Case Studies

Olympic fencing

by Mark Rowe

A symbol of the London 2012 Olympics has reopened to the public. The looping red steel tubular sculpture alongside the main Olympic Stadium, known as the ArcelorMittal Orbit, reopened to the public last month besides the south half of Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. The steel structure became a symbol of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games – and now visitors who book to make the ascent up the 114m tower will be rewarded with views over the park, the city of London and miles beyond.

The ArcelorMittal Orbit was created by sculptor Sir Anish Kapoor and designer Cecil Balmond and uses 2000 tonnes of steel, more than half of it recycled.

The idea was spawned from a chance conversation between London Mayor Boris Johnson and Lakshmi Mittal of steel giant ArcelorMittal: the Mayor mused about creating a landmark to commemorate the London Games and Mr Mittal came on board and agreed to provide the steel.

The crowds are channelled by fencing, designed from steel mesh, made and installed by the same British company who provided most of the temporary security fencing for London 2012 – including the perimeter of both the Olympic Stadium and the main park. Zaun has provided 2km of 2.4m high fencing around the tower itself, a further 400m of 1.2m fencing around The Podium houses ticket shop, event space, café and toilets, with access provided through canopied pedestrian turnstiles, two sliding vehicular gates and a 40mm thick steel panel as requested by main contractor Skanska.

Beyond is an open play area of tree trunks, Cornish granite and white sand; a snake-shaped line of fountains for children to play in; five waterways crossing the park; an orange climbing wall; and the South Lawn. South Park is the last piece in the jigsaw of the two-year transformation of the 560-acre Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park to open to the public.

Earlier this year Zaun clad the facade of the 1200-space Olympic media complex car park, as part of the conversion of the Press and Broadcast Centre to prepare for iCITY, a digital hub for new tenants Loughborough University, data centre provider Infinity, Hackney Community College and broadcaster BT Sport.

About the firm

Zaun was founded in 1996 by directors Alastair Henman and Paul Painter and remains a privately owned company, manufacturing in the UK at its five-acre production facility in the West Midlands. Zaun manufactures to ISO 9001:2008 standards and is a member of the ethical supply chain initiative, Sedex. It is also a member of the Perimeter Security Suppliers’ Association (PSSA), the Fencing Contractors’ Association (FCA) – with Alastair Henman a director and council member of these organisations respectively – and the Sports and Play Construction Association (SAPCA).

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