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SINGAPORE: The million-dollar
Singapore Flyer may open to the public earlier than scheduled.
Although the official launch has been scheduled for 1 March
2008, one of the companies behind the wheel, Adval Brand Group,
is confident there is a high chance the date will be brought
forward due to the conservative construction schedule.
This was disclosed as the first of 28 capsules was fitted to the
wheel on Friday.
The first capsule had taken about half an hour to be lifted from
the ground to its fitting position.
The engineers have a flexible plan to fit one capsule a day, but
this depends on the weather conditions and how fast each capsule
is lifted and fitted.
The first four capsules will be fitted horizontal to each other
at four points, before the rest of the capsules are fitted using
the same horizontal method.
Phil Maddox, General Manager of Technical Services for the
Singapore Flyer, said: "We have obviously lightened it down
while still maintaining its structural integrity. We have to
carefully load the wheel up as we put the capsules on. Making it
all lopsided with too much load on one side will over-stress the
wheel."
For the moment, the soft launch of the Singapore Flyer includes
three days in February for corporate bookings and Valentine's
Day for the public.
But next year's F1 race and National Day Parade has a blackout
booking period as the company is still working on sales packages
for those dates.
The company is confident that the Singapore Flyer can compete
with bigger and newer competitions like the wheels that are
being constructed in Shanghai and Beijing.
It is promising visitors a spectacular ride experience, with an
unobstructed view of the city, along with food and beverage
options on the side. |
