Royal Wedding

The wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle took place on 19th May 2018 in St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. Almost 18 million people in the UK watched the Royal Wedding on TV, making it the most watched event of 2018. Almost 30 million were reported to have watched it in the United States and the global audience was estimated to be in the hundreds of millions. The wedding triggered a tourism boom in the UK and boosted the economy by hundreds of million pounds. Following the ceremony, the titles of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were bestowed by the Queen on Harry and Meghan.

More than 100,000 people lined the streets of Windsor and the grounds of its famous castle to celebrate the wedding and people had flown from across the world especially for the event. The event required meticulous planning with a huge requirement for temporary accommodation for the media compound and toilet facilities for the general public.

Customer Name
Royal Wedding Between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Project and Location
Windsor, Berkshire
Sector
Events
Duration
Two week hire for accommodation units for the media compound, weekend hire for all additional equipment
Products (Inc Quantity)

Over 300 temporary toilets for the Long Walk, 14 accommodation units for the media compound, 4 water bowsers, generator plus 6 air conditioning units, tower lights, barriers and fencing from several A-Plant divisions

The Challenge

This was a tremendously high profile event with millions of people watching it all around the world. Planned with ultimate precision, there were very strict timetables as to when equipment could be delivered, erected and collected. There was also a multi-million pound security operation surrounding the wedding, so all companies delivering equipment had to meet very strict guidelines and timeframes. A temporary accommodation complex was needed for the media compound for a two week period leading up to the event to provide facilities for the many journalists and TV crews covering the event. Temporary toilet facilities were also needed for the Long Walk leading up to Windsor Castle, where thousands of people were waiting for a glimpse of the newlyweds during an open carriage ride as part of a two-mile procession route.It was essential for suppliers to be able to respond to last minute requests for equipment.

The Solution

A-Plant Accommodation worked very closely with all parties involved, including the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead and Thames Valley Police, to supply a vast range of temporary accommodation products to ensure that the event ran smoothly for both the general public, the Royal Family and the media. Over 300 serviceloos were provided for the Long Walk to ensure that members of the public had toilet facilities. An accommodation complex, comprising 14 units, was also provided for the media compound to ensure that journalists and TV crews had office and welfare facilities. Four water bowsers were also provided.

A major advantage of dealing with A-Plant Accommodation is that other divisions within the A-Plant family were also able to supply equipment. For instance, the Rapid Climate Control division was able to respond to a same day request for a total of six air conditioning units due to the hot weather on the day of the wedding. A-Plant Accommodation was also able to supply a generator to run the air conditioning units. This was a last minute request on the Friday evening before the wedding on the Saturday.

Live, A-Plant’s temporary access provider, also had a huge role to play in the wedding preparations, supplying over 19,000m of barriers and fencing, plus tower lights. Tasked with strengthening safety and security during the event, Live provided over 8000 GT Lightweight Barriers and 525m of Heras fencing across the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead.The company’s crowd control system was installed through Windsor town and the Long Walk, protecting the wedding party and ensuring the procession route remained unobstructed.Prior to the event, Live installed itsEuromattemporary roadway system on the grass of the Long Walk, to protect it from work being carried out by other contractors.

The Results

This was a huge undertaking which involved the supply of thousands of different pieces of equipment across the A-Plant range and several divisions pulling together. A-Plant Accommodation fulfilled the requirements for temporary toilet and accommodation facilities during the Royal Wedding and all parties involved were delighted with the service provided and the quality of equipment. A-Plant has a long history of supplying equipment and expertise for high profile events and was relied upon as a trusted supplier for this landmark event.

We were absolutely delighted to be selected as a trusted supplier of temporary accommodation for this momentous occasion, which will be remembered by many for years to come. We worked very closely with all parties involved to ensure the event ran smoothly and were able to respond to all last minute requests for additional equipment.
Ian Needham, Director, A-Plant Accommodation
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