Heads scratched as noise from the Curragh roof resurfaces

The Curragh’s chief executive has said the noise emanating from the roof of the stand during Saturday’s Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby meeting was as bad as he’s ever heard it.

A loud 'whirring' sound apparently provoked by a strong wind meeting perforations in the state of the art copper roof of the Aga Khan Stand first came to the fore last year when the new €81.2 million Curragh revamp was officially opened during Guineas weekend.

Although officials at Irish racing’s HQ predicted the matter would be resolved later that year the issue returned with a vengeance on Saturday at the behind closed doors Derby meeting.

The sound provoked by wind hitting the underside of the roof was clearly audible on television coverage of the meeting. It could also be heard during Sunday's Pretty Polly Stakes fixture.

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Pat Keogh, appointed CEO at the Curragh last year, said that both the Sisk Group , which built the stand, and the London based architect, Grimshaw, that designed it are trying to find a solution to the problem.

“It is currently being dealt with by the design team and the builders and we are confident that we will find a solution.

“It varies depending on the direction and strength of the wind. Yesterday was as bad as I’ve ever heard it. The builders and the design team who designed the building they have got to find a solution. It’s their issue to resolve and they’ve committed to resolving it.

“They are looking at the possibilities to identify exactly what is causing it within the design and we are confident they will resolve it. It’s their obligation to do so,” Keogh said on Sunday.

He stressed that fixing it will not result in extra cost to the Curragh. The final cost of Irish racing’s biggest ever capital redevelopment was almost 25 per cent over what was initially budgeted.

“No, not at all. The Curragh has paid for the development and as you would have with any building project, if there are any issues with the building when it built, it is up to the builder and designer to give you what you paid for,” Keogh said.

The Curragh boss admitted it is “disappointing” the embarrassing issue still has to be resolved but expressed full confidence that it eventually will be.

“It is a unique structure. I’m not a developer at all. I want to have this finished. But if it was straightforward they would have dealt with it.

“If it was an issue that had cropped up before (elsewhere) I assume they wouldn’t have let it happen again but I don’t know the answer. It’s absolutely not as you’d want it but I’m confident it will be sorted,” Keogh said.

His predecessor at the Curragh, Derek McGrath, who oversaw the controversial redevelopment of the world-renowned track, said last year the noise only occurs in certain weather conditions.

“It’s a certain direction of wind, and a certain speed of wind, and what it does when it hit the surface. They seem to be the key factors,” he said a year ago.

“The source of the sound, it could be a whistle, it could be a vibration, it could be other movement across apertures, I don’t know, I’m not an expert.

“It’s not that we anticipate it will be particularly difficult. It’s just that when you ask someone to assess it, they want to find the right long-term solution. It’s taking a bit of time and rightly so. But it will be addressed,” McGrath added last June, a month before he left the post.