The huge London 2012 International Broadcast Centre (IBC) is taking shape in the skyline with the 4,500 tonne steel structure completed in just ten weeks.
The IBC, combined with the Main Press Centre (MPC), will support around 20,000 broadcasters, photographers and journalists communicating the Games to an audience of four billion people worldwide. In legacy the facilities will create just under 900,000 square feet of business space with the potential to generate thousands of new jobs.
The steel frame of the IBC, which will provide studio and office space during the Games and in legacy is 275m long, 104m wide, 21m tall and big enough to house five jumbo jets. The steel has been fabricated for the IBC in Dalton, North Yorkshire and produced and rolled in Scunthorpe and Teesside.
The IBC foundations are complete, work is underway on the roof lining and work is about to start on flooring and cladding. The foundations of the MPC, which provides office space during the Games and in legacy, are 50% complete and due to finish this autumn. The media transport mall is making rapid progress with the foundations and ground floor columns already complete.
Olympic Delivery Authority Chairman John Armitt said: “The ‘big build’ is on track with construction underway on all permanent venues. The IBC/MPC is taking shape in the skyline as work accelerates on infrastructure and venues across the Olympic Park including the Olympic Stadium, Aquatics Centre, Olympic Village, and Velodrome.
“The IBC/MPC is a challenging project with a tight deadline and were on track to provide a quality working environment for media during the Games and flexible employment space for a range of potential legacy tenants and users.”
Sebastian Coe, Chairman of the London 2012 Organising Committee, said: “Whilst the focus of the world will be on the sporting venues in 2012, the IBC will be a vital, yet mostly unseen part of Games-time operations, pumping out hundreds of thousands of hours of the sporting action around the world and providing a hub for the tens of thousands of broadcast media who will be telling the stories of our Games.
"It is exciting to see the progress being made on this part of the project and the fantastic work being done by the ODA and its contractors will ensure that the entire world can share in London 2012 – and after the Games has packed up and left town, the area will be left state of the art office facilities which can benefit Hackney for years to come.”
Tessa Jowell, Minister for the Olympics, said: “The International Broadcast Centre’s giant steel frame is a perfect example of how the Games are benefiting the whole of the UK with businesses in Yorkshire and the North East involved in its development.
“As the largest venue on the Olympic Park the IBC/MPC will provide state-of-the art media facilities during the Games as well as in legacy to the growing digital sector."
Elected Mayor of Hackney Jules Pipe said: "The International Broadcast Centre and Main Press Centre for 2012 in Hackney will provide permanent employment space after the Games, allowing the digital, creative and media industries the space they need to expand and creating high quality jobs. The completion of the steel frame is the next step in the journey towards a vital economic legacy for Hackney and East London."
Big Build: IBC/MPC
The IBC/MPC combines an innovative mixture of permanent and temporary elements during the Games and has been designed to be as flexible as possible to accommodate a range of potential legacy tenants and uses. The London Development Agency (LDA) has been leading the legacy planning for the Olympic Park site. This work will be now be taken forward by the new Olympic Park Legacy Company.
The MPC includes:
* 29,000 square metres of green office space by the River Lea Navigation, providing four storeys of workspace for journalists and photographers during the Games.
* Innovatively designed flexibility that enables the building to be adapted in legacy for either a single tenant in the whole building or on each floor, as well as multiple tenants on each floor.
* A connected single strip of single storey buildings facing the canal that can be separated into ‘mews’ accommodation in legacy offering another type of quality business space in legacy.
* State-of-the-art utilities, power and digital connectivity during the Games and in legacy.
* Innovations designed to meet demanding green building standards in legacy including a 2,000 square metres ‘brown roof’ of gravel and moss to encourage invertebrates; 60% of non-drinking water to be collected from across the Olympic Park; habitats including over 100 bird and bat boxes.
The IBC includes:
* Around 52,000 square metres of studio space of two 8-10m high floors during the Games with a temporary gantry running along the building for technical equipment.
* 8000 square metres of offices over five floors at the front of the building.
* The flexibility in legacy to be separated into a number of units and for design features to be altered such as cladding replaced with windows.
Temporary Games time elements, most of which reduce the Games and legacy transformation costs, include:
* A 12,000 square metre catering village serving 50,000 meals a day 24 hours.
* A 200 metre long High Street between the MPC and IBC featuring outlets such as banks, newsagents, travel agents and a post office.
* A temporary Media Conference room between the IBC and MPC for up to 800 journalists.
A Media Transport Mall providing coach drop-off and car parking, accreditation and security screening during the Games will be halved in legacy to provide car parking spaces to legacy tenants alongside walking, cycling and public transport connections.
The London Development Agency (LDA) is leading on the legacy uses of the media centre site. This has included working closely with the ODA to ensure the flexibility of legacy plans fit in with Games-time arrangements.
The overall masterplan for the Park and detailed uses and designs will evolve over the coming years and the legacy of the IBC/MPC site will be influenced by eventual occupiers of the buildings.
In February, the LDA and London 2012 partners released draft outline legacy plans for the park - called the Legacy Masterplan Framework (LMF). These are currently being assessed by the new Olympic Park Legacy Company following a consultation earlier this year. The Company will take over from and build on the solid foundation of the legacy work done by the LDA which has been developing plans since London's successful bid to host the Games.
The LMF is part of a wider regeneration strategy for the area which also takes into account social and economic regeneration for the areas surrounding the Olympic Park. For more information visit www.legacynow.co.uk
Sir Peter Rogers, Chief Executive of the London Development Agency, said: "The LDA is committed to creating employment and skills opportunities for Londoners through the Olympic Games, and this is another step in the media centre site becoming a major employment driver in legacy.
"The design refinements along with the structural enhancements to be made after the Games will provide greater flexibility in splitting the building into different configurations for legacy tenants. We are delighted to have reached this milestone and look forward to a smooth transition of the project over to the Olympic Park Legacy Company."
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