The Float @ Marina Bay

The Float at Marina Bay, stylised as The Float@Marina Bay and also known as the Marina Bay Floating Platform, is the world's largest floating stage and football stadium. It is located in the Marina Reservoir in Marina Bay, Central Region of Singapore.[1][2]

The Float at Marina Bay
The Float at Marina Bay in 2019.
Location20 Raffles Avenue, Singapore 039805
Central Region, Singapore
Coordinates1°17′18″N 103°51′32″E
OwnerSport Singapore
OperatorSport Singapore
Capacity27,000
SurfaceSteel
Construction
Broke groundMarch 2006 (2006-03)
Opened20 May 2007 (2007-05-20)
ArchitectDefence Science and Technology Agency
Tenants
Sport Singapore

Made entirely of steel, the floating platform on Marina Bay measures 120 by 83 metres (394 by 272 ft), which is 5% larger than the football pitch at the National Stadium.[1] The platform can bear up to 1,070 tonnes, equivalent to the total weight of 9,000 people, 200 tonnes of stage props and three 30-tonne military vehicles. The gallery at the stadium has a seating capacity of 27,000 people.[3][4]

Built in 2007, the floating platform was originally intended as a temporary stadium for events in place of the National Stadium in Kallang which was demolished to be rebuilt as part of the Singapore Sports Hub. These events includes the Singapore National Day Parade, sports, concerts, exhibitions, and the arts and cultural performances.[1]

This stadium is part of the Marina Bay Street Circuit Turns 17 and 18, which hosted the Formula One Singapore Grand Prix. More infamously, it was where Nelson Piquet Jr. crashed his car which led to the Renault Formula One crash controversy. Following Singapore's successful bid to host the inaugural 2010 Summer Youth Olympics, the floating stadium was under the spotlight during the Games, as the venue for the Games' opening and closing ceremonies.[5] Since 2010, the stadium has also been the venue for the graduation parade of full-time national servicemen passing out from the Basic Military Training Centre upon completing their basic military training.[6]

The Marina Bay Floating Platform has been the venue for several National Day Parades since 2007, although it supposed to be demolished after the completion of the Singapore Sports Hub because it was not intended to be a permanent structure, but the Sports Hub was too high of a cost to be spent for NDPs after the 2016 NDP took place, therefore due to popular demand, it returned to the float in 2017. [7] It will continue to hold National Day Parade 2021, together with River Hongbao and F1, before it will be demolished in 2022 for the construction a permanent structure, the NS Square, which is slated to be completed in 2025.[8]

The NS Square will be a similar floating structure but with more facilities and a national service themed gallery.[9] It is slated to have a seating capacity of about 30,000. In the second quarter of 2020, it is estimated a design proposal will be chosen for implementation.[10] The proposal is expected to include a field that can be converted into a performance area, waterfront sports facility and a space for common exercise consisting of an unenclosed hall and studio spaces.[10]

History
The Float@Marina Bay is the dark quadrilateral at foreground right of this view of Marina Bay from the Singapore Flyer.

The idea of a floating platform was conceived by the organising committee of the 2007 National Day Parade. In 2004, Colonel Teo Jing Siong, the chairman of the committee, was asked to source for a new venue for the National Day Parade as the National Stadium would be demolished to make way for the new Singapore Sports Hub. Teo had considered Jalan Besar Stadium, the Singapore Turf Club and Marina South before settling on Marina Bay, partly because of the city skyline that would form a backdrop for the parade. The Singapore Government evaluated that the temporary stadium is a cost effective solution in lieu of the closure of the National Stadium that is under renovation for 8 years.[1][11]

In 2005, Teo's committee worked with the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and the Singapore Sports Council on the design of the floating platform, which could also be used to host other major events.[11]

After the design was finalised, the contractor, Sembcorp Marine,[4][12] started construction of the floating platform in March 2006. The stage took 13 months to build, and by April 2007, the platform and seating gallery were completed and officially opened by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.[11]

Construction
The 27,000-capacity grandstand and floating platform of The Float@Marina Bay, with the Singapore Flyer in the background.

Many considerations were taken into account during the design phase for the construction of the floating platform. The Defence Science and Technology Agency, the platform's chief planner and developer, had to keep in mind not just its size and the load it could bear, but also make sure the structure can be relocated and reconfigured to meet the requirements of different events.[4]

As a result, the platform is made of smaller platforms of pontoons, each comprising hundreds of parts. 200 pontoons were envisioned, but a unique system of connectors allowed this number to be reduced to 15, which interlock like a jigsaw puzzle. These took one month to assemble. The connectors were designed to be light but robust.[4]

Six pylons fixed into the seabed act as the structure's foundation. Heavy-duty rubber rollers were used to gently guide the stage vertically to keep it from being rocked by tides and currents. Three linkways, which connect the floating platform to the land, have special integrated joints to keep them steady.[4]

The floating platform also had to be aesthetically pleasing to fit the scenic backdrop of the belt of hotels in Marina Centre. This limited the height of the seating gallery. The existing structures and the area's development plans capped the number of seats at 27,000.[4] The platform has also been equipped with numerous innovative features, like an internal drainage system, cabling structures and lightning rods.[4]

Events

Since its completion in 2007, the Marina Bay Floating Platform has hosted several major events, such the annual National Day Parade, New Year's Eve countdown event, 2010 Summer Youth Olympics and the Formula One. The first major event that was held at the floating stadium is the National Day Parade in 2007.[13] This was followed by the Singapore Fireworks Celebrations held on 17 and 18 August 2007.[14] On 25 August 2007, the stadium was used to launch the six-week-long Waterfest Singapore 2007, which showcases stunts and performances by a water ski team and wakeboard professionals.[15] On 2 September 2007, the platform was the start and finish point for the Aviva Ironman 70.3 Singapore triathlon.[1][16]

The Float@Marina Bay viewed from the Helix Bridge.

