Largest and Final Steel Truss Being Installed at Sears Centre; 275-Foot Long, 107.5-Ton Truss Completes Massive Steel Frame for Arena Roof

HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL (February 23, 2006) — Sears Centre, the 11,000-seat arena currently under development in Hoffman Estates, will be nearly 50 percent complete when a ninth and final steel roof truss — 275 feet in length and weighing more than 107.5 tons — was set on Sunday, February 19, 2006.

The developers and owners of Sears Centre — Ryan Companies US, Inc. and Sears Holding Corp. — along with Hoffman Estates officials, CCO Entertainment executives and other dignitaries will mark the milestone on Thursday with a ceremonial truss-signing event just before the final roof truss is put into place by more than 20 ironworkers.

“Each milestone step provides yet another very visible sign of the significance and prominence of Sears Centre,” Steve Hyman, President of CCO Entertainment, and Executive Director of Sears Centre, said. “It is exciting to watch this structure, and what it represents as a world class sports and entertainment arena, take shape every day.”

The final truss is the largest of nine trusses that make up the roof structure of Sears Centre. It is the last of six 275-foot long trusses that all weigh at least 105 tons. The last truss actually weighs 107.5 tons. It weighs more than the other 275-foot trusses because it serves as an “anchor” for many operational elements of the arena’s staging, lighting and sound requirements.

Sears Centre will host more than 135 events per year, from concerts to family shows to sporting events, and attract more than 750,000 visitors annually. The site, and the ongoing construction activity, is clearly visible from the Northwest Tollway (I-90) near Route 59.   

According to Ryan Companies, these trusses are the largest to be set in the Chicago area since the United Center was built. The sheer size of the trusses requires the use of the largest crawling crane in the Midwest.

In total, the nine trusses weigh more than 710 tons and are 2,070 feet long. To put that in perspective, if the trusses were placed end to end, the length would be: nearly seven football fields long; or approximately three city blocks; the weight of the trusses is equal to approximately 395 large passenger cars or more than 350 mid-size sports utility vehicles (SUVs).