Ringturm Illumination: How Vienna's tallest Christmas tree is created
Interview with Christian Wurzer, Managing Director of Aquila Hausmanagement GmbH, which manages the buildings and properties of the Vienna Insurance Group, Wiener Städtische Versicherung and Donau Versicherung.
Mr. Wurzer, one of the buildings that Aquila manages is the Ringturm on Vienna's Schottenring. Every year during the Advent season, the 73-metre office tower is illuminated with a Christmas tree. How long has it been like this?
The Ringturm has been illuminated with a Christmas tree on the corner facing Schottenring since 2003. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the tree lighting. The tree has changed since then: At first it looked a little different than it does today and was smaller, only around 10 storeys high. For comparison: the Ringturm, which was built from 1953-55, has a total of 20 storeys. In 2004, it was extended to 12 storeys (see photo) and then in 2005 to its current size, i.e. 19 storeys. In 2006, snowflakes were added to the sides of the Ringturm. In 2013, the shape of the tree was changed and completely switched to LEDs, which drastically reduced the power consumption - from 46kW to around 6kW.
How many LEDs does the lighting consist of today?
A total of 105,300 individual LEDs! The top of the Christmas tree alone consists of around 1,400 lights. The tree is around 65 metres high and around 36 metres wide at its widest point - making it one of the tallest in Vienna. The power consumption of all the LEDs per hour is roughly equivalent to that of 24 computer screens, each with an output of around 250 watts.
How big is the logistical effort involved in decorating the Christmas tree on the Ringturm?
Every year, the Christmas lights and the traditional Ringturm wrapping are mounted on an existing fixed stranding. In total, the installation of the Christmas lights takes around 5-7 weeks and requires three to five people. The duration varies depending on the weather conditions. As you can imagine, installation is not carried out in strong winds or low temperatures with icing. Safety is a top priority, and the cables must also be checked for any damage every year and inspected and approved by a structural engineer. And installation with the façade access system is only carried out by trained personnel with specialised training.
How does the effort involved differ from wrapping the Ringturm?
The Ringturm wrapping always takes place in early summer, so the weather is usually better than in winter. The installation of the wrapping therefore normally takes around 4 - 5 weeks, which is somewhat shorter. But the effort involved is still enormous: the 30 lengths of fabric used for the wrapping, or to be more precise, mesh vinyl, weigh almost 1.5 tonnes and cover an area of over 4,000 square metres. The material is also subject to particularly stringent fire safety requirements - one of the lessons learnt from the devastating Grenfell Tower fire in London in 2017. Printing the fabric panels is also more complex than installing the Christmas lights. In net terms, it takes around 155 hours to print the cladding, almost as long as it takes to install it (165 hours, or just under 7 days).
What do the neighbours say about the lighting? Do they stay on all night?
No, basically the operating times for the lighting are between 6:00 and 8:00 in the morning and then from 15:00 to 23:59. This means that the lighting runs for a maximum of eleven hours a day. However, we use a twilight switch, so the lights only switch on when it is dark enough. We only hear positive things about the lighting from the Viennese population and for many, the Ringturm Christmas tree is part of the cityscape in the run-up to Christmas - even if not everyone knows the Ringturm.
When does the Ringturm lighting end?
We start in mid-November with the Christmas markets. The last switch-on date is usually 6 January.
Thank you very much for the interview, have a wonderful christmas time, Mr. Wurzer!
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