Avala Tower
» Introduction
There is no silence on Avala these days. The noise of heavy machinery replaced the silence of ruins that lied there for seven years. Beobuild is reporting from the site on how the construction is advancing. After complex was cleared of wrack last year, work on the construction of a new tower started 3 months ago on 21. december 2006.
Today on Avala you can find one very neat and well organised construction site. Construction is performed by a company 'Ratko Mitrovic'. Though it is very large site, there is no junk or waste and the working atmosphere among employees is great. All the neccessary equipment is already there and most of it is completly new.
On the site itself, workers are constructing the concrete factory and cement silo that arrived from the customs on the day we performed this monitoring. They also installed powerful water pump that will bring water to the top, because of a low pressure on that altitude.The pump and other machinery will be powered by a near-by transformer and between the construction site and 'Mitorvicev Dom' are placed new and modern containers for offices.
Beside the concrete factory, 'Energy Block' will be constructed it will be incised into the rock. The mining method was not used in this case so the soil wouldn't be slacken around the new tower. Old fundation was dug-up and will be replaced with a new one. Into the shafts the conrete is being pumped under high pressure of 2bars on a depth of 13 meters. New tower will have built-in almost double amount of armature – near 500 tons and the entire fixture will be imported from Germany. Also, for construction it will be used 7 500 cubics of special concrete produced with cement from Beocin factory.
Although the situation on the construction site promises quality and efficient induction of work, optimistic deadline for completion(20 months – august 2008) as we find out, seems to be unrealistic. Old tower was constructed in 4 years.The new tower will seemingly be the same, but not everything will be as it was. New and different antenna will be installed. It will be a bit bigger so the new tower will have 205 meters. Also comletly new technology of construction and materials will be used and a new fire protection system will be there, all by project of CIP Institute.
The investors of this project, Republic Property Agency and RTS(Serbian Broadcasting Corporation), will pay 7 million euros for comletion of it. The incentive for reconstruction came from the Journalists’ Associations of Serbia and Association of Avala Tower Admirers.
On the 119th meter there will be a ‘café’ with 50 places, kitchen and toilets, with high-speed elevators for visitors.The people will be able to enjoy the panorama , which in good weather can have field of vision up to 70 km.The entire tower complex will be arranged with pathways, flower pots, trees…so the location will become very attractive for tourists.
The old tower was 202, 87 meters tall and it was built between 1960 and 1965. Authors of that project were architects Ugljesa Bogdanovic (deceased in 1994), Slobodan Janjic as well as the constructor academic Milan Krstic. Tower was constructed by then Serbian construction giant – company ‘Rad’.
Then 4000 tons of concrete was installed into it and it had 60 meters tall and 25 tons heavy antenna on the top.
On 29th April 1999. during the NATO aggression, tower was destroyed.
The Tower was very unique; it was the only tower who had a triangle in its base and one of the rare ones that had 3 legs without direct reliance.
During years of existence it became a kind of a lighthouse above the Sumadija for all the travellers approaching Belgrade, as it was seen from all locations travellers knew they are near the capital.
» Investor
Ministry of Capital Investments
» Location
Avala Mountain
» Size
204m high TV Tower
» Deadlines
Construction started in Spring 2006, finishing it is planed for July 2009
