The structure was fabricated by ES Projects (ESP).  They specialize in engineering projects that can be built, taken down and rebuilt numerous times in an efficient manner.  Opening in Hong Kong in February 2008, the Chanel’s Mobile Art Pavilion was an immediate hit.  The list of hosting cities grew to include Tokyo, New York, London, and Paris.  Rock-It Cargo - London (RIC) was chosen to plan and execute the logistics of transporting the hundreds of molded fiberglass panels, the Pavilion’s steel skeleton and all of the accompanying electrical and environmental elements.  The whole project is carefully packed into 55 ocean containers and moved to each installation site. 

 

New York’s Central Park installation proved to be a major logistical challenge.  Since park authorities did not want to close the roads in the Park, and the safety of overhanging trees and the rest of the park environment were also critical, ESP, RIC and crews from different specialty companies had to work during the night with special equipment to maneuver into the constricted space where the museum was sited.  Cargo containers had to unobtrusively enter, unload and exit the park overnight.  During the day crews worked on staging and construction.  Paul Darby from ESS stressed the importance of timing, “A very tight schedule had to be kept going order for the project to stay on track.”

 

The construction finished without incident, and on time.  The exhibit opened in New York October 2008.  Once up, a seven person crew remains on site to manage the maintenance of the structure until it moves to its next location.