Client:
AKTOR /ATHOC
The main stadium cauldron is the centre piece of the Olympic Games. Lit at the culmination of the Opening Ceremony and burning throughout the games until the end of the Closing Ceremony, the cauldron flame signifies the Olympic Spirit that burns within athletes, officials and spectators alike.
Work on the cauldron began by building a scale model of the stadium to test the effects of prevailing winds on the flame. The data from the modelling process assisted in designing a combustion system that produced a flame that is highly visible, reliable and safe in all weather conditions. FCT used our patented Crinkle Burner technology to ensure strong flames throughout during strong wind conditions.
FCT’s engineering team undertook several small-scale trails and technical evaluation programs to ensure that the design met the requirements of ATHOC. Multiple redundancies were engineered into the design to meet all unexpected contingencies that could potentially arise during the games. Manufacturing was outsourced to our Australian subcontractor and was closely supervised. Factory acceptance testing ensured that the burner package operated as specified prior to shipping to Athens.
The FCT project team supervised our Greek subcontractors during installation, before commissioning the cauldron well within the project timeline. The cauldron operated perfectly during the opening ceremony and our team supported all equipment operations throughout the Olympic Games.
Adam Wildy, Jack Morton’s Senior Technical Director for Public Events wrote that that cauldron was a “credit to your company”.