Sheffield-based engineering firm SCX has been selected to design and install a retractable pitch at the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium.

The retractable pitch will be made from real turf and will sit atop an artificial pitch, making the new White Hart Lane stadium the first in the UK to contain two pitches within the same bowl.

In order to preserve the integrity of both playing surfaces the real-grass pitch will be used exclusively for football matches, whilst the artificial pitch beneath will be used for NFL matches and other events including live music.

The turf pitch sits in three pitch-long trays that, when retracted, slide back into the south stand to reveal the artificial pitch beneath. The joins in the grass pitch are designed to be undetectable when in use.

THe installation, which began in October, is expected to take 12 weeks, and will be carried out by SCX Special Projects, the bespoke precision engineering arm of the SCX Group.

Danny Pickard, lead engineer at SCX, says: “Our expertise and heritage enables us to push the boundaries of moving structures and precision engineering.”

Pickard adds: “This latest pitch technology embodies everything we strive for and care about – delivering precisely what the client needs, with the engineering flair that has become a hallmark of SCX. We’re so very proud to deliver this engineering world first.”