The Millennium Dome Project - Essay Example

The Millennium Dome Project Table of contents Introduction 3 Background and Construction 3 Controversies 4 Development 5 Sustainability of the project today and in the future 6 (Ney, M., Agenda Wards Peninsula, February 2007) 9 Cost, Risks and Benefits 9 A survey among current undergraduate students at the GSM 11 Conclusion 11 References 13 Bibliography 15 Introduction The Millennium Dome or the O2, as it has been renamed in 2005, is one of the construction projects that have been undertaken in UK to mark the third millennium. It is also called The Dome, and is situated in Greenwich Peninsula in South East London, England. The exhibition was opened to public on the first day of the new millennium and continued till 31st December, 2000. The original exhibition is long over but the canopy structure of the Dome still exists and it houses The O2, the entertainment arena. Background and Construction The Dome was the brain-child of John Major's Conservative government, and it was conceived on a much smaller scale as a Festival of Britain to celebrate the new millennium. But in 1997 in came Tony Blair's Labor Government and expanded the idea greatly and hugely funded the program. Under Blair's leadership the idea took shape and became an architect's dream and challenge. Richard Rogers, the architecture of the Dome cannot be praised less, while the contractors Sir Robert McAlpine and Laing Management of the McAlpine / Laing Joint Venture (MLJV) are given the due credit for perhaps building the largest marquee in the world. The chief engineer Buro Happold built the entire roof in such a way that it weighed even less than the air the building contained. The Dome is the largest exhibition space in the world and is very symbolic of the purpose for which it was built. It has a circumference of 365 meters which represents each day of the year. The Greenwich meridian passes through the western edge of the Dome and it is structured with twelve 100 meters high yellow support towers that represent each month of the year or every hour of the clock. Hence, it is unlike any other self-supporting dome. The dome's light weight along with its non-self-supporting structure gives it its other name, the Millennium Tent. PTFE-coated glass fiber fabric, which is a durable weather-resistant-plastic, is used to build this canopy. The Dome is secured by more than 70km of high-strength steel cable that are suspended from the twelve support-towers. The height of the dome from exactly its centre is 52 meters. This huge structure is ventilated by a ventilation shaft that arises from the Blackwall Tunnel. (Roger Stirk Harbour, 2007.) Controversies The Millennium Dome topped the charts as the most popular tourist attraction in the year 2000 and pushing the 1999 topper Alton Towers to the third spot. But even so the media considered it to be a flop project. There are several factors that triggered this idea. The project was supposed to be badly executed and there was a big question regarding its usage after the end of the exhibition. It was considered that making such huge investments for a project of whose future there is no certainty was a bad idea. It drew heavy cash from the Millennium Commission not only for its construction but also for its maintenance later. The Dome's success primarily depended on the number of visitors it attracted. The media reported that as many as 12 million visitors were expected at the Dome in the year 2000, but only 6.5 million actually visited. This when compared to the number of visitors to the Festival of Britain, which ran from May to September, presented a drastic contrast. All this added to the fact that the chief executive of the New Millennium Experience Company, Jennifer Page, was sacked just one month after the dome was opened to public, created a lot of controversies in the media. It was also suggested by the media that Blair banked heavily on the success of the Dome for his next election campaign. Development In the year 2001, Meridian Delta, which is backed by Philip Anschutz, The American billionaire, was formally entrusted with the project of developing the Dome into a centre for sports and entertainment. It was also allocated 150 acres of the land surrounding the Dome to build houses, shops and offices. This idea of developing the Greenwich Peninsula into a city was conceived in the 1996 proposal, when Greenwich peninsula site was preferred to by the Millennium Commission. On 31st May 2005, the Dome was renamed The O2. Although the original Dome structure was not changed apart from the installation of blue lights in the support poles and plasma displays to some of the surrounding sculptures, nothing more, apart from this outer shell, was retained. The 4500 tonne arena roof was engineered by Watson Steel Structures and it was built on ground and then raised. Buro Happold engineered the structure of not only the arena building but also the entertainment avenue surrounding it.Sir Robert McAlpine was entrusted with not only the main civil engineering but also the construction contract. Beautiful pathways were constructed all around the entertainment arena. Starting from the North Greenwich station a wide pathway was built to the O2 and the Peninsula Square Piazza, which was constructed in front of the dome to house special events. This pathway was partly covered with a glass roof to protect people from getting wet. The site where the dome was constructed was the center of many industrial works. As a result of this the ground was full of contaminated soils. Hence, the ground had to be freed of these contaminated soils and this job was handed over to Keller Ground Engineering. It was feared that there might be some toxic gases present within the dome as its structure was left untouched and hence the installation of catalytic convertors within the dome was justified. Since this was a very big project, different firms were given responsibilities of the