With 2014 winding down, crews and companies are getting ready for the New Year's Eve Ball Drop outside of the Electric Tower.
The ball is currently at Indigo Productions, where it will remain for about one and a half more weeks. The ball is four feet in diameter, but it has enough light power to dazzle the eyes of thousands on New Year's Eve.
Employees at Indigo Productions have been checking the 160 pound ball the last few days.
"We test all the lamps," explains Joseph Romanowski, the Manager at Indigo Productions. "We make sure none of them got broken, make sure the wiring is still intact. Check the rigging for when they fly the ball, and then pack it back up and take it downtown for the test drop."
The test drop will take place shortly before New Year's Eve.
Romanowski explains the day of the ball drop, crews work from nine in the morning on December 31st to three in the morning on New Year's Day.
The actual ball drop at the Electric Tower is a huge task. The drop is not motorized. Eight people work together to make sure the ball hits the lowest level exactly when the clock strikes midnight.
"It takes eight people with a spotter on the ground, syncing the ball drop in New York City," explains Daniel Couch, the Director of Property Management at Iskalo Development. There will also be, "two people on the seventh floor manning the cables due to the wind down here in Buffalo, that way we keep the ball steady and straight."
There will also be people on top of the Electric Tower, coordinating with spotter and clocks.
An announcement on Thursday morning, emceed by 7 Eyewitness News anchor Joanna Pasceri, will focus on the upcoming New Year's Eve festivities.
