Powerhire received a call into the office from the Production Director of BvG Group, a specialist Production Support Service Company based in Kent enquiring about back-up power for an event taking place at The Port of Dover Cruise Terminal.
Our technical sales manager was on hand to discuss their requirements further and determine the full scope of the project.
BvG Group had been contracted by creative agency, Embolden Agency, to deliver a naming ceremony for Saga’s newest cruise ship ‘The Spirit of Discovery’ at Dover Western Docks before she sets sail on her inaugural cruise. They were given a brief to find a Godmother (person who names the ship) and to create a memorable series of events for the ceremony that reflected Saga’s values, one of which is being British.
The Spirit of Discovery is the first of two ships built for the successful British cruise line Saga, the British based company that offers a range of products and services for the over 50s, and built exclusively for the British market – ‘Britain’s first boutique hotel at sea’. The ships each have an overall length of 236 metres, a width of 31.2 metres and a tonnage measurement of 58,250 GT and stands out with an environmental friendly and resource conserving design. Key features of the new ship include more than 400 contemporary works by British artists and a dining and music venue designed in collaboration with Jools Holland.
Ben van Grutten along with his key team including designer Robin Thompson, came up with a quintessentially British garden party theme where the cruise terminal will be transformed with Yorkshire grass, bunting and floral displays. 500 guests have been invited to attend the naming ceremony which will feature an extensive afternoon tea where guests will be served Spirit of Discovery sparkling wine which has been specially blended by Kent vineyard Hush Heath for the ship and Anno Kent Gin from the nearby village of Marden, Kent. A show stopping celebration cake depicting a two-metre-long replica of Spirit of Discovery, was also designed and made by Mark Tilling, winner of Bake Off Crème de la Crème especially for the occasion.
During the official naming ceremony, The Band of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines Collingwood and the Morrison Orpheus Choir will perform and the ship will be blessed by The Right Reverend Trevor Willmott, Bishop of Dover. She will then be christened by The Duchess of Cornwall with a bottle of the specially created sparkling wine before setting sail on her inaugural cruise.
Ben and his team had designed this amazing day whilst working to extremely constrained budgets and timelines. All that was needed now was the assurance of temporary back-up power to ensure that in the event of a power outage, the day would still run without any issues.
Following further discussions between our sales manager and Ben van Grutten, it was determined that power will be taken from other areas of the site using 400m of 125A c.form cable supplied by Powerhire but they would also require a 100kVA temporary super silent generator and 3000 litre fuel tank for back-up. It was imperative to BvG to employ the services of a reliable supplier who understood the nature of the events industry as failure was not an option, with 100% reliability on equipment, transport and delivery times and with sufficient stocks of 125A TPN cable, as well as distro, cable ramps etc., especially as the dockside power is all Delta three phase.
Our sales manager explained that with Powerhire’s extensive experience in supplying temporary power for a multitude of events throughout the UK as well as owning our own fleet of lorries and vast stocks of cables and distribution equipment, Powerhire were the perfect choice for their event.
On agreement from both parties in regards to power requirements, our sales manager raised an official quotation which was agreed and approved by the client. Our rental co-ordinators then proceeded to book all equipment, transport and labour for the project through the appropriate office channels.
On the agreed date, three days prior to the launch, the Powerhire logistics team and engineers arrived on site to position the equipment ready to be installed for the big day.
The ship was the first cruise ship to be named at the Port of Dover in over 10 years and to celebrate the arrival of the ship The Port of Dover officially unveiled its new multi-purpose berth 4, taking a major step towards the full launch of its £250 million redevelopment of Dover Western Docks (DWDR) in 2020.
The day was a huge success with BvG turning a working port into a British garden party! The Duchess of Cornwall, after a short tour around the ship and witnessed by hundreds of guests and dignitaries, pushed a mechanical arm which brought the bottle of sparkling wine, specially created by the Hush Heath Estate, smashing it against the ship’s hull officially christening the ship. Afterwards she joined the guests on a quay at the garden party-themed reception for a fabulous afternoon. Everyone had a fantastic time with the day symbolising a key moment in both the history and the future of Saga and The Port of Dover.
Luckily for BvG our generators weren’t called into action during the event but Ben was very appreciative and complimentary of Powerhire and our equipment and we look forward to working with them again in the near future.
“Thanks very much for your equipment for the ship naming ceremony – it was immaculate and I was delighted with it. Also your drivers need to be mentioned as the most friendly, knowledgeable and incredibly helpful people. A real credit to Powerhire.” Ben van Grutten, Production Manager, BvG Group.
