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SINGAPORE: The million-dollar Singapore Flyer may open to the public earlier than scheduled.
Although the official launch has been scheduled for 1 March 2008, one of the companies behind the wheel, Adval Brand Group, is confident there is a high chance the date will be brought forward due to the conservative construction schedule.
This was disclosed as the first of 28 capsules was fitted to the wheel on Friday.
The first capsule had taken about half an hour to be lifted from the ground to its fitting position.
The engineers have a flexible plan to fit one capsule a day, but this depends on the weather conditions and how fast each capsule is lifted and fitted.
The first four capsules will be fitted horizontal to each other at four points, before the rest of the capsules are fitted using the same horizontal method.
Phil Maddox, General Manager of Technical Services for the Singapore Flyer, said: "We have obviously lightened it down while still maintaining its structural integrity. We have to carefully load the wheel up as we put the capsules on. Making it all lopsided with too much load on one side will over-stress the wheel."
For the moment, the soft launch of the Singapore Flyer includes three days in February for corporate bookings and Valentine's Day for the public.
But next year's F1 race and National Day Parade has a blackout booking period as the company is still working on sales packages for those dates.
The company is confident that the Singapore Flyer can compete with bigger and newer competitions like the wheels that are being constructed in Shanghai and Beijing.
It is promising visitors a spectacular ride experience, with an unobstructed view of the city, along with food and beverage options on the side.
- CNA/so
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