Multibuild wins IMAX project

Aug 21 2009 by Chris Knox, The Journal

NATIONAL contractor Multibuild has been awarded a £2.7m project to build a state-of-the-art Odeon IMAX cinema at MetroCentre, Gateshead.

The £2.7m scheme will see the firm begin a 6,000sqm fit out at the site, with the new cinema to be spread over two floors, and will include all auditoria, communal and back-of-house areas.

When it opens in December, the new Odeon multiplex will be the first in the North East – and one of only a handful in the country – to feature IMAX technology.

Created by Canada’s IMAX Corporation, the technology produces crystal clear images, 10 times larger than traditional film format, and wraps the viewer in digital surround sound with pictures.

The decision to install an IMAX theatre at the Gateshead multiplex follows the success of new digital systems at the Odeon & UCI group’s cinemas in London, at Wimbledon and Greenwich.

The new cinema is being built in the MetroCentre’s Yellow Quadrant, now known as MetroCentre Qube and over the past year Capital Shopping Centres has invested £45m in re-modelling the mall to create new leisure and dining facilities after the closure of MetroLand.

Mike Peden, chief executive of Multibuild, which has its head offices in Stockport, said: “We are delighted to have once again been chosen by Odeon Cinemas to undertake a project on their behalf.

“The Odeon Gateshead is an exciting development that, when complete, will provide the area with fantastic facilities.

“Multibuild has a long history of working in the North East and we always look forward to visiting .”