different sectors of the project. The financial part of the development was entrusted to WT Partnership and EC Harris. Legal support to the O2 is provided by The Waterfront Partnership. The development of the entertainment avenues was looked after by Kerzner International. (National Audit Office, January 2005.) Sustainability of the project today and in the future When the Dome was originally built in the year 2000 it was said that there would be no future use of this construction. But all those speculators have been proved wrong today by the beautiful sports and entertainment arena that has been constructed. Anschutz Entertainment Group wants to build a super casino but in January, 2007 Manchester was granted the single trial license for a British super casino. But the AEG has not lost hope and is determined to fill the space reserved for the super casino with an alternative attraction, like a cruise terminal, that would make visitors stay overnight. If the number of overnight visitors increase then there would enough funds for investments on the second phase of development of the arena. In the second phase of the development new shops and offices would be built on the remaining land surrounding the O2 Entertainment District. (Manchester Evening News, August 2006.) The sustainability of the O2 in the future can be vouched for because the Entertainment Avenue is full of all the modern attractions. It comprises several various restaurants and bars. A VIP club lounge, an operations room, a media centre housing all the modern technologies and facilities along with numerous dressing rooms and VIP gates for performers. The entire complex is incorporated with the latest light, sound and security equipment that includes RFID smart card which tags the staff and VIP guests. The sound is digitally managed. All these modern technologies are adequately managed from four computer server rooms. The complex is manned by CCTV and security personnel. At the main entrance each and every visitor and their bags are checked by metal detectors and X-ray machines. Other centers of attraction here include: The O2 arena has a capacity of 23,000 that is primarily famous for hosting live music shows. This arena is located exactly at the center of the O2 and is the first American style multi-purpose arena in London. Not only that, it is also considered to be the largest indoor arena in Europe. The arena and the facilities that it provides are housed inside the dome structure and boasts of hosting multiple music and sporting events. The 2,350 capacity live music club called IndigO2, which organizes smaller music events, and is managed by Ansco Music Club Ltd. It contains four bars, of which The Purple Lounge is for the VIP guests, while the Bleachers is in the stalls. A two-storey bubble-shaped exhibition space called O2 Bubble is built to comply with the museum standards. It was inaugurated in November 2007 and is constructed from ETFE. The first exhibition was that of the Golden Age of the Pharaohs and Tutankhamen. This year a permanent exhibition of the British Music Experience was added to the third floor of the bubble. The Vue @ The O2 houses 11 screens and includes the 770 capacity auditorium the largest in London. There are two multi-purpose indoor events spaces that conduct live music. It is also used as a night club. These spaces are known as The 108 and Matter. The O2 also boasts of outdoor events spaces like The London Piazza, Peninsula Square. (Ney, M., Agenda Wards Peninsula, February 2007) Unlike the advertising campaign during the unveiling of the Dome was unsuccessful but today the VCCP introduce the "through-the-line campaign" for the O2. The Blue Ticket is introduced all over London and is also made available online. This Blue Ticket facilitates opportunities for the people, who find this ticket, to win VIP passes to any O2 event or other venue experiences. Michael Sugden, VCCP's Managing Partner, in favor of The O2 said "it is the literal embodiment of O2's strategy of delivering better experiences for its customers. Everyone who goes to The O2 will have a great time, but there are special experiences and opportunities which only O2 customers can take advantage of, such as priority tickets for events and exclusive areas within the venue. These better experiences are communicated through the different media of the launch campaign, and also inside The O2 itself." (Chime Communications PLC, July 2007) Cost, Risks and Benefits The initial budget that was allocated to the Dome was '758 million. The lottery funds granted 630 million pounds by the time the project ended. But around '25.4 million of this grant was not actually spent. (BBC News, April 2006) It was reported that the project was not financially managed properly from the very beginning. A 2000 National Audit Report declared that the success of the project depended on three factors: the National Lottery, Visitors and Commercial sponsors. The financial difficulties the project faced, as reported by the National Audit, 2000, was due to the failure to achieve the 12 million visitors originally targeted which in turn didn't bring in the revenues required. The targets that were set were highly ambitious and risky. Also the strategy used for marketing and sales was based on the Dome selling itself. Inadequate systems and information have come in the company's way to produce reliable financial forecasts. There were unexpected liabilities that were building up (somewhere up to 5 million pounds). As a result, the report suggested that since February 2000 the Dome, may have been insolvent. (National Audit Report,2000) The government now expects that the deal it had struck between the English Partnerships and Meridian to garner a 13% share for the lottery of 70 million pounds over a period of 20 years. The MORI research shows that 75% of people in the UK believe that projects funded by the Millennium Commission will be profitable in the area in which they live. While on the other hand only 7% of the people believe that there would not be any benefit whatsoever. Millennium Commission Chairman, Rt Hon Chris Smith MP said, "The year 2000 has been truly momentous. The Millennium Commission has made an Unparalleled investment in a range of projects, festivals and people right across UK.......The Millennium Commission is using Lottery money to make a real difference by revitalizing our towns and cities, promoting science and technology , encouraging environmental sustainability, investing in education and supporting communities across the UK. This investment has already made a great impact during the year, and will create a lasting legacy which will be felt for generations to come."