Set to be a visual delight even during testing phase with fountain rising to 500 ft, as high as a 50-storey building.
Downtown Burj Dubai is offering a visual treat for residents and visitors as testing work of The Dubai Fountain, the world’s tallest performing fountain, progresses for the official unveiling of the music, water and visual spectacle. At 900 ft (275 metre) in length, The Dubai Fountain is located on the 30-acre Burj Dubai Lake, and is one of the world’s most advanced water, light and sound fountains. It is billed to become one of Dubai’s popular tourist attractions, when officially launched later this year.
While testing of The Dubai Fountain progresses all through the day, its music components are tested after 8pm every evening making it audio-visual delight. Onlookers from The Dubai Mall and Souk Al Bahar lake promenade can witness the fountain rising to a height of up to 500 ft, equivalent to that of a 50-storey building.
Undertaken zone by zone across its entire length, most of the testing and operations are being executed underwater. It involves a series of electronic, mechanical and process checks, executed by experts from WET, the California-based designer of The Dubai Fountain, who also designed the Fountains of Bellagio.
The current testing, mostly computer controlled with limited human involvement, will feature random water jets that gain momentum as each connection device and nozzle is tested and cleared. Simultaneously, a team of choreographers will get to work to synchronise the water movement to selected music pieces. Work on the music-water synchronization had started much earlier with WET designers using its proprietary VirtualWET programme to build the show, piece by piece.
Mr Mohamed Alabbar, Chairman, Emaar Properties, said: “The Dubai Fountain is an unparalleled light and music spectacle for the city, and will add to its tourist appeal. Undertaking a project of magnificent proportion demands extensive testing to ensure the smooth integration of its varied aspects. Like Burj Dubai and The Dubai Mall, Emaar’s landmark projects, The Dubai Fountain is also marked by international partnerships with several specifically trained professionals working on it including a team of expert choreographers.”
He added: “The Dubai Fountain is not only a celebration of the affinity for aesthetic water features that is associated with the Arab world. It also creates a new lifestyle destination for Dubai in the 500-acre Downtown Burj Dubai community. Several innovative lifestyle concepts are being developed around the Dubai Fountain including an abra service on Burj Dubai Lake, an amphitheatre and a range of colourful activities.”
Highlighting the advances in fountain engineering, The Dubai Fountain has a unique construction design, featuring five circles of varying sizes and two arcs. In comparison, the Fountains of Bellagio in Las Vegas has only one arc and three circles. WET also introduces different types of feature equipment in these geometries to create the desired choreographic show capabilities. The Dubai Fountain has double the mass of nozzles including fan nozzles that are not present in the Las Vegas master-piece.
When fully operational, The Dubai Fountain will have over 22,000 gallons of water airborne at any given moment. Powerful nozzles take the water-jets to heights ranging from 3 to 500 ft. Over 6,600 most advanced incandescent large fountain lights and 25 colour projectors create a visual spectrum of over 1,000 water expressions. Adding to its allure, the fountain will sway to the melody of selected Arabic and World music.
“At WET, we aspire to total mastery of nature’s elements,” said Mark Fuller, WET’s founder and Chief Excellence Officer. “And with The Dubai Fountain, we not only defy gravity, we have utilized the latest technology in lighting, robotics, and our signature water Shooters to create an unparalleled experience that brings people together through a shared experience of light, sound and emotion.”
The Dubai Fountain will be a spectacular addition to the varied lifestyle offerings of Downtown Burj Dubai, the flagship mega-project of Emaar. The fountain overlooks Burj Dubai, the world’s tallest building, and is on the footsteps of The Dubai Mall, one of the world’s largest shopping and entertainment destinations. Emaar Boulevard, a 3.5 km boulevard is another lifestyle attraction at Downtown Burj Dubai, which also has four fully-operational hotels. Souk Al Bahar, a modern shopping mall with Arabesque architectural features, is an added attraction. Several homes and offices have been handed over to customers bringing Dubai’s new downtown to life.
www.dubaicityguide.com, 24 March 2009
