Vistalegre Bullring (Bilbao)

In November 2019, the company BMF Toros, lessee of the bullring, presented BIVA Bilbao: an innovative restoration and remodelling plan for the Vista Alegre bullring.

The company Arte, Toreo y Cultura BMF unveiled the new spaces to turn the Bilbao bullring into a reference point, not only for bullfighting events but also for other types of leisure and cultural shows.

The refurbishment and remodelling work on the Vista Alegre Bullring began in December 2019, kicking off the modernisation and refurbishment process for its conversion into the BIVA.

In the first phase of the works plan, the old seats were removed and replaced with new ones that are more ergonomic, comfortable, weather resistant and aesthetically pleasing, using a design for the arrangement of the stands in a gradient mosaic format with the characteristic colours of the town of Bilbao and Vista Alegre: dark grey, Bilbao blue, red and white.

Most of the concrete sections were in a critical state after more than 50 years of erosion and continuous use, so they were all replaced and renovated to complete the waterproofing of the building. The main objectives of the waterproofing, which was completed in several weeks, were: to stop the deterioration of the structure by preventing further erosion and leaks, to provide greater longevity and strength to the seating areas and finally, to provide a new, cleaner, more modern and stylised image of the building.

For the waterproofing, the ACE PU-100 system was chosen for its rapid execution and commissioning as well as for its advantages such as its total watertightness, forming a continuous sheet with great resistance to wear and tear and the possibility of intense pedestrian traffic on it.

The most important challenge was to meet the very demanding deadlines of the project, achieving the rehabilitation of more than 11000m² of surface in 35 days.

PHASES

• Dismantling of the 16000 seats
• Cleaning of the entire surface with a controlled jet of water pressure and angle.
• Sealing of the holes produced by the anchors used to support the seats.
• Preparation of the support and repair of areas in poor condition.
• Priming of the surface using PRIMERFLEX PLUS as an adhesion promoter.
• Spraying of ACE PU-100 polyurea membrane.
• Finishing with a layer of aliphatic polyurethane as protection against ultraviolet rays and as a decorative finish.