Challenge: 

The Tiffany & Co Foundation had gifted a generous donation to The Royal Parks to enhance water displays within the parks. Part of this gift was dedicated to providing an iconic fountain in St James’s Park Lake. The fountain had to be sited to maintain a clear view of Buckingham Palace from the Horse Guards Parade and in a position to avoid excess spray onto Pelican Rock where the famous pelicans reside. The recirculation system had to be robust with ample filtration to cope with the large amount of debris in the lake.

Success:

The Tiffany Fountain is an iconic fountain in St James’s Park Lake, surrounded by landmarks that include Buckingham Palace, Clarence House and Whitehall. St James’s Park is one of eight Royal Parks in London, with grounds of nearly 57 acres.

The tall graceful plume of the Tiffany Fountain dominates the southern side of the St. James’s Park Lake, enhancing the landscape and providing aeration to the waters of the lake. The fountain is a majestic 7 – 8 metres in height with colour changing LED lights which can be programmed to colour match specific events such as a green jet to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. A bespoke GRP unit sited at the edge of the lake houses the pump system with fine and coarse strainers to protect the pump. The unit can be lifted with the aid of an adjacent davit crane for ease of maintenance. The height of the fountain is controlled by an anemometer to avoid water drift in windy conditions.

Maintenance: Annual maintenance, as required.

History: The pelicans have lived in St James’s Park for 400 years. They were presented as a gift from the Russian Ambassador to King Charles II.

Fact: The volume of water recycled continuously from the lake through the jet could fill your bath at home in just 24 seconds.