Big Olympics contracts have lifted RMJM and Aggreko
As four billion viewers worldwide tuned into the Beijing Olympics’ opening ceremony last Friday, most were unaware that two Scottish companies have ignored human rights concerns to play a significant role in making the extravaganza possible.
Glasgow-based temporary power supply firm Aggreko has been working since March to ensure the myriad of lights didn’t go out at the “Bird’s Nest” Olympic stadium in Beijing. And Edinburgh-based architectural practice RMJM designed the massive glass-fronted hospitality centre from where, among other media heavyweights, Huw Edwards hosted BBC1’s show about the ceremony.
Aggreko secured an exclusive power supply contract with the Beijing Olympic Games Organising Committee last July. As part of the $35 million (£18m) deal, Aggreko’s engineers have installed a mini national grid in the Chinese capital comprising 470kms of power cable.
The company has also installed 263 generators around the 37 official Olympic venues in three cities — Beijing, Hong Kong and Qingdao.
Aggreko’s chief executive Rupert Soames, who was last week in Beijing to oversee the final stages of the installation process, said: “In the first six months of this year we’ve done Euro 2008, Glastonbury, the British and US golf opens and the Farnborough Air Show — all major entertainment events. But the Olympics is the mother of them all.
“The units that we have installed are capable of generating 140 megawatts of power, sufficient to power a town or city of 250,000 people.”
In addition to providing power for the opening and closing ceremonies, Aggreko is also powering broadcasting and lighting systems throughout the Games as well as camera equipment at the various stadiums. The deal, which also involves Aggreko becoming an official Games sponsor, is described by the firm as the largest temporary power contract ever awarded for an event.
“The men’s 100 metres final is only run once,” said Soames. “Our goal is to ensure that power delivery is 100% reliable throughout the Games and the Paralympics, and that uninterrupted broadcasting can be provided worldwide.”
Aggreko’s project director in Beijing, Debajit Das, has latterly been working as late as 4am to ensure the generators, cabling and circuits are fail-safe. Helping him is Aggreko’s 150-strong Olympic team — half the size of the British sporting contingent — from 15 nationalities.
Soames, an old Etonian and grandson of Sir Winston Churchill, said that each of the firm’s 1mW generators, all manufactured at the firm’s Dumbarton plant, produces enough power for 6,000-7,000 homes. “In some cases they are being used as the primary source of power, while in others they’re a backup in case the Chinese grid goes down,” he said.
Given the high level of air pollution in Beijing, was there any concern about using diesel-powered generators? Soames said: “They are all of a new design, which means that emissions are pretty low. However, because they burn fossil fuel, they do emit CO2 and some particulates.”
Asked what it was like dealing with a one-party state where press freedoms are severely curtailed, Soames said Aggreko’s customer was not the Chinese government but the Beijing Olympic Games Organising Committee.
He said: “They could not have been more helpful and co-operative. They’re determined to ensure the Games are a huge success for China. They’re technically competent, very hard-working and helpful.”
Soames, 49, younger brother of Conservative MP Nicholas Soames, became chief executive of Aggreko in 2003. The share price has since increased nearly sixfold, giving the company a market value of £1.9 billion, which means it is seen as a candidate to join the FTSE 100 index.
In a trading update issue ahead of its half-year results on 26 August , Aggreko said: “We expect revenues will grow by about 25% and profit before tax will be about 40% higher than the prior year.” This means Aggreko should deliver profits of £66.5m for the six months. Panmure Gordon analyst Mike Murphy predicts full-year profits of £160.2m.
However, like most business people operating in China, Soames was reluctant to be drawn into a debate on human rights. Asked for his views on Beijing’s heavy-handed treatment of petitioners and human rights protesters ahead of the Games, he said: “That’s above my pay grade. It’s not for me to comment.”
Peter Morrison, chief executive of RMJM, was equally reluctant to comment on whether the firm had any qualms about dealing with what is effectively an arm of the Chinese state. “We have found nothing to disturb us in China,” said Morrison. “The client we’ve been dealing with, Beijing North Star, has behaved impeccably throughout.”
RMJM designed the Beijing Olympic Green Convention Centre, which will be home to 20,000 journalists, photographers and broadcasters throughout the Beijing Olympics. It landed the design and master-planning contract, beating competition from OMA, the firm of Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas, Australia-based Philip Cox Architects and US-based KMD.
Morrison revealed the building will be given a second lease of life as China’s National Convention Centre when the Olympic and Paralympic caravan leaves town. He said: “We worked closely with Beijing North Star to create a multi-use complex that will play a pivotal role in the city’s infrastructure after the Games.”
The building, adjacent to the Olympic stadium, has a floor space of 270,000 square metres, including office, retail and hotel components.
Scott Findley, RMJM’s Hong Kong-based design director, said: “Part of the challenge was to ensure the facility had a viable ‘second life’. With this in mind, we ensured the facility could be retrofitted within a short period without huge added expense.
“As one of four principal venues on the Beijing Olympic Green Boulevard, the structure is understated and timeless, its roof recalling and celebrating the traditions of the Chinese pagoda.”
RMJM — which designed the Scottish parliament building with the late Catalan architect Enric Miralles — has several other projects in China including an entertainment complex in Macau. It is also bidding for the London 2012 media centre and is to build Russian energy giant Gazprom’s new HQ in St Petersburg.
This article was published in Sunday Times on 10 August 2008.