Mechanical locks with escape door function increase security in state-of-the-art sports arena

47 standard mechanical locks, 26 locks with escape door function

The Raffeisen Arena, the largest sports stadium in Linz, is the new ultra-modern home of LASK from the highest division of the Austrian soccer league. This new construction project took into account the requirements of soccer and sports infrastructure as well as the comfort and safety of players, attendees and the building itself. WILKA, through its dealer Schachermayer, supplied mechanical locks for the functional areas in the lower part of the stadium and the entrance doors to the visitor areas.

The new Raffeisen Arena is a soccer temple but also the largest sports stadium in the city of Linz. The accommodation includes a total of 20,000 seats, 42 skyboxes, 2 event boxes and more than 1,700 business seats. This historic arena, realized to the most modern standards, meets the international requirements of the Austrian Football Association and category 4 of UEFA's stadium infrastructure regulations. This allows Champions League or Europa League finals to be played immediately. 

Comfort and especially safety crucial

Sporting events often bring large crowds to their feet, which of course requires the necessary measures in terms of comfort and, above all, safety of the players, attendees and the accommodation itself. Video surveillance and fire protection measures, as well as safe escape routes, doors and locks had to be planned and implemented very professionally. 

"Naturally, we are delighted to be able to make an important contribution to security at this stadium with our mechanical locks. After all, this project includes forty-seven standard mechanical locks from WILKA. These were installed in the functional areas in the lower part of the stadium," stated Christian Lüftl, Key Account Manager Lock Systems at WILKA Schließtechnik GmbH. 

"There is more, however, because we also supplied a further 26 locks from the 6000, 7000 and 8000 series, which are equipped with an escape door function in accordance with DIN EN 1125 and are used in the entrance doors at visitor areas. The EN 1125 standard applies to public buildings where visitors do not know their way around and guarantees a safe escape through an escape door with only a single operation of the door lock.

No unauthorized access

When choosing doors and locks, security was the top priority. However, they also had to ensure that unauthorized persons could not gain access. In public and large buildings, this often causes problems. After all, doors must be securely locked, but at the same time - in case of emergency - they must also be able to be opened by anyone. 

"Our lock series 7000 and 8000 provide safe escape routes as well as guaranteeing a higher level of burglary protection," Christian Lüftl explains. "Thanks to multi-point locking, doors are significantly harder to break open and the self-locking mechanism protects against unauthorized access. Indeed, after a visitor has passed, the door is automatically locked as soon as the latch engages the latch plate again."

Perfect cooperation between all parties

For the doors and locks in the Raffeisen Arena, the developer turned to a local metalworking company, which received advice from WILKA and dealer Schachermayer. The installer was also able to rely on the experience of both partners throughout the entire process: from selecting the right locks to completing the project. 

"The employees of the metal construction company put in an impressive performance. The installation required precision, but there was also enormous time pressure. After all, the opening date was fixed and that deadline had to be met without deviation," Christian Lüftl concludes. "Thanks to the perfect cooperation between the metalworkers, our dealer Schachermayer and our own people, the project could be completed in February 2023 without any technical problems and on time."