From 15 September 2007 to 16 April 2008, the floating stadium was closed for Formula One works in preparation for the Singapore Grand Prix in September 2008. In November 2008, The Singapore Cup final between SAFFC and Woodlands Wellington FC was supposed to take place at the stadium. However, problems relating to the metal beams casting a shadow on the pitch forced the match to be played at the Jalan Besar Stadium instead. The first football match to be played on the platform was a Sunday League ESPZEN amateur match between Tuan Gemuk Athletic and VNNTU FC.[17] The Urban Redevelopment Authority had explored the area of making the 30,000-seat gallery available for the public to view fireworks during the New Year's Eve countdown at Marina Bay in December 2007, and following that it also used this stadium in each of the countdown parties till 2015 and shifted to Suntec City, before being shifted to The Promontory @ Marina Bay, as well as Stars Avenue.

In August 2010, the stadium was the main stadium for the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics. On 2 October 2010, the stadium became the first public venue for the graduation parade of the recruits from the Singapore Armed Forces Basic Military Training Centre. Previously, the graduation parade was held on Pulau Tekong itself.[6] Since then, the stadium has been a venue for the graduation parade, alternating with the National Stadium.[18]

On 23 November 2012, SM Entertainment artists including Kangta, BoA, TVXQ, Super Junior, Girls' Generation, Shinee, f(x), and EXO performed to a crowd of 18,000 fans as part of their SM Town Live World Tour III concert.[19]

The National Day Parade has been held at the floating platform since 2007, excluding 2010, 2015 and 2016 where it was held at Padang and National Stadium respectively.[20][21] In 2016, the National Day Parade was held at the National Stadium at the Singapore Sports Hub for the first time since its completion. The whole parade, however, costed a total about of S$39 million, while previous parades held at the floating platform costed about S$15 to S$18 million.[22] Several segments of the annual parade such as the drive pass by the Singapore Army, parachute performance by the Singapore Armed Forces Parachute Team and fly pass by the Republic of Singapore Air Force were also omitted due to the dome structure of the National Stadium.[23] Since then, the floating stadium continues to be the preferred venue for the annual parade, together with the Padang.[24] It will be part of the National Day celebrations for 2021, before being demolished in 2022 for the NS Square.[9]

The Float@Marina Bay's grandstand
  • The Float at Marina Bay hosting Singapore's 42nd National Day Parade on 9 August 2007.
  • The Float at Marina Bay in 2007, with the Singapore Flyer under construction in the background.
  • The Float at Marina Bay hosting the 2015 River Hongbao for Chinese New Year, with Marina Bay Sands in the background.
  • The floating platform of the stadium, with Singapore's skyline in the background.
  • Grandstand of The Float at Marina Bay in 2019.
  • The Float at Marina Bay in 2019, with
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See also

References
  1. Tay Suan Chiang (19 August 2007). "Staying afloat". The Sunday Times. p. L7.
  2. "Meet the world's largest floating football stadium". Digital Journal. 12 April 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  3. Liaw Wy-Cin (21 June 2007). "All parade tickets given out". The Straits Times. p. H3.
  4. Brenda Goh (2007). "New stage for the bay". Voices@Central Singapore (36, September/October 2007): 24–25. ISSN 0219-6344.
  5. "Singapore bests Moscow, will host 2010 Youth Olympics". ESPN. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 27 March 2008.
  6. "BMT Graduation Parade held at Marina Bay Floating Platform". Asia One. 2 October 2010. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  7. "Marina Bay's floating platform to be 'primary venue' for future NDPs". TODAYonline. 30 October 2017. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  8. "NS Square planned for completion in 2025". The Straits Times. 9 September 2019.
  9. "Redeveloped Marina Bay floating platform to have water sports centre, NS-themed gallery". Channel News Asia. 15 July 2020. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  10. hermesauto (9 September 2019). "NS Square, to replace Marina Bay floating platform, slated for 2025 completion; platform to host NDP in 2020, 2021". The Straits Times. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
  11. Melissa Sim (12 August 2007). "He took NDP from land to water". The Sunday Times. p. 8.
  12. "Many firsts this time". The Straits Times. 12 July 2007. p. H6.
  13. Liaw Wy-Cin (24 May 2007). "National Day will bring all things S'porean". The Straits Times. p. H5.
  14. "Fireworks festival at Marina Bay floating platform from August 17–18". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 1 October 2007. Retrieved 14 August 2007.
  15. "A splashing start to WaterFest". The Sunday Times. 26 August 2007. p. 34.
  16. "WaterFest targets 33,000 this year". The Straits Times. 19 July 2007. p. H16.
  17. "ESPZEN fixture information for first floating football match". ESPZEN. Archived from the original on 13 March 2009. Retrieved 6 February 2009.
  18. "Marching to POP beat at National Stadium". The Straits Times. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  19. "Biggest K-Pop music event to be held in November". Archived from the original on 13 September 2012. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  20. "NDP 2017 to be held at Marina Bay Floating Platform: Ng Eng Hen". Channel News Asia. Archived from the original on 19 August 2016. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
  21. "NDP 2015 to be held at Padang and Marina Bay floating platform". TODAY Online. Archived from the original on 8 March 2015. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  22. "National Stadium NDP to cost S$39.4m, more than at floating platform or Padang". TODAYOnline. 29 February 2016.
  23. "NDP 2016: Show a treat, but new venue gets mixed reviews". TODAYonline. 10 August 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  24. "NDP 2017 returns to Marina Bay floating platform". The Straits Times. 19 August 2017. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
None Summer Youth Olympics
Opening and Closing Ceremonies
2010		 Succeeded by
Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
Nanjing
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