1. Irish firm brings
Disneyland touch to UAE
Film-franchise Motiongate Dubai theme park is on track for October
opening
RichardHill fromDeluxeGroup, NorthernIrelandshows Minster JonathanBell their workat
MotiongateDubai alongwiththeteamfromHill International andInvest NorthernIreland.
Dubai: It’s only been two years in the making, but Motiongate Dubai’s
development is on schedule; it will open its doors as the biggest theme
park in the region this October.
And it’s a small company that’s responsible for much of the progress.
The Deluxe Group, a Northern Irish company working alongside Dubai
Parks and Resorts, landed the project as it was part of a global
entertainment initiative that fell within their niche: movie franchises.
ImageCredit: MotiongateDubai
Published: 19:24 April 22, 2016
By Joseph Gedeon, Special to Gulf News
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2. But Deluxe Group had not always focused on amusement parks.
Operating since 1969, the privately owned, family-run firm had
generally stuck to the commercial, retail and luxury residential market
sectors. Then 25 years ago they decided to specialise in theme parks.
A year later, they landed their big break: developing Disneyland in Paris.
“Our first large project was Disney in Paris and in fact we just passed
the 24th anniversary of that theme park,” business development
manager Richard Hill told Gulf News. “We even completed [the]
Ratatouille [ride] in Paris just a couple years ago.”
Deluxe Group was first made aware of the project through visits to the
UAE that were facilitated by Invest Northern Ireland in 2015. The
company become proactive in pursuing a role in Motiongate’s
development once it heard its mission.
Experience pays off
When the company became the contractor for the largest theme park
in the UAE, all they had to thank was their resume. “Our set works and
interior of our Disneyland Paris attractions had been well received in
the industry for quality of theming,” Hill said.
“Some of the client team involved at Motiongate were veterans of
Disney and knew of the quality of our workmanship. It was encouraging
that Dubai Parks and Resorts wanted a quality lead approach to
produce something that we are delighted to be a part of,” he said.
"The plan to build a park themed to DreamWorks, Sony Pictures,
Lionsgate, Smurfs Village and Studio Central animation characters
emerged to take the form of Dubai’s newest leisure and entertainment
destination in 2014. Motiongate Dubai will be part of a larger complex of
theme parks, which will include Bollywood Parks Dubai and Legoland
Dubai. The entire complex will estimated to cost Dh10.5 billion that will
cover 25 million square feet on the south side of Dubai near the border
with Abu Dhabi. The complex is expected to attract 6.7 million visitors
in its first year of operations. Motiongate Dubai will boast 27
attractions, with dining, retail and entertainment options throughout the
area," he said.
In addition, the park will boast 27 attractions, with dining, retail and
entertainment options throughout the area.
Dubai Parks and Resorts estimate Dh2.4 billion in revenue will be
made after a year of operation and more than 5,000 jobs will be
generated across the sector thanks to the expansion.
But this isn’t anything out of the ordinary for Hill. His role as the
business development manager of the 47-year-old firm has always
been to find projects and look for a strategy to mature further business
in the market. He believes this is made possible through the company’s
continued focus on investing in new technology and prefabrication
methods.
Qualityof construction
“Our sets and props for Motiongate are prefabricated in our workshop
in Northern Ireland, which has a new state-of-the-art facility of 40,000
square feet,” Hill said. “This allows the client’s art direction team to
approve quality throughout the process and in such a fast-track
construction programme as Motiongate allows us to minimise site
installation time.”
So although they are not quite the typical size of a company that many
assume handle big-time amusement parks, their technological know-
Britain isopen for
business
Emirates opens
SkyPharmainDubai
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3. how ensures that big plans are not too far out of reach. “There are at
least another two major parks in development in the UAE that we are
keen to be considered as a candidate for,” he said.
“The scale of investment shows a significant ambition in the region to
create a tourist destination for families that will rival Florida.”
Although he has only visited Dubai in the past two years, Hill has
noticed a change in the trend of the cities marketability. To Hill, the UAE
has switched its focus as a huge tourist destination for couples by
turning its overall strategy to becoming a family-friendly environment.
There are 13,500 workers and 41 contractors on site building
attractions and rides inspired by Ghostbusters, Kung Fu Panda, The
Hunger Games and more, and it’s no understatement that the hype is
carrying the park to new heights.
But the team at The Deluxe Group are excited to take on that sort of
pressure.
“It’s true there is a high expectation when creating film-related theme
park attractions that they will make the visitor feel immersed in the
world of that movie and as huge film fans ourselves we are
continually striving to create sets that make real what you have seen on
the screen,” Hill said.
“Once everyone visits Motiongate I hope they will agree that we have
succeeded.”
The writer is an intern at Gulf News.
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![But Deluxe Group had not always focused on amusement parks.
Operating since 1969, the privately owned, family-run firm had
generally stuck to the commercial, retail and luxury residential market
sectors. Then 25 years ago they decided to specialise in theme parks.
A year later, they landed their big break: developing Disneyland in Paris.
“Our first large project was Disney in Paris and in fact we just passed
the 24th anniversary of that theme park,” business development
manager Richard Hill told Gulf News. “We even completed [the]
Ratatouille [ride] in Paris just a couple years ago.”
Deluxe Group was first made aware of the project through visits to the
UAE that were facilitated by Invest Northern Ireland in 2015. The
company become proactive in pursuing a role in Motiongate’s
development once it heard its mission.
Experience pays off
When the company became the contractor for the largest theme park
in the UAE, all they had to thank was their resume. “Our set works and
interior of our Disneyland Paris attractions had been well received in
the industry for quality of theming,” Hill said.
“Some of the client team involved at Motiongate were veterans of
Disney and knew of the quality of our workmanship. It was encouraging
that Dubai Parks and Resorts wanted a quality lead approach to
produce something that we are delighted to be a part of,” he said.
"The plan to build a park themed to DreamWorks, Sony Pictures,
Lionsgate, Smurfs Village and Studio Central animation characters
emerged to take the form of Dubai’s newest leisure and entertainment
destination in 2014. Motiongate Dubai will be part of a larger complex of
theme parks, which will include Bollywood Parks Dubai and Legoland
Dubai. The entire complex will estimated to cost Dh10.5 billion that will
cover 25 million square feet on the south side of Dubai near the border
with Abu Dhabi. The complex is expected to attract 6.7 million visitors
in its first year of operations. Motiongate Dubai will boast 27
attractions, with dining, retail and entertainment options throughout the
area," he said.
In addition, the park will boast 27 attractions, with dining, retail and
entertainment options throughout the area.
Dubai Parks and Resorts estimate Dh2.4 billion in revenue will be
made after a year of operation and more than 5,000 jobs will be
generated across the sector thanks to the expansion.
But this isn’t anything out of the ordinary for Hill. His role as the
business development manager of the 47-year-old firm has always
been to find projects and look for a strategy to mature further business
in the market. He believes this is made possible through the company’s
continued focus on investing in new technology and prefabrication
methods.
Qualityof construction
“Our sets and props for Motiongate are prefabricated in our workshop
in Northern Ireland, which has a new state-of-the-art facility of 40,000
square feet,” Hill said. “This allows the client’s art direction team to
approve quality throughout the process and in such a fast-track
construction programme as Motiongate allows us to minimise site
installation time.”
So although they are not quite the typical size of a company that many
assume handle big-time amusement parks, their technological know-
Britain isopen for
business
Emirates opens
SkyPharmainDubai
converted by Web2PDFConvert.com](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)