Author Archives: LDNGames

Aggreko Powers Olympic Venues as London Prepares

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Aggreko powers London Olympics

With six months to go until the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Aggreko, the world leader in the supply of temporary power and temperature control solutions and the Games’ Official Temporary Energy Services Provider, is providing temporary power and technical expertise to help the London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) prepare for the world’s greatest sporting event.

Aggreko engineers and event management experts are supporting the ‘London Prepares’ series, part of the preparation for the London 2012 Games which is enabling LOCOG to test key aspects of operational readiness. The programme of international sporting events is being hosted at a series of venues to test systems, operational approaches and procedures.

The first phase of test events was successfully completed in 2011, with Aggreko providing temporary power and engineering support at Horse Guards Parade for beach volleyball and at Eton Dorney, the venue for rowing and canoe sprints. Aggreko will support LOCOG at major venues during the various phases of the ‘London Prepares’ series, including the Velodrome and the Hockey Centre. In addition, Aggreko will provide temporary power to test all venues’ systems, as part of the commissioning process.

Robert Wells, Olympic Business Director at Aggreko, said: “While the headlines are focusing on athletes qualifying and training for London 2012, behind the scenes our Olympics began in 2011. We are fully operational, working to prepare for this major event from two dedicated operation centres close to the Olympic Park.

“Aggreko’s technology will feature at each of the 39 venues during the Games, providing prime and back-up power. Our engineers’ expertise has enabled us to provide a comprehensive temporary power solution of unprecedented scale and complexity, from system design through to installation and operation.

A specially selected team of design engineers and service personnel are devoted exclusively to our commitment to LOCOG. This increase in staffing levels ensures that the existing Aggreko business in the UK continues as normal supporting its customer base. As a key supplier to LOCOG, we are fully committed to ensuring the 2012 Games truly are the world’s greatest sporting event.”

For the period of the Games, it is expected that Aggreko will provide over 220 MW of power from over 400 generator sets for the biggest deployment of temporary power for a single sporting event in the UK.

The true cost of the London Olympic games £14bn

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In December the head of the National Audit Office warned of the risk of the government exceeding its Olympics budget of £9.3billion; but warnings seem to have been ignored as costs could be as high as £14bn.


Revenue for London 2012 Olympics only expected to be £10 billion but spending exceeds this by over £4 billion

But what is even more worrying is that the estimated figure of £14 billion is accurate of spending already committed, most experts expect spending to exceed the £20 billion mark and reach a total of almost £24 billion. Not a particularly cheap 2 week holiday …

London 2012 Current Running Costs

Cost in Millions
 £       6,500.00 Upgrading Transport Links
 £       4,400.00 Security & Intelligence
 £       1,131.00 Counter Terrorism Policing
 £           826.00 Legacy programmes
 £           766.00 Venue and land cost
 £           300.00 Olympic Park Legacy Company
 £             29.00 UK Sport
 £             22.00 Sport England Legacy Work
 £             12.00 Torch Relay Events
 £               7.00 London Tube Employees Bonus
 £               4.00 London Ambassadors
 £               3.00 TfL Staff Overtime
 £               0.50 Local Council Ticket costs
 £               0.50 Logo
 £               0.40 Stone Monument

Related facts

-The Los Angeles 1984 Games were the first to turn a profit ($225 million) in 1932. The cost to stage the Olympics was about $1.500bn.

-TV rights were sold for the first time in Tokyo 1964 at $1m. By Athens 2004, the cost was £1.400bn.

-The cost of the 1896 Games was about $448,000. (The Guinness Book of Olympic Facts and Feats, 1996)

Sydney’s 110,000-seat stadium cost $402m to build and Beijing’s 91,000-seat stadium will cost approximately $423m.

-The final cost of the 2004 Athens Olympics was £8.0bn, much more than the original previsions. About £700m covered security which was double the budget of the Sydney Games in 2000.

-The Barcelona Games in 1992 cost £8.1bn. About 53% of that money came from public funds. The Atlanta Games in 1984 cost £1.5bn, and Sydney 2000 about £2.5bn. (UK Parliamentary Select Committee on Culture, Media and Sport)

Sources

http://www.londonoutloud.co.uk/london2012fact.html
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2092558/London-2012-Olympics–335k-taxpayers-money-spent-toadstools-sculpture-Dorset.html
London 2012 Final Costs official PDF document

Sunday trading laws stop London 2012 Olympic merchandise sales

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Sunday Trading Laws Effect London Olympics

Some merchants selling at the London Olympics will be forced to close up early due to restrictive Sunday trading laws in England. The closing ceremony for the London Olympics will be one of those pivotal days caught in the legislation.

