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Constructing the Times Square New Year’s Eve Ball

December 31, 2007  |  from Construction Jobs Blog

New Year's Eve BallI know that giant crystal ball construction is a little off topic for this blog…but it’s New Year’s Eve and I just can’t resist.

Today marks the 100th anniversary, or ‘birthday’, of the New Year’s Eve Ball.  In 1907, New York Times publisher Adolph S. Ochs commissioned the construction of the first Ball that would be lowered to count down the New Year.  Since then, the Ball has gone through a number of evolutions.

New New Year's Eve BallNow, a century later, a new LED Crystal ball has been developed that is twice as bright as any previous ball.  Waterford Crystal, Philips Lighting, and Focus Lighting worked together to design and construct the new masterpiece.

Waterford Crystal provided the 672 triangular crystal pieces that will refract light across the city (168 more crystal pieces than in the 2000-2007 Ball).  The crystal pieces were crafted and double-cut in Ireland.  Philips Lighting supplied the LED lights that are responsible for the increased brightness, energy efficiency, and color capabilities of the Ball.  Last year’s New Year's Eve Ball 2Ball had 600 incandescent and halogen bulbs, while this year’s Ball has a staggering 9,576 Luxeon LED’s!  For those of you concerned with sustainability, the entire Times Square Ball will use about the same amount of electricity as it takes to power ten toasters or a single oven.  Focus Lighting is responsible for the lighting patterns and displays that people across the world will see.

For more information on the construction and history of the New Year’s Eve Ball, visit the TimesSquareNYC site by clicking here.  (Source for photos and information)

Happy New Year!

Filed: Construction-News Interesting