Fluidra inaugurates an emblematic and innovative fountain in Perpignan
July 14, 2008The Spanish multinational has designed a fountain able to generate
over a million combinations of colours using a totally programmable system
that has been devised for putting on a wide variety of sound and light shows.
The fountain is unique in its kind and has been installed in Perpignan as
a result of an agreement between the company and the city authorities.
France is a reference market for Fluidra and its central offices there have been
based in Perpignan since 1974.
Barcelona, 14 July 2008 – Perpignan and its inhabitants will be able to enjoy a new
emblematic monument from now on. Fluidra, the Spanish multinational, has
installed a unique fountain in its kind through its French branch, Astral Piscine, in
collaboration with the City Council. It is located in front of the city’s Conference
Centre and uses state-of-the-art technology, which makes it able to completely
programme the brightness of the light and colours, the music, and the speed and
pressure of the jets. The City Council provided the land and infrastructures for the
fountain, which Fluidra was responsible for designing and building. Its inauguration
took place on Friday 11 July. The ceremony was presided over by the city’s mayor,
Jean Paul Alduy, and Fluidra’s chairman, Joan Planes, and was attended by many
of local dignitaries and inhabitants.
This innovative fountain is the result of a long research that required an investment
of approximately 1 million euros over several years. This marks the beginning of a
new business line for Fluidra both in France and the other markets on which the
group operates. The multinational considers France to be a reference market, on
which it has been present since 1974. Moreover, Astral Piscine’s main headquarters
are located in Perpignan and this project reflects the group’s commitment to the city.
This new “evolving” fountain measures 30 metres in diameter and is divided into two
asymmetrical semi-circles. Endowed with state-of-the-art technology, it is able to
produce over one million colour combinations and it adapts to any kind of music or
sound sequence.
The jet can reach heights of over 20 metres and its speed and pressure is also
totally adaptable.
Another major feature of the fountain is that it consumes little water as it uses
rainwater. In addition, all spillover is reused thanks to its double overflow system.
217 steel flowers
The 217 stainless steel flowers are the fountain’s distinctive feature. They come in
various designs, 69 of them are able to move and the jets of water can be adjusted
to give 10 different effects. The use of the flowers to decorate the fountain made
possible to make its overflow flat, which was one of the design specifications. The
whole is conceived as a lake to compensate for and balance out the heights of the
surrounding buildings.
The flowers have an additional technical function: their shape discreetly hides the
hydraulic and LED lighting installations. This means that the lighting is not
submerged in the water and can thus be seen to its full effect, which is not possible
in conventional fountains.