After being postponed for more than a year, the Camp Randall renovation project is in full swing. Transforming the fourth-oldest college football stadium in the country into a technologically advanced facility with improved spectator services has been no easy task, but the Cullen-Smith LLC construction company seems to believe it is ahead of schedule on the $83.7 million project.

As of the end of August, Cullen-Smith was in the midst of extensive work on the creation of club-level seating on the east side of the stadium. The club seating and private suites are supposed to draw in millions of dollars of revenue for the university. The new structure will run the course of the east side of Camp Randall, from section N to section V. Stair towers to both ends of the new structure are currently being built. The entire suite and club-seating structures are scheduled to be completed before the start of the 2004 season.

Other additions include the construction of a new ticket office, a new athletic-department office building in the southeast corner of the stadium and the addition of more seating that will raise capacity close to 80,000. General improvements to bathroom facilities, the widening of concourses and the creation of additional seating and access for the handicapped are ongoing.

With all the construction and the mess it creates, getting the stadium ready for each and every game day takes additional work. In fact, a large factor in the construction process is the ability to put the project on hold, safeguarding the site so 75,000 spectators can safely enter the stadium for home games. On the Friday before every home game, construction workers will dedicate all of their time to eliminating the dangers and general clutter the construction presents.

Along with the east-side superstructure, the most visible portion of the renovation process is the installation of FieldTurf to both the stadium and McClain Center’s indoor practice facility. The removal of the old turf, along with the laying of the new FieldTurf, cost upwards of $760,000, but the staff and players have been very receptive to the new feel.

FieldTurf is much softer than Camp Randall’s old turf, preventing the cuts and rugburns the old turf created.

FieldTurf fibers, which create the appearance of blades of grass, are made of a polyethylene blend. The fibers are treated and tufted into a backing of a porous surface. They are placed in a pattern that emulates real grass and then layered with an infill consisting of graded silica and ground rubber, which holds the fibers in the same way the earth holds a blade of grass. The final product is a strong and smooth surface that is relatively consistent and safe.

The yard lines and hash marks on the field are not painted onto the surface but are manufactured in white and sewn down with the rest of the field.

For the 2003 season, the Badgers were not able to make the necessary additions to color the end zones and put the motion “W” at midfield. Attempts were made to get the materials together to paint the “W” for the nationally televised Oct. 11 game against Ohio State, but the right color could not be found.

Diagonal lines, much like the end zones in Notre Dame, may be added to help the players differentiate the end zones from the rest of the playing field.

The Badgers will use the Camp Randall surface for practice an estimated 90 percent of the time. The grass playing field on the north end of the stadium will be used only when the football team is working in preparation for an away game being played on natural grass. The UW men’s soccer team has inherited the practice surface for their daily activities.

Camp Randall will take on a new look on football Saturdays, much different from the generally stagnant appearance it has had in past decades. But the renovation is all part of a process to upgrade facilities that will bring in more revenue and impress recruits. The luxury suites are a current priority of the department to reserve and sell for the 2004 season, but their sales pitch may depend heavily on the success of the 2003 Badger football team.