10 August 2008 :Without GE there wouldn’t be much of an Olympic Games. That is of course unless the athletes have been practising in the dark! The company has been working around the clock to make sure all 37 official Beijing Olympic venues have a variety of essentials, power and lighting being key among them.
“Build our brand”
But this isn’t the company’s first time around the block. Director of PR for GE, Deirdre Latour, says the reason GE has once again teamed up with the Olympic Games is because “it’s a great opportunity for us to build our brand around the world in key cities like Beijing, Vancouver and London. And the values of the Games align with the values of GE.”
Leading by example
One of GE’s strategies is to provide environmentally advanced technologies to the Games from cleaner energy generation and water purification to efficient lighting technology. And they are doing that by providing water recycling technologies to the National Stadium as well as supplying more than 100 wind turbines to wind farms north of Beijing, which will supply energy to the Olympic central area.
A hands-on approach
On-site GE is showcasing its innovative technology via its Imagination Center. The 1,500 square-metre pavilion allows visitors to see first-hand the pioneering solutions GE created in order to help Beijing host the largest, most technologically advanced Olympic Games to date. Latour adds, “The Imagination Center brings to life GE’s sponsorship of the Beijing Games. It showcases our innovative technologies like wind, water and lighting that have contributed to building the infrastructure of all 37 venues and 168 commercial buildings around Beijing.”
Waterfall and interactive tour
The two-storey building features an outdoor waterfall and interactive tour and is located in the Sponsor Village on the Olympic Green. It is open daily to the public from 4 to 24 August between the hours of 9 a.m. and 10 p.m. After the Games, the Center will be moved and installed in the lobby of the new GE-China headquarters in Shanghai.