The Best Seats
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Athletic facilities are popular for a variety of events. Some facilities are designed for multi-purpose use while others are designed specifically for sporting events. Regardless of how your facility is used, safety is always a key concern, especially considering the high volume of people using the equipment.

From spectators using the bleachers to athletes using the basketball backstops again and again, routine inspection and maintenance is a must. Just as wear and tear occurs on a vehicle, any athletic facility also requires attention.

When you consider the frequency, weight and movement that occurs on bleachers during an event, the necessity of routine maintenance quickly becomes apparent. Basketball backstops, which can weigh several hundred pounds, also pose a great concern if neglected. 

Operating across three campuses in eastern Ontario, St. Lawrence College (SLC) is one of the province’s leading institutions when it comes to applied arts and technology. Home to roughly 7,000 full-time students, SLC specializes in programs such as applied science and computing, baccalaureate nursing, business, community services, justice studies, applied arts, health sciences as well as skilled trades and tourism.

As the institution continues to experience exponential growth, 2018 was the year that saw exciting projects come to fruition at the school’s flagship campus in Kingston. As part of the Hello Future Capital Project, renovations and a new build to the Student Life and Innovation Centre got underway after over 80 percent voted in favour of supporting the project in a student referendum.

While we do indeed spend the bulk of our time working primarily with commercial and industrial clientele such as municipalities, colleges, universities and school boards, we do dabble from time to time in the residential space.

Outside of smaller padding or gym mat orders we often receive from private customers, we do get other large projects suited for homes, home gyms and backyards across Canada and the United States. We have supplied custom “Tar Heel blue” wall padding for a UNC fan, some bleachers and benches for a California resident, residential quiet room padding in the province of Quebec, among many others.

Athletic programming is a crowded space. With more participants perhaps than ever before, facility owners and operators are always scrambling to not only offer cutting-edge equipment but to also ensure every inch of space is properly utilized.

When it comes to gymnasium equipment, the list is long and highly customized. With expansions in program offerings in educational and community-based facilities, the need for additional equipment is seemingly never ending.

For operators of busy facilities, the need for speed and automation is growing with each day that passes. When it comes to educational facilities such as schools, colleges and universities, the gymnasium is typically a heavily scheduled location, catering to a variety of programming and athletic competition.

Celebrating over ten years since opening in the Greater Toronto Area, the South Asian Autism Awareness Centre (SAAAC) is where one of our most recent projects landed us.

The centre was created as a direct response to the growing need for awareness and support for South Asian families impacted by ASD and other developmental disorders.

The centre has experienced exponential growth over the past decade, now servicing over 150 families. In the fall of 2017, they reached out to our team for help with a new facility.

As part of their expansion, the SAAAC had plans in place to take over a building that had been donated to them by one of Toronto’s school boards.

Recognized as an International Centre of Excellence thanks to its fully accessible design and inclusive environment, the Abilities Centre truly is one of a kind.

Located in the Greater Toronto Area in beautiful Whitby, Ontario, the 125,000 square foot facility boasts sports, fitness, arts, and life skills programming for people of all ages and abilities.

In addition to a board room, games room, lounge, theatre, 200m indoor track, aerobics rooms and a universally accessible exercise area, the facility is home to three regulation-size basketball courts.

This is where our team was fortunate enough to lend a hand to this amazing facility. Given the variety of participants that frequent the basketball courts, the existing portable backstops were no longer deemed inclusive for all to enjoy. Those who enjoyed the sport from a wheelchair or suffered from other disabilities soon found these floor-mounted systems to be hazardous to their safety.

A part of the Ktunaxa Nation, ʔaq̓am is a member community based on the values of family, unity and cooperation. Taking pride in their heritage, language and culture, the community operates a number of programs and services including an elementary school, daycare, after school and summer school programming, community health and education services, economic development, lands and natural resource management and housing and administrative services.

Accounting for the largest population of all Ktunaxa Nation Bands, the ʔaq̓am community also occupies over 18,000 acres of land under management.Located in the Rocky Mountain Trench in the East Kooteney region of southeastern British Columbia, roughly ten minutes north of Cranbrook.

With the spring season officially underway, planners, managers and operators are preparing once again for additional outdoor play within their communities and organizations. As we shed the layers of heavy clothing and move into something more comfortable, soccer pitches, football fields and outdoor basketball courts are once again in season.

As such, many facility managers take this time of the year to evaluate, design and/or construct their outdoor play areas for these types of sports, including basketball.

As one of the most popular sports here in North America, basketball courts in communities and in school yards are among the most high-traffic and most heavily participated areas.

At Sport Systems, we got our start in the basketball industry. With our headquarters located in picturesque Almonte, Ontario, we share this hometown with the inventor of basketball Dr. James Naismith and as such, began designing basketball hoops over 40 years ago.

A project just over a year in the making, the fall of 2017 marked the final construction and opening of the Portage Lewis Fitness Centre in New Brunswick. As a part of Portage Atlantic, a non-profit organization specializing in drug addiction rehabilitation for Atlantic Canadian youth, construction of the facility was kicked off in January 2017.

As the project progressed through the summer months, our team was contacted to help design and install a number of basketball systems in the facility’s gymnasium.

Look up, way up in most gymnasiums across North America and you are likely to find a ceiling-suspended basketball system strung across the rafters in any number of configurations. 

Designed to be easily removed when necessary, these ceiling-hung units make allowances for a lack of space or distance restraints from other traditional installation methods such as wall attachments. As with the other equipment located within the walls of any gymnasium, these products are designed to provide a safe playing environment for all to enjoy.

That said, our installation process is a diligent one, ensuring these systems are correctly installed, configured and operated.  While the installation process will vary across the different available configurations, the below guidelines are general in nature and provide an overview of the process.