New Year's Eve Set Up Day 2

Another good day with the crew in high spirits, progress has been excellent as has been the weather, all be it a little cold on the water with the moderate winds we have experienced today. All of the shells for two of the three barges have been loaded and wired in. Some of the statistics of quantity of effects includes nearly 2,400 x 75mm shells, 2,800 x 100mm shells, 1,200 x 125mm shells and 60 x 150mm shells. The emphasis is more on lower level shells because the display is broadcast live on BBC 1 and last year watched by over 11 million people, the display is primarily designed for the 16 : 9 wide screen aspect ratio.


With a large quantity of fireworks one challenge that we have to overcome is the temporary storage of fireworks, we licence an explosive store with the local authority under MSER, this enables us to rig the display far more safely with a limited quantity of fireworks on the barges at any one time. With a display of this size, the storage limit we can licence is well short of the total net explosive content in the display, in order to overcome this we have a type II explosive vehicle which ferries limited quantities from the factory in Cambridgeshire each day, today we had two trips, one arriving first thing in the morning with one barge and the second arrived just after lunch with the second barge, in all six trips will be required to ferry all the fireworks to the site.


We use a large number of roman candles and single shot effects to provide continuity and to emphasise the synchronisation with the soundtrack, in all we will fire in excess of 4,400 x 30mm effects, 2,800 x 45mm roman candles and shot tubes and 800 x 60mm fireworks. With this quantity of fireworks fired from so many locations synchronised to a sound track and all fired at midnight we require a very robust and reliable firing system. FireOne has proven itself to be the market leader for these types of large scale events and we have invested heavily in this system. With a total of 12 XL4 control panels and 5 XLII panels, over 250 firing modules, a considerable quantity of equipment is required. All of the control panels including the back up controls have to be fully charged and have the correct fire file downloaded in to the panel.


Once again the London Eye team had another productive night rigging the final cradles, with plunging temperatures and fresh winds picking up, our crew had to rotate every hour so as to avoid excessive exposure to the elements. With all of the cradles now rigged, next job is to network the modules and run the data cable, approximately 2 kilometers of data cable alone for the Eye and Hub have to be attached in looms around the inner rim and leg of the Hub.

New Year's Eve Set Up Day 1

A convey of three 45ft trailers, two transit vans, a 7.5 tonne lorry, two 4 x 4's and a crew 18 seater minibus left Kimbolton at 06:00 am to head for dock where we load up the barges, just opposite the O2 arena. The crew of 26 were in good spirits after the Christmas break and were eager to start working on this prestigious event, after an initial safety briefing PPE was handed out and the 30 tonnes of equipment was off loaded a pallet at a time on to the three barges.


General Marine are well known on the river Thames and provide the barges and infrastructure for most of the firework events on the river. It was good to see the Mercator back in service after being out of action last year, still covered in grass from a previous publicity stunt when a male and female top seed tennis star played each other on the barge as they were floated through central London. When it gets wet however the barge is reminiscent of a boggy wet field in November which is a strange occurrence when on a barge on the Thames.


At this time of year it obviously gets dark early so lighting rigs are essential, there is also the call of nature, so a porta loo on the barge is a necessity, especially on New Year's Eve itself when there are no toilets we can access without going in to the busy crowds which start to gather from 6pm. Crew welfare is also something we try to be extravagant with, porta cabins with heating are provided for refuge and somewhere to sit and eat lunch which we have brought in, a hearty chili and rice with a drink is enough to keep everyone going as it starts to get dark and the temperature drops.


As the day turns to night our crew carry on to just past 7pm before going to the hotel for a well earned shower and drink, the barges are loaded and most of the mortar racks built and numbered, tomorrow we can start loading the first fireworks.


This highly complex and challenging display is for us a 24 hour operation, as the barge crews finish for the day and go back to the hotel, the 8 Eye crew are just starting. Due to the London Eye being a major tourist attraction the only time we can work on the Eye is when it is closed to the public, at this time of year the last ride or flight is at 21:00 so our guys arrive on site to get ready for the night shift, warm clothing, fall arrest harnesses and the specialist tools we need to rig are prepared. As soon as the Eye is handed over to us our team start to haul up the 32 cradles, the mechanism we have fabricated to receive the fireworks and house the FireOne module.


