While the action on the gridiron is what draws the public’s eye, in college football, most of the hard work happens behind the scenes in the training rooms and on the practice fields. Over the last several years, Texas A&M University has invested millions of dollars in its athletic facilities, including various sections dedicated to football success. One is the Coolidge Football Performance Center. It's first class in every regard, as is the Schweiss Doors bifold door that connects the facility's indoor and outdoor practice fields. 

“When it was built, it was the largest indoor football facility in the NCAA, at about 132,000 square feet,” says Craig Valka, Executive Associate Athletic Director for Facilities and Capital Projects at Texas A&M.

The Coolidge Center is comprised of a 160-yard indoor field sheltered within a massive steel fieldhouse, and two 140-yard outdoor fields. Connecting the indoor and outdoor fields is a large Schweiss Doors liftstrap bifold door allowing for ease of movement between the fields. And when you’re trying to move 100 college football players in pads and helmets, plus coaching and training staff and small vehicles transporting equipment, having a large door opening is helpful.

“It’s all about speed and efficiency, migrating between the outside practice fields and the inside practice fields,” Valka says. “The door basically creates a nice funnel for the transition between inside and outside.”

The Coolidge Center was named for alumnus David Coolidge, a former football player who made a significant donation towards the center’s construction. It was designed by Populus Architects of Kansas City and built by Manhattan Construction of Tulsa, Okla. The design centered on providing the Aggies with the best possible facility. The larger-than-life fields, both inside and out, allow coaches to run multiple drills at one time. The indoor field even has two additional end zones, providing plenty of space to practice red zone situations. The ceiling height is high enough to allow for kicking and punting practice.

The indoor field building also includes a mezzanine viewing area, providing a bird’s eye view of the action on the field; dedicated space for sports medicine, training and conditioning; state-of-the-art lighting; and of course, the Schweiss bifold door.

The liftstrap bifold door mounted at the Coolidge Center is 30 feet, 4 inches wide and 28 feet, 5 inches high. Black liftstraps were requested for the project and the door includes several safety features, including two overrides, photo eye sensors and a safety edge for the door base. It was also engineered to hold the weight of translucent polycarbonate panels that were installed as the cladding.

The polycarbonate panels allow for natural light filter into the field house without creating a greenhouse effect from the hot Texas sun. The panels are also mounted throughout the building. This, along with a robust air conditioning system, ensures a comfortable atmosphere for players, staff and visitors.

The Schweiss bifold door was installed by Mex Tech Industrial Service of Fort Worth, Texas, owned by Gary Valka. Valka says installation went well and with help from the team at Schweiss Doors, a few glitches during the process were worked out. The door runs smoothly and provides the efficient corridor of travel the football team was hoping for. Valka says he would recommend Schweiss Doors to others, even rival football teams looking to update facilities.

The updated athletic facilities, including the Coolidge Center, have impressed pretty much everyone who has gone through them and are an important recruitment tool for the school when looking at future players. The Schweiss bifold door definitely helps with that.

“The Schweiss bifold door is a ‘Wow’ factor, especially when it opens,” Valka says. “It is just massive and it gathers a lot of attention when it starts to open.”