In The Engineer’s Angle – a regular series on ASCE’s Civil Engineering Source – civil engineers contribute first-person perspectives on things from our culture or society. It is specifically the civil engineer’s point of view on anything, from a new building to the way civil engineers are portrayed in a movie, from the latest tech to a piece of civil engineering gear.
Today’s edition of The Engineer’s Angle features Ruwanka Purasinghe offering a civil engineer’s perspective on the new Intuit Dome, home to the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers. Purasinghe is the ASCE Los Angeles Section president and leads the Program Management Squad for the Pure Water Los Angeles program as a civil engineer for the LA Department of Water and Power.
He also is a noted Los Angeles Lakers fan, so consider that when you read about his recent experience at a Dallas Mavericks-Clippers game in the Intuit Dome.
Ruwanka Purasinghe
Inglewood has a long history with sports and entertainment for Los Angeles, serving as home of the Great Western Forum since 1967, the Hollywood Park Racetrack from 1938 to 2013, and more recently SoFi Stadium, which opened its doors in 2020 (2023’s OCEA Silver Award winner). And just about nine months ago, another player came to town – the Intuit Dome, which seats over 18,000 people and is the new home of the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers.
With the arena hosting such amazing new technology and innovative experiences, it was no surprise that I had to check it out for a game. Now, when selecting a game to check out the hip new arena, one would consider who the other team is and want to pick an opponent who is considered a powerhouse: a team with a player who would be considered an all-time great and perhaps had carried said team to the NBA Finals the year prior. So, naturally I picked the Dallas Mavericks game to see some Luka magic.
Further reading:
If you follow sports somewhat, well, you know the Mavericks shockingly traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers (we Lakers fans say, “Thank you, Dallas!”) earlier this year. But no worries, James Harden and Kawhi Leonard are still worth the price of admission, and we’re here to see the cool new stadium, right?
All right, less basketball talk (I’ll try, but seriously who trades Luka?) and more about the arena from a basketball fan and civil engineer’s perspective!
Ruwanka Purasinghe Yes, the stadium boasts some amazing new infrastructure like the 277,000-square-foot oval diagrid roof structure, but did you also know the stadium uses facial-recognition technology so that you never have to pull your wallet or tickets out? Let's get into the fan experience starting with …
Fan center experience outside the arena
Before you even enter the stadium, you are immersed in a hooper’s delight with a beautifully designed outdoor basketball court and large screen, where the team hosts watch parties for away games. The Court offers basketballs for attendees to practice their jumpers or play a little one-on-one before enjoying the NBA athletes. The large screen was a really nice touch to the experience, as it can truly be used for a large variety of events.
Exterior of the facility
Once you end your game of 21, you can head to the arena, and you will simply be blown away by the amazing architecture and innovative engineering that make up the exterior shell. To be completely honest, I was standing there in awe for several minutes just taking it all in. From an engineering standpoint, it truly is a marvel and includes modern features such as allowing natural airflow over the main plaza, providing weather protection where needed, and reducing the need for air conditioning. Honestly though, it's just really cool to look at.
Ruwanka Purasinghe
Ruwanka PurasingheTechnology, facial recognition
What was truly one of the more memorable experiences at Intuit Dome was the use of facial recognition throughout the arena. Similar to how you may unlock your phone, the arena uses technology to read your face so that you can enter the stadium, purchase food, and buy merchandise by just walking through. This took some prep work before the game, including loading your data and taking a selfie, but when it worked, it was really cool!
Enormous Halo Screen
Once you’re in your seats, it is simply hard to miss the massive double-sided Halo Screen that laps above the court. It was so enormous it made me feel like I was in a video game with virtual reality goggles on. From a fan perspective, it was awesome to see the multiple camera angles of replays, the in-depth stats while the game was going on, and artwork displayed throughout the game. Once settled into your seat, it felt like you were at a high-tech show in Las Vegas.
Ruwanka Purasinghe Seat experience
The seat itself also provided some really sophisticated technology, but what first grabbed my attention was the true stadium seating experience. The vertical feel of the arena was not one I had experienced before at an NBA venue, and it was very noticeable. What does this mean? Basically a very low chance someone sitting in front of you will block any of the action. What the Clippers also did with this type of seating was form what's called “the Wall,” where there are 51 uninterrupted rows of seating behind the basket near the opposing team’s bench. It is tailored nicely for the more rowdy, passionate fan base.
Other cool technology at the seat included Xbox-like buttons on every seat and light-up armrests. (Fun fact: Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, who built the Intuit Dome, was a former CEO of Microsoft, which happens to own Xbox). While the buttons were not usable during the game, the arena was built with these features so they could be used for future events. Imagine sitting at a concert where you can vote for the next song, or having interactive surveys during, who knows, a future ASCE event?
The tail ends of the armrests at every seat also feature a light that the arena controls, and when you have 18,000 seats this turns into an Electric Daisy Carnival-like light show.
Ruwanka Purasinghe
Notable mentions
While exploring the arena, I found two other impressive features that made the overall experience great. The first being a sustainability garden inside the stadium that is used to grow strawberries for the desserts. As an Envision Sustainability Professional (ENV SP), I really thought this was a smart touch and something that's rarely considered for a sporting arena.
The second notable mention was that the Clippers reached out to all the high schools in California and actually have over 1,550 jerseys on display throughout the main concourse. I thought this was a really cool touch, as many folks were searching for their high schools, and showed a great connection between high school sports and the pros.
Overall, the experience at the Intuit Dome was extremely impressive and offered a lot of innovative technology that made the visit well worth it. I’ll hopefully be back for an NBA Finals game in the near future.
If you are a civil engineer and want to give your Engineer’s Angle on something you find interesting, feel free to email your idea to [email protected].
Ruwanka Purasinghe
Ruwanka Purasinghe