Working through the night and finishing at 7am this morning, our team managed to get all 32 cradles rigged ready to start running the data cable tonight. At the other end of town our barge crews were leaving the hotel at 7 this morning to commence with day 2 of the rig.

Factory Prepares for London New Year's Eve

With just one more day to go before the weekend and Christmas Eve, the factory has been at full capacity preparing for the Mayor of London's New Year's Eve celebrations on the London Eye and River Thames. This year the display is bigger and longer than ever, by including the 12 bongs of Big Ben the entire display is just over 11 minutes. In this time we will be firing in excess of 5,500 firing cues or circuits from any one of 156 firing positions from the London eye and just over a quarter of a kilometer of the river Thames, that is an average of 8 cues per second.

With a display of this size and prestige, we use a wide range of some of our unique effects, below our employee is manufacturing some of our special 100mm mines with red and silver scattering units, just a small quantity of the 12,000 fireworks we will launch in to the midnight sky in nine days time.


As well as manufacturing effects, including bespoke roman candles which we make to duration to fit the soundtrack, there is a significant amount of work required to collect, number, label fuse and box the fireworks. In order to make life simple on site we box the shells in to rail and location so that the crew can pick up a box and know that the tubes they need to load are all in one place.



With a display of this complexity and synchronised to a specially commissioned soundtrack, we require an immense amount of precision in firing and trajectory of effects. Below is one of the many single shot modular units being wired in, these rigs are essential to achieve the patterns and angle of fire we want to achieve to make the display a true performance.


Its not just fireworks, the largest display in the country also requires a significant quantity of equipment. Three 45ft trailers are filled to capacity transporting over 30 tonnes of equipment to London, mortar tubes, racks, holders, ancillary equipment, tools and the props and cradles for the Eye, the FireOne kit alone fills two transit vans and weighs nearly five tonnes.

New Year's Eve Preparations

Once again Kimbolton Fireworks are honoured to be firing the two largest displays in the country to welcome in the New Year, with the world famous Edinburgh's Hogmanay Street Party and Fireworks fired from the Historic Castle and the Mayor of London's New Year's Eve celebrations centred on the River Thames and the London Eye.

The November season, while incredibly busy feels as if it was an age ago, from as soon as Monday 7th November, we have been busy planning and preparing for these two momentous and highly prestigious displays. The greatest challenge has been to take both displays to the next level, last year both displays were critically acclaimed and this year we want to go one better. We have some new ideas and some additions on top of last years display which we hope will add to the enjoyment of both displays, we will leave it to the public to judge. Below is a link to the Greater London Authority website providing information on New Year's Eve, how to get there, what to expect on the night and where the viewing areas and road closures are.

http://www.london.gov.uk/nye

The following is taken from a press release from the SE1 news paper on 21st November.

2012 - the year of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and the Olympic Games - will begin with a fireworks display centered on the London Eye, the Mayor has confirmed.

The Mayor has chosen to stick with the tried and tested formula of pyrotechnics on the Thames at the London Eye.

"As we begin one of the most extraordinary and exciting years in our great city's history, the sky will light up with a dazzling display of pyrotechnic magic," said Boris Johnson, Mayor of London.

"2012 will open, not with a timid whimper, but a colourful bang, a noisy clarion call to herald one amazing year.

"Londoners know how to celebrate and our fireworks display will be the first in a year-long celebration of all things London.

"From the magic of the games, to the Diamond Jubilee, to the London 2012 Festival and our own outdoor arts festival, there will be world-class events in every corner of the capital, to create a summer like no other.

"2012 will be a year to be confident and ambitious and London will welcome the world with energy and optimism."

Jack Morton Worldwide will again produce the show, working with British pyrotechnic company Kimbolton Fireworks who will provide the 8-minute display at midnight.

BBC Radio 1 DJ Nihal will also be returning to create a live mix of music that will be heard by the crowds along the river in the build-up to midnight. He has been working in collaboration with the Jack Morton team on the soundtrack that will accompany the stunning display.