This law will effect any retail store larger than 3,000 square feet; preventing them from trading before 10am and after 6pm, for no longer than 6 hours actual trading time.

This means that the main mega stores will be forced to close early, preventing participants from buying their merchandise on site, but don’t fret – you can buy your official London 2012 merchandise from LDN Games months before the real event.

Don’t stand queuing in wet British weather, or face disappointment because the stores have closed early, buy your genuine Olympics merchandise on-line from LDN Games. Plus, we’ll be even cheaper than any other outlet you can find!

Identifying Official/Genuine London 2012 Products and Merchandise

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What are fake products?

Fake products are items that try to copy genuine London 2012, Team GB and ParalympicsGB products. They are likely to be of inferior quality and not stand up to the high safety standards of the official London 2012 merchandise.

What should I look out for on clothing?

The official London 2012 clothing and sportswear has a unique “swing tag” with the official hologram on it (mentioned later). It should look like this (although, colours may vary slightly):

London 2012 Genuine Swing Tag

How can the London 2012 hologram help me to identify whether a product is fake or official?

The holograms have special visual features built into them – if you are unable to see both of these special features (outlined below), then the product is likely to be fake. If a product does not have a hologram anywhere on it, the product is likely to be fake.

Use the methods in the following image to check if your product is real or not.

How To Check London 2012 Real Hologram

Important facts to remember

  1. All London 2012 official products bear the London 2012 hologram
  2. When tilting the hologram up an down, you should be able to see the London 2012 Paralympic Games Emblem rotating with a 3D effect
  3. When tilting the hologram from left to right, you should be able to see the London 2012 Olympic Games Emblem rotating with a 3D effect

If you want any further information, we recommend reading the Identifying Official London 2012 Products Guide which you can download here:

http://www.ldngames.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/identifying-official-london-2012-products.pdf

Make your own London 2012 Mascot – Mandeville toy and Wenlock toy

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In and around setting up our new store, we’ve been having a play with the London 2012 Mascot world.

You can create your own little London 2012 avatar-stuffed-toy-type-thing to suit your inner Wenlock (or Mandeville) – although, we couldn’t quite figure out what it was for!

Buy Wenlock Toy Mandeville Toy

Have a play with the tool here http://mascot-games.london2012.com/

So if you hoping to make your own custom Wenlock toy or custom Mandeville toy, you’re out of luck, but if you want a few minutes entertainment, go right ahead.

Official London 2012 Merchandise working conditions

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Golden Bear, which is based in Telford, is the manufacture of products based on the Wenlock Olympics and Mandeville – the official mascots of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

But an investigation was launched into allegations that workers at the Chinese factory that makes toys for the Golden Bear has violated workers’ rights. ”

Both the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) and the Golden Bear is investigating allegations that workers are working for a maximum of 11.5 hours per day for as little as 26p an hour.
A spokesman for London 2012 said it placed great emphasis on “environmental, social and ethical” when securing goods and services and took the allegations “extremely seriously”.

He said: “We have asked our independent monitor to conduct a thorough investigation and review of the allegations.

“The results of this study will be published when it is made.
“We have contacted all our licensees to renew their emphasis we place on sustainable procurement code, they each signed.”

Golden Bear said it was also conducting an immediate investigation, but confirmed that the plant had passed inspections by the International Council of Toy Industries (ICTI).

The statement of the company said: “Golden Bear is very concerned about recent reports that a plant involved in a small volume of production of the Olympic enterprise may be in violation of labor rights.

“We are a family business that takes these issues very seriously and have created the certificates of conformity for all plants used to manufacture our products.

“We are currently conducting a prompt investigation and will be able to discuss these results as they are known.

“We can confirm however that the installation has passed inspection ICTI care process and we will work with bThA (British Toy and Hobby Association), ICTI CARE and other agencies to resolve any situation that may have been violated.”

From http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/9032608/London-2012-Olympics-investigation-under-way-into-conditions-at-Wenlock-and-Mandeville-factory.html

Megaupload bail denied

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The founders of Megaupload.com, the file sharing website shut down last week in one of the largest criminal copyright cases brought by U.S. authorities, will remain in custody until later this week a court in New Zealand has decided.

Judge David McNaughton said he decide on Wednesday whether to grant bail Dotcom Kim, convicted computer hacker accused of internet piracy and money laundering by the U.S. Department of Justice.

“Given the breadth of issues covered in the bail application and the seriousness of the issues, I’m going to reserve my decision,” Mr. McNaughton said.

