition, stainless steel delivers a long service life of over 10 years for food service equipment and over 20 years for fabricated goods including exhaust hoods, benching and wall sheeting.
Bankwest Stadium is now a distinctive landmark for Western Sydney, and with the use of stainless steel, offers an exciting range of food options highlighting the flavours of local operators.
Copyright: Stoddart
This article is featured in Australian Stainless Magazine issue 73, 2021.