The fireworks display attracts large crowds who have a long wait in the designated viewing areas along the Thames. There is limited space and these fill up by 9pm or 10pm and access to each zone will be closed as soon as it is full.

After the fireworks the music will continue till 1am to encourage a staggered dispersal of the crowds towards nearby railway stations.

As usual the event will be broadcast live on BBC One.

November Season 2011

With the 5th November falling on a Saturday this year, the number of displays fired over this busy season was even more concentrated, with nearly 100 large public displays fired over two weekends. Some of the highlights included the series of six displays we fired for Legoland, Scooby-Doo Fireworks, The Curse of The Lake Monster, Sparks in the Park on behalf of Norwich City Council and one of the largest displays in London in Brockwell Park on behalf of Lambeth Events.

With many more displays for City Councils, Round Tables, Rotary Clubs, Lions Clubs, Scout Associations, Schools and many Private functions our dedicated team of over 100 pyrotechnicians ensured a successful and safe November 5th 2011.

Now it is full steam ahead for New Years Eve.

Summer 2011

It has been an incredibly busy summer this year with a very full calender of concerts, festivals and celebrations. The summer season commenced with a large pyromuiscal display at St Johns College Cambridge to help them celebrate their 500th anniversary. This is one of the most prestigious may ball events of all the Cambridge colleges and the display needed to be even more spectacular to help the College mark this milestone anniversary.


As the summer season progressed our teams of technicians travelled the length and breadth of the country firing a wide range of displays which included Concerts in the Park, festivals and regattas, weddings and celebrations culminating in a number of large prestigious events to end the 2011 summer season.

Kimbolton Fireworks were asked to provide stage pyrotechnics, flames, confetti and a spectacular firework finale to round off the end of the BBC Proms season with two nights of displays in London's Hyde Park. On Saturday night the end of season proms consist of the traditional concert in the Royal Albert Hall, while the Hyde Park audience were treated to artists which included, Katherine Jenkins, Russell Watson and of course Rolf Harris, all hosted by Sir Terry Wogan. The finale of the Proms is broadcast live on BBC1 and we counted down the moment to end of the National Anthem, which was our cue to fire the spectacular pyrotechnic and firework finale.


On the Sunday, the stage is re set for the BBC Radio 2 Live in Hyde Park Concert, a festival in a day, where artists such as Will Young, James Blunt, Lenny Kravitz and Chic performed with a finale provided by Gary Barlow. For the second nights performance our crews worked through the night to rig the stage pyro from the roof and above the two giant video walls, and to the rear of the stage another aerial firework finale was being prepared.

At the opposite end of the country our teams were preparing and assisting the invited international companies to fire the World Firework Championships in Blackpool. This year we had teams from Canada, Germany and Australia. The final display is a non competing exhibition display fired by Kimbolton Fireworks. After a series of four displays fired from North Pier the winners were announced as Foti International from Australia, congratulations Robert and Forch.

The summer was drawn to a close with a significant celebration at the docks of Felixstowe Port, with the formal opening of Berth 8 and 9 which was performed by HRH The Princess Royal. The Port of Felixstowe opened two new deep water berths with seven state of the art cranes which were the first stage of a £1b expansion of the Port capable of handling the worlds largest container ships, the grand opening of these berths also coincided with the 125th anniversary of the Port, a good reason to celebrate.

Kimbolton Fireworks were asked to provide three events on behalf of the Port to assist in the days celebrations. The first was a daylight performance of smoke, pyrotechnics, flame projectors, special effects and daylight fireworks. A group of 250 VIPs were treated to a multi media performance to celebrate the opening of berths 8 & 9. Live performers, container trucks and sea containers all formed part of the performance which was punctuated with special effects and pyrotechnics synchronised to a specially commissioned sound track.

In the evening the VIPs were treated to a celebratory dinner which was rounded off with a spectacular firework display form the port. Meanwhile the Port wanted to extend the celebrations to the town itself and with a number of events organised on the sea front, we rounded of the evenings entertainment with a spectacular display fired form the Pier. With the summer season now over it is full steam ahead for the busiest time of year, November 5th.