2008 Olympic Games

The Beijing Olympic Green Convention Centre (BOGCC), located on the Olympic Boulevard and designed by international award winning architects, RMJM, enters a new phase tomorrow as the media facility goes live 24/7 in the run up to the Beijing Olympic Games.

The largest media centre in Olympic history is part of the BOGCC complex that accommodates both the Main Press Centre (MPC) and International Broadcasting Centre (IBC). Occupying more than 150,000 square metres, the MPC and IBC will be home to more than 20,000 accredited journalists, photographers and broadcasters.

The BOGCC complex will also host the Olympic and Paralympics fencing and pentathlon pistol shooting events and comprises of two sports halls. The adjacent hotels in the multi-purpose complex will be used during the Olympic to accommodate some of the visiting media contingent.

“We are delighted to be in Beijing as BOCOG’s media centre begins 24 hour operations tomorrow and marks the final phase to the opening of the summer Olympic Games,” said Peter Morrison, Group Chief Executive Officer of RMJM Group Ltd.

“We are very honoured that RMJM, through our client Beijing North Star Corporation, is a part of the Beijing Olympic legacy and will leave a lasting footprint on the city. We worked closely with Beijing North Star to create a multi use complex that will offer long-term financial sustainability and play a pivotal role in the city’s infrastructure post Games,” he added.

In line with BOCOG’s “Green Olympics” message, RMJM’s design includes systems that make use of natural elements together with a high degree of insulation throughout the building. Green features include the rain water collection on the roof for flushing systems and the irrigation of the surrounding landscape, an ice storage cooling system and a “free air cooling” ventilation system in the public foyers of the convention centre.

Additionally, the BOGCC has been designed to ensure maximum return on investment and the highest rate of commercial viability post Games. The 220,000 square metre main structure is scheduled to reopen as the National Convention Centre of China in 2009.

“Part of the challenge of this assignment was to ensure that the facility had a distinct and viable ’second life’ shortly after the close of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. With this in mind, the design ensured that the facility could be retrofitted within a relatively short period of time without huge added expense. Post Games, the complex will accommodate the Plenary Hall, the Convention & Exhibition Centre along with offices, retail, service apartments, a 5-Star hotel and a business hotel,” said RMJM’s Scott Findley, design director, Asia, RMJM.

“As one of the four principal venues on the Beijing Olympic Green Boulevard, the structure is understated and timeless, its roof recalling and celebrating the traditions of its Chinese pagoda. Effortless exuding power and presence, the centre will welcome the people of Beijing and their guests at 8.08pm on 08/08/2008, the date of the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games,” Findley said.

Unlike many convention centres, the National Convention Centre’s space has been designed to be highly utilised and a destination in its own right, with its office space, retail and hotels providing year-round interest in the area. The design reflects the Beijing government’s plans for the ongoing regeneration of the north eastern part of the city of Beijing.

The BOGCC is RMJM’s largest public sector design project in China to date and demonstrates the firm’s ongoing commitment to the country.

Source: RMJM Hillier