February’s Biggest Challenge: Neon Leads the Build & Breakdown of the Athletics Indoor Running Track
February is always a very exciting month for our team as it brings our biggest job of the year with it – the build and breakdown of the Athletics Indoor Running Track. Neon has been involved in this since 1991, but our involvement grew and since 2023 we have been the main contractor for this job.
Not only are we involved in the build and breakdown of the structure and infield, but we are responsible for event cover for some of the events, dealing with logistics behind transport and installation of athletics equipment, building and breakdown of the shot-put net structure for that specific competition amongst other supporting jobs around the event days.
As a way of celebrating the completion of year 3 of our 5-year contract to manage, as the main contractor, the 200-metre Indoor Athletics Track owned by Birmingham Council for Dynamik Sports we interviewed our Managing Director, Nick East, to have his input as someone who has been involved, in different capacities, with the building of the Athletics Track since 1991.
Q: I guess our first question is what made it possible for Neon Arena Services to be the main contractor for this new Athletics Indoor Running Track.
A: Historically, up until 2019, we had built the old track under the direction and control of NEC Arenas Technical, as a local arena delivery partner. In 2019, we were awarded the building of the track as a main contractor directly for Birmingham City Council.
In 2021 we were approached by Dynamik Sports, the supplier of this new track, to continue working as the main contractor but also take delivery, store, and maintain the track supplied by Mondo. In essence, we manage the whole package, from start to finish for 5 years.
Our biggest client, The NEC Group assisted us by leasing the whole 7000 square foot storage area under the Utilita Arena Birmingham to us – this ensures the track is kept on-site, and allows us to transport the track using one arctic internally, rather than eight to ten journeys through the congested city centre. We also utilise this storage area with a purpose-built climate-controlled wood store for our 2400 square metres of Junckers solid wood sports flooring.
Q: Well, you have been involved with the Track build and breakdown from the beginning. That makes you (and consequentially the team) very experienced.
A: In terms of experience, all staff including myself have learnt our trade through many years working with the NEC Arenas Technical Department and we thank them for their support, training, opportunities and partnership stemming back many years – not just for the track build but in general with the seating and staging work we do at the arenas’ all year round.
The support we receive from the NEC Group extends to the event managers, senior management, technical team, security and cleaning departments.
UK Athletics and Birmingham City Council have also been a valued customer of ours for many years, and again it is nice that we can provide event management, logistics and storage, with the same members of Neon Arena Services’ staff year after year. Our longest-serving member of crew, Richard, celebrates 23 years with us this year with a youthful Roy coming in second with 19 years of service. A lot of our part-time crew, have other skill sets from branding, to audio-visual to athletics sports equipment which allows us to deliver a bespoke service, especially in jobs like this.
Q: How do you approach hiring or sub-contracting for such a big job?
A: Our company policy is to do everything possible in-house. We only subcontract specialist areas, and hopefully, ensure the money from Birmingham City Council is kept in the local community.
Indeed, the only areas we subcontracted out were the haulage, Cargo Express, another Birmingham-based company, and the initial surveying and accreditation, Survatec which unfortunately, isn’t local, however, we have worked with them via Birmingham City Council for many years on the old track.
Every other aspect of the track build, event management, athletics equipment supply and build, de-rig and pack away was undertaken by our staff (full-time crew and part-time crew), all are local to the Birmingham area, and have many years of experience with the old track.
Q: Why is it so important to you to ‘keep it local’?
A: Our competitors and some clients question why we employ rather than sub it all out, use freelancers or just use a more cost-effective local crew solution. The simple answer is we love the work we do, love the crack of working with each other, and love taking on young people and watching them grow with us and in the industry in general whether that is within the NEC Group or other major event businesses.
By having such a tight-knit relationship with our crew members, I am happy to say that when I am up against it, trying to build a track or sports floor in a very short build time, they all go the extra mile, massively extend their hours, and step up, when required.
Q: Is there any other moment, apart from this Athletics Indoor Running Track, where keeping it local was a distinguishing element?
A: I’d say it adds value to all we do, but I’d probably mention the Commonwealth Games in 22 – whilst our competitors struggled for crew and struggled to get them accredited, we accredited over 120 members of loyal staff, supplied and built Netball, Table Tennis and Badminton wooden floors and sports surfaces, and supplied crew and logistics support, direct to the Organizing Committee. Our competition subbed some of their floors and packages out to us too.