Singapore Flyer

From ArticleWorld

The Singapore Flyer is scheduled to be built by the year 2008 at Singapore. It will be an observation wheel whose diameter will be about 150 meters. It will be about 45 storeys high with a total height of 165 meters. It will bypass the London Eye by 43 meters, making the Singapore Flyer, the world’s largest observation wheel. It is situated at the southeast tip of Marina Centre reclaimed land. It is believed to be able to have a spectacular view extending to about 45 kilometers. The Indonesian islands of Bintan, Batam and Johor Malaysia will be visible from it. The details of this are available at www.singaporeflyer.com.sg.

History

Formal planning for The Singapore Flyer coomenced in 2002. Melchers Project Management Team (MPM), a German company, in collaboration with Orient & Pacific Management (O&P) formed a new company called Singapore Flyer Pte Ltd. to be the developer. MPM will hold a 75% stake in it and balance 25% will be held by O&P. the Memorandum of Understanding was signed on June 27, 2003 with an endorsement by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB).

In the Singapore entertainment industry, the largest single foreign investment of $240 million is for the Singapore Flyer. The wheel has plans of being opened to the public in the first quarter of 2008.

Design

The building area for the Singapore Flyer is about 16,000 square meters, the entire site is about 33,700 square meters along the Marina Promenade. Kurokawa Kisha, a Japanese architect, ahs designed it. The wheel contains 32 air conditioned capsules each with a seating capacity of 35 passengers each. One entire trip is estimated to complete in 37 minutes and can carry about 7.3 million passengers each year.

The terminal building sits on a commercial space which has an amphitheatre along the waterfront and a jetty. Luxurious landscaping in the surrounding terrain which includes roof gardens and a recreated rain forest. A bus park with a 40 bus capacity is situated behind the building. This is connected to a multistoried covered car park for about 300 cars.

Expectations

The Singapore Flyer is expected to have a footfall of approximately 2.5 million in its first year, which in turn will generate a net yield of 13.4% for its investors. About 50% of the number of visitors is expected to be foreign which will give about $94 million in the form of tourism receipts in its opening year. The ticket price is estimated to be about $27.50 per head.