Operations and Health & Safety: Eastern Electrics & Maiden Voyage Festivals

Background

Eastern Electrics (EE) was founded in London in 2010 as a new house music brand delivering cutting edge electronic music. Initially, events took place underground in warehouses and clubs across the city, but in 2012, EE put on their very first outdoor day festival at the Greenwich Peninsular.

Maiden Voyage (MV) was launched in 2019 as a collaboration between EE promoter, Rob Star, Hives and the Jazz café. The first event was hugely successful and MV now takes place annually on the Sunday after EE.

OPS have been working alongside our colleagues in The Fair’s production team to ensure the safe delivery of Eastern Electrics and Maiden Voyage for many years now. OPS have supported the festival to grow to an audience of 15,000 people, and secure a permanent home at Lee Valley Showground.

Challenges

• Lee Valley Showground is surrounded by canals and water, and has two ‘lines’ of pylons carrying six 275kv uninsulated wires running its entire length. OPS ensured the health & safety of crew and audiences on a site throughout the build, live and break phases.

• Working with the Production Manager to reposition the Main Stage to reduce offsite sound levels in response to noise complaints received the previous year.

• Finding a new Artist Entrance to reduce congestion at the entrance of the White-Water Raft Centre.

• Due to recent arson attacks in the area, the steel shield fence was repositioned to enable access for a fire truck around the full perimeter of the site.

• Liaising with multiple agencies across Hertfordshire and Essex throughout the event planning process.

Delivery

• Event documentation – RA, FRA, Overhead Powerlines Assessment

• On-Site H&S Manager for the build, live and break

• On-Site Crowd Safety Manger for the live

• Stakeholder Engagement Services

Results

• Successful event with 26,000 attendees over two days and positive feedback from attendees and the community.

• Positive liaison with local stakeholders and residents throughout the event planning process. A significant reduction in the number of noise complaints received to the onsite hotline.  

• We implemented a successful community management strategy with zoned areas for dedicated waste management, security and steward teams. This led to reduction in the number of complaints regarding anti-social behavior and improved relations with the local community.

• A new charity partnership raised £1,350 for local charities through guestlist donations.