The Lorenzweg Sports Hall is a newly constructed three-court sports facility in Magdeburg, designed for school and club sports as well as sporting events. The hall required a powerful sound system that provides both excellent sound quality and meets the requirements of a voice alarm system in case of an emergency.

The city of Magdeburg awarded the contract to Sicherungs- und Signaltechnik Magdeburg GmbH, a long-standing partner of TOA. Following detailed project planning, including a comprehensive EASE simulation by TOA, the VX-3000 voice alarm system combined with HX-7 speakers was selected and installed on-site.

Products used:

• VX-3000 Voice Alarm System: This system ensures reliable voice alarm capabilities and clear announcements throughout the building. The system can be controlled by users according to its configuration through its control units.

• 24 x HX-7 Speakers: The line array speakers were mounted on the grandstand roof. Thanks to their adjustable dispersion angle, the speakers can be optimally adapted to the acoustic requirements of the multifunctional hall. The EN-54 certified speakers are operated via the VX-3000 voice alarm system using 100V technology.

Challenges:

• Targeted and Variable Sound Coverage: The different uses for school sports and sporting events vary significantly in terms of the area to be covered and the expected noise level. Special attention was given to the sound coverage of the spectator areas, particularly the retractable telescopic grandstand as well as the east and west stands. The speaker configuration allows for individual activation of the required areas.

• Construction and Speaker Installation: The roof structure with skylights and beams posed an additional challenge as it limited the mounting positions for the speakers. The speakers were installed between the two beams of a field at a height of approximately 7.7 meters.

• Acoustics and Speech Intelligibility: The audience at events can generate a very high noise level, potentially compromising the effectiveness of the voice alarm system. The system needed to have sufficient volume capacity to ensure adequate speech intelligibility even with full occupancy. A speech signal level of up to 95 dBA was projected. At the same time, the system needed to be significantly quieter during school sports operations: the average speech signal level on the playing field is 87 dBA. The various use cases required separate consideration for each scenario during the planning process.

Thanks to meticulous planning and high-quality TOA components, a tailored solution was implemented that meets both the demands of sports operations and safety standards. The Lorenzweg Sports Hall is now optimally equipped to support both school sports and high-profile sporting events with excellent acoustics.