The project for placing the replica of the Alfa and Omega sculpture, which will once again preside over the coastline of Torredembarra like the original work by Rafael Bartolozzi (present between 1999 and 2018), is now defined. The City Council's main concern is not the reproduction of the piece, but its installation at the Bloc de Baix a Mar once it leaves the factory.
The complex operation will be carried out using a pontoon, a floating platform for which there are few units available on the market. This intervention will require a precise coordination of multiple factors: calm seas, heavy machinery, an auxiliary vessel, specialized operators, an underwater survey, and even a temporary sand bed. The goal is to complete the task in a single day, although the contract allows up to 10 days for potential unforeseen circumstances.
The pontoon, approximately 160 square meters, will dock at a pier in the Port of Torredembarra. A 35-ton crane, which will access the platform via metal plates, will lift the seven-ton sculpture (built in one or two pieces) to transport it by sea to the Bloc. The navigation, covering one nautical mile, will be at three knots and will require "very good" weather conditions, with no wind or waves exceeding 30 centimeters.
Once in position, the pontoon will anchor to the seabed, and a prior underwater inspection is recommended. A sand bed of 96 cubic meters will be prepared to facilitate the sculpture's fitting into the anchors on the concrete base, a task to be carried out by four operators.
The City Council has put out to tender the manufacturing of the sculpture for a maximum of 100,900 euros and its installation for 51,890 euros. This operation is possible thanks to a municipal concession to occupy 42.5 m² of maritime-terrestrial domain, granted in 1999 and expiring in 2029. Costas (the Coastal Authority) has already warned that the future of these installations will depend on a state decision within less than three years.
