Rivers of Light opening delayed

[rteetz]

Any word of Tiffins? Will they hold off opening it until ROL is rolling?

That was announced to be opening this summer before the delay happened.

 

[Spacedog1975]

I didn't put the dots together until this morning how substantial a delay this would be. I wonder how much of it could have been avoided if they had started live testing sooner. I know a few May/June folks that are going to be disappointed that their trip doesn't include these new offerings.

 

[TisBit]

I just don't believe they didn't know til yesterday that it wasn't going to open on time.

I think this is one of those things that people on the outside can criticize all they want, but the logistics are another. Basic Project Management like this have certain drop dates (critical paths) that if you don't make you must then announce that you are delayed. This is more than a technology issue. You also have to look at things like training cast members to run the tech instead of the design engineers, rehearsals, etc. I am sure that they have known, but until they passed the "date" of no return, meaning if it was not resolved by yesterday they must announce a delay. It could also be that they found the thinga majig that is broken and to get a new one it will take X amount of time, thus pushing the whole project back.

It is even possible that if there if the problems are solved they could still make their date, but it would be highly doubtful, especially now that Disney has accepted the date will not be made. The other part of this is the Disney quality (if you agree or not), but generally Disney does not put something out that is halfway done or not ready. They wont throw a cast member in a costume to make the show go on, they would rather cancel the show and live up to this expectation of the performance itself....even if guests are upset.

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

I think this is one of those things that people on the outside can criticize all they want, but the logistics are another. Basic Project Management like this have certain drop dates (critical paths) that if you don't make you must then announce that you are delayed. This is more than a technology issue. You also have to look at things like training cast members to run the tech instead of the design engineers, rehearsals, etc. I am sure that they have known, but until they passed the "date" of no return, meaning if it was not resolved by yesterday they must announce a delay. It could also be that they found the thinga majig that is broken and to get a new one it will take X amount of time, thus pushing the whole project back.

Especially if that "thinga majig" is a one of a kind thing.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

The best time to announce a delay is right before it opens...

Nobody will stay away and they'll get more buzz bookings for a later date.

 

[mshanson3121]

Anyone surprised by this, raise their hand....

Anyone????

 

[rteetz]

Anyone surprised by this, raise their hand....

Anyone????

I think if you weren't following the updates about it having techincal difficulties then yes you would be surprised.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

I think if you weren't following the updates about it having techincal difficulties then yes you would be surprised.

Agree...
They had let this play...this was NOT an expected delay

Also remember that goofy Joe is spending like a drunk sailor in the other side of the park...they need this open to ease worry on the board and the street.

 

[Eoghann]

I think if you weren't following the updates about it having techincal difficulties then yes you would be surprised.

I think they were surprised. Which may be a sign of some poor project management, but we don't really know enough to judge that.

Stuff like this is supposed to get caught earlier in the process. But this is a pretty ambitious show with a lot of elements and I'm not sure how they would test it properly without floating it all on a lake somewhere...

I guarantee you there's a project manager at Disney who just lost layers of skin over this.

 

[rteetz]

I think they were surprised. Which may be a sign of some poor project management, but we don't really know enough to judge that.

Stuff like this is supposed to get caught earlier in the process. But this is a pretty ambitious show with a lot of elements and I'm not sure how they would test it properly without floating it all on a lake somewhere...

I guarantee you there's a project manager at Disney who just lost layers of skin over this.

I agree 100%

 

[lockedoutlogic]

I think they were surprised. Which may be a sign of some poor project management, but we don't really know enough to judge that.

Stuff like this is supposed to get caught earlier in the process. But this is a pretty ambitious show with a lot of elements and I'm not sure how they would test it properly without floating it all on a lake somewhere...

I guarantee you there's a project manager at Disney who just lost layers of skin over this.

They had similar problems with illuminations...

Blow ups in the tubes...angles off...sunk the globe

You know - the usual

 

[shanethesaint88]

This sucks for the people who had trips planned around this. But i would caution never to schedule a trip around one show or attraction, if not for this very reason. However, I hope this is solved sooner rather than later. I wonder what kind of issues they are having. Seems significant since they cant put a new opening date on it.

 

[dlavender]

It's hard to place blame on a project manager, even though its easy to do so from afar.

I've got a buddy who does this for Marriott. It's all on schedule until you discover a bald eagle's nest in the middle of your land.......

 

[JaxDad]

It's hard to place blame on a project manager, even though its easy to do so from afar.

I've got a buddy who does this for Marriott. It's all on schedule until you discover a bald eagle's nest in the middle of your land.......

ALWAYS blame the Project Manager! Then watch him/her try to blame someone else on the team (and see how good the documentation is)...

PMBOK 101

:-D

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

ALWAYS blame the Project Manager! Then watch him/her try to blame someone else on the team (and see how good the documentation is)...

PMBOK 101

:-D

And trust me it is firmware, not hardware.

 

[Eoghann]

It's hard to place blame on a project manager, even though its easy to do so from afar.

I've got a buddy who does this for Marriott. It's all on schedule until you discover a bald eagle's nest in the middle of your land.......

Well by definition it's the PM's responsibility, goes with the title. Whether they actually did anything wrong is another matter. Some things can be predicted, some things can't.

It's not an easy job, but they generally get paid well for it.

 

[JaxDad]

"And don't forget my footnote in the last monthly report that we were having some problems with the Flux Capacitor and it could cause a delay!"

 

[LittleDreamer]

I'm curious how they've run into such large problems so late in the project.

Consider that most attractions at theme parks open in a safe but not finished state. Most of this has to do with balancing the control systems with real world conditions. For Rivers of Light I assume most of the barges are going to be unmanned. I suspect factors such as wind or random imperfections in their controls programming are probably causing this delay. I doubt the water screens or projection tech are causing issues because they have plenty of experience dealing with those. So if it is the barges control then a few more weeks of testing and tweaking may be needed.

As for B mode the barges do have on board manual controls but that means also training a staff to drive them during the show.

 

[beer dave]

That is an interesting theory. But it is not based in any reality.

As my engineer husband likes to say, "It takes nine months for a woman to have a baby. Nine women can't do it in a month."

Throwing more people at it isn't always the solution. Sometimes it simply takes more time.

Had to reply-- "liking" this isn't good enough.

 

[jaxonp]

Hearing all these things being delayed, and cut, and with how Shanghai is going makes me want to sell my Disney Stock. I don't understand how Disney is struggling... The management should be ashamed.