Lawyer acting for Mr. Dotcom told a district court in Auckland that he was innocent of charges of internet piracy and money laundering.

“Mr. Dotcom emphatically denies any misconduct or criminal offenses, and denies the existence of a Mega conspiracy,” his lawyer Paul Davison told the court.

The New Zealand government, which works with U.S. authorities on an application of extradition, argued that Mr. Dotcom is an extreme risk of flight.
Mr. Dotcom and three other people were arrested by police in Auckland on Friday after they were charged by DOJ for alleged pedaling copyrighted material.

Appellate Megaupload and some sister site made over $ 175m in illegal profits from their extensive network of file sharing sites and cause $ 500m damage to copyright holders.
The U.S. is seeking extradition of Mr. Dotcom, a German citizen resident in Hong Kong and New Zealand, and his alleged co-conspirators Batato Finn, Mathias Ortmann and Bram van der Kolk.

Three other people, who are not living in New Zealand, have also charged by the U.S. but they remain at large.
The closing Megaupload drew a furious response from Anonymous, hacktivist amorphous aggregation, which took down several websites including one belonging to the New Zealand police.

The attacks helped escape to work with proposed legislation to combat online piracy a week ago looked tied to the approval of the U.S. Congress.

According to the DOJ complaint Megaupload is more than 150m registered users, 50m long daily visitors and accounts for four percent of total traffic in the world wide web.

Mr. Dotcom was hiding in a safe room of his $ 24m mansion rented with a loaded gun when police arrived in the country property in two helicopters on Friday, New Zealand police said in a statement.

He refused to leave the room and are cut by police officers, who seized 18 luxury cars, including a Roll-Royce Phantom and 1959 pink Cadillac in the raid.
The millionaire computer hacker, formerly known as Kim Schmitz, settled in New Zealand in 2010 after investing NZ $ 10m (U.S. $ 8m) in Government Bonds.

Opposition MPs in New Zealand have called for an investigation into how Mr. Dotcom is allowed to live in Auckland, according to local media.

Last chance to take part in the London 2012 Olympic Ceremonies

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This is a reminder that the deadline for receipt of applications is fast approaching to take part in the London 2012 Olympic Opening and Closing ceremonies. Entries must be in by Wednesday 31 August and it is not a first come first served process. To be eligible applicants must be aged 18 years or older on 1 March 2012.

Artistic Directors Danny Boyle and Kim Gavin are searching for 10,000 volunteer performers to fill roles as dancers, actors, percussionists and general all-round performers in the Olympic Opening and Closing Ceremonies respectively.

People can find more information and register their interest for this opportunity by completing the online application form http://www.london2012.com/ceremoniescasting

London 2012 Olympics vehicle lanes

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For London 2012, the Olympic Route Network (ORN) – covering 170 miles of British roads and 109 miles from the capital of which one third will Lanes Games – will start working only two days before the Olympics, and will be used for three weeks .
Continue reading the main story
What are the ways the games?

Lanes on the third of the road network in London Olympics
Only to be used by Family Games – those that are considered crucial to the success of the Games – and emergency vehicles
One lane in one or both directions on the main roads that connect Olympic venues
Most in the way of off-side of the road, however, what channel is used, will depend on the layout
Used by 55,000 members of the Olympic family every day
Mainly used in the fleet of 1,500 coaches and nearly 4000 BMW officials and VIP
Courses to be dominated by road markings and signs

Paralympic network operate on a smaller scale during the Paralympic Games.

Many drivers fear the result of additional traffic restrictions in ORN – including roads closed, banned turns, parking suspended, buses and traffic signals directed change – will be increased congestion.

Games Lanes will operate on the busiest in the network – around Heathrow and Wembley Stadium, through central London and outside the Olympic Park in Stratford.

Approximately three million additional tourists expected in London on the busiest day in London in 2012, and while organizers say 70% of roads in Greater London will see no effect, critics say the impact on the London road system already busy traffic jams will become widespread.

Companies fear the delays in the delivery of everything from bread with blood, jam taxi drivers concerned will result in a fourfold increase in the price of the ticket, residents concerned about restricted access, and parents are concerned about the increased risk children caused by road to become rat runs as commuters flee ORN.

From: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-16441912

Official LDN Games 2012 Bags and Accessories information

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As well as our great LDN Games 2012 T-Shirts, we’ll also have a big selection of bags and accessories.

Our official LDN 2012 bags and accessories product range will be featured shortly when our on-line shop launches. When you’ll be able to buy cheap 2012 bags and accessories as featured in some of Oly’s Pics.

Come back soon to see our great range of bags and accessories, available to buy cheap on-line!

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