(Millennium Commission, December 2000) The night the Dome was inaugurated was not one of the best nights. It was somewhat unsuccessful because there were many technical as well as transport problems that were not taken care of. Since the sales were based on the Dome's selling itself, publicity about its major attractions was poor which resulted in poor sales of tickets. This added with inadequate sponsorship funding made the Dome to resort to the National Lottery's Millennium Commission for financial help. As a result its final cost to the government was 1 billion pounds. As a result at the end of the exhibition most of its contents were sold off in auctioned. After the first year the cost of maintaining the Dome was around 600,000 pounds per month. A survey among current undergraduate students at the GSM A survey of opinions among a small sample of current undergraduate students at the GSM regarding the current usage of the project reveal that most of the students believe that the original Dome project had not received the success that it was expected to. Even then around 92% percent of the students believe that the Dome after its development into the O2 has been functioning wonderfully. They say that the centers of attractions that have been added and also those that are supposed to be added in the near future have a lot of utility in the future. They are in league with the tastes of the present generation and hence the O2, as the Dome has been originally renamed, is here to stay. Some students say that, the government took a very big risk by agreeing to the deal with the Meridian in 2004. After the Dome's assets were sold off to meet the investments, it was a drastic step taken. This created a lot of doubt whether such a step would mean a good return for the value for money for the taxpayer. Conclusion Today the O2 centre has grown big and is hosting a lot of important events. In 2009 it is going to host the 2009 World Gymnastics Championships. Also the next Olympics that is to be held in the year 2012 in London is also going to be hosted in the O2 arena. As Prime Minister of UK, Tony Blair said on 19th June 1997, "To create, build, and operate a national Millennium Experience which attracts, inspires, entertains, educates and involves visitors and participants. To seek, through the experience, to influence positively each individual's view of themselves and the world's view of this nation." (Politics.co.uk, 2009). The O2 has lived up to its expectations and is expected to grow bigger. Blair's view of an "indoor city" has been successful. References BBC News, April 2006. Troubled times. Dome legacy is 'good for future'. [online] Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/4901982.stm [Accessed 20th August 2009] Chime Communications PLC, July 2007. O2 and AEG Europe introduce The O2, London's most exciting new destination unveiled in a '6.5m advertising campaign by VCCP. Press Releases. http://web.archive.org/web/20070926234832/http://www.chime.plc.uk/news_room/news_room_index.asp'rel=450&TYPES=1 [Accessed 20th August 2009] Manchester Evening News, August 2006. News. Super-casino talks get under way. [online] Available at: http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/222/222099_supercasino_talks_get_under_way.html [Accessed 20th August 2009] Millennium Commission, 2000. Millennium Roundup. A lasting legacy from your Lottery funding. [online] Available at: http://www.millennium.gov.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi'id=1205 [Accessed 20th August 2009] National Audit Office, January 2005. Regeneration of the Millennium Dome and Associated land. Summary. [pdf] Available at: http://web.archive.org/web/20070610193804/http://www.nao.org.uk/publications/nao_reports/04-05/0405178.pdf [Accessed 20th August 2009] Ney, M., February 2007. Agenda Wards Peninsula. Licensing Committee Agenda. [pdf] Available at: http://www.greenwich.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/9BFC044C-3DF8-4CA0-AE9F-E91F3DD3480E/0/20071402Agenda.pdf [Accessed 20th August 2009] Politics.co.uk, 2009. Issue briefs. Millennium Dome. [online] Available at: http://www.politics.co.uk/briefings-guides/issue-briefs/millennium-dome-$366672.htm [Accessed 20th August 2009] Roger Stirk Harbour, 2007. Facts. Millennium Experience. [online] Available at: http://www.rsh-p.com/render.aspx'siteID=1&navIDs=1,4,25,661 [Accessed 20th August 2009] The Comptroller and Auditor General's conclusions, November 2000. The Millennium Dome.National Audit Office. [pdf] Available at: http://www.nao.org.uk/publications/9900/the_millennium_dome.aspx [Accessed 20th August 2009]. Bibliography AEG, 2009. Facilities. The O2. [online] Available at: http://www.aegworldwide.co.uk/01_venues/theo2.php [Accessed 20th August 2009]. Burrell, I., June 2007. The Independent Media. Branding the O2: Welcome to the new Come of entertainment. [online] Available at: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/branding-the-o2-welcome-to-the-new-dome-of-entertainment-453541.html [Accessed 20th August 2009]. Campbell, D., January 2006. 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[online] Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1540992/The-Dome-misses-out.html [Accessed 20th August 2009] Read More