2012
Air Design, the supplier of air handling equipment and heat recovery systems, was part of the team looking after the media at the London Olympics in 2012. An Air Design air handling unit (AHU) provided the supply ventilation specifically for the kitchens – part of the 12,000m2 catering village serving 50,000 meals per day to the broadcasters, photographers and journalists that brought the Games to a worldwide audience.
The 24-hour media hub, the International Broadcast Centre/Main Press Centre (IBC/MPC), was one of seven permanent venues located within the Olympic Park. It housed the very latest IT facilities, along with a 200m- long ‘High Street’ with banks, newsagents, travel agents and a post office, as well as a transport mall providing a drop-off facility and car parking.
In a concerted effort to make the best use of space within the Olympic Park, it was the first time press and broadcasters were based in the same area. The 4,500 tonne steel structure of the IBC included around 52,000m2 of studio space over two double-storey floors with a temporary gantry running along the 275m long, 104m wide building for technical equipment. It had 8,000m2 of offices over five floors and took just ten weeks to build. The MPC included state-of-the-art utilities, power and digital connectivity and 29,000m2 of green office space by the River Lee Navigation, providing four storeys of workspace for journalists and photographers during the Olympic Games.
The main contractor for the International Broadcast Centre and the Main Press Centre was H&J Martin, one of a select group of contractors to secure work within the Olympic Park.
The air-handling unit was supplied to national ductwork contractor, Boyd & Co (Metal Workers) Ltd via distributor Angus-Air. Angus-Air have been supplying Air Design air handling equipment for over ten years, winning numerous orders for Air Design AHUs because of the company’s ability to manufacture and deliver quicker than many other manufacturers.
Equipment supplied: Air Handing Unit
Builder: H & J Martin
Architect: Allies and Morrison
Mechanical Consultant: Carillion