The row over the design of the new Aquatics Centre deepened yesterday as the head of the National Sports Centre Trustees and a manufacturer dived into the controversy.

Trevor Tiffany, Chairman of the Board of Myrtha Pools USA, said he found it "very strange" he received no feedback on his presentation to the NSC Trustees and Sports Minister last year.

He said he did not even receive an acknowledgement from them of an invitation to visit the company's pools constructed for the FINA World Swimming Championships in Rome.

Sean Tucker, Chairman of the NSC Board of Trustees, meanwhile said, "no one was available to go at that time".

He also claimed a Myrtha pool would not be cheaper than the NSC's proposed concrete and tile design, and that the Myrtha stainless steel model would only rust away in Bermuda's climate.

The Bermuda Environmental and Sustainability Taskforce this week questioned why the NSC Trustees had not taken advice from the Bermuda Amateur Swimming Association (BASA) in the design of the new Aquatics Centre.

BASA has objected to a concrete and tile pool, arguing a Myrtha stainless steel polycarbonate-coated pool would be cheaper to build and more energy efficient.

Rather than the NSC's eight-lane pool with a diving well, BASA wants to see a ten-lane 50m pool with a separate eight-lane 25m pool for diving and other aquatics sports.

It argues having a diving pool situated in the main pool itself will add to running costs and disrupt swimming schedules.

In April 2008 BASA presented its master plan for the aquatics centre to the NSC Board of Trustees.

However, the NSC pursued the concrete and tile design and the first two phases of the outdoor aquatics centre have now been granted Planning permission.

Yesterday Mr. Tiffany also raised questions over the NSC route, saying: "Normally when someone is entertaining a project of this size they would be talking to people who have our facilities. But we've had no calls or visits, so I felt that was very strange.

"We invited the NSC Board, their architect consultant Bob Johnston and the Sports Minister to visit the pools we had built for the World Championships in Rome about a year ago, as we thought it would be a good idea for them to talk with people who have our facilities. But we didn't get a response."

He said Myrtha was first approached by BASA three years ago and made a site visit and prepared a cost analysis.

Last year he was then invited to Bermuda by the swimming organisation to make a presentation to the NSC Trustees and then Sports Minister El James.

Asked if he had received any feedback since, Mr. Tiffany said: "No, there was no feedback. I found that very strange. There was not even a phone call, nothing."

Mr. Tiffany is a former National Coach for the Canadian swimming team. He coached Canadian athletes through three Olympics, from 1984 to 1992.

He has worked with Myrtha Pools, an Italian company, for about 20 years. The company builds indoor and outdoor championship pools around the globe.

Mr. Tiffany yesterday insisted his company's stainless steel pools were "low maintenance" and did not rust.

"A Myrtha pool won't rust because it is not welded, it's a nuts and bolts, pre-engineered pool. It is bolted together rather than welded. The surface of the steel is also coated to protect it.

"The arguments I've heard against using stainless steel are not appropriate to our product. We have pools built on beaches and in all sorts of different atmospheric conditions."

The company is about to build an aquatics complex similar to the Bermuda model in Trinidad and Tobago.

"Our pools have a carbon footprint about 50 percent lower than traditional pools and whenever anyone is doing a LEED project, our product's energy efficiency helps them enormously," he said.

"We pre-manufacture the pool to whatever the architect's design is and then ship it with every nut and bolt. In Bermuda we would send four to six supervisors and local tradesmen would do the rest of the work."

Ian Gordon, head of BASA's subcommittee on the Aquatics Centre, said: "We've had major reservations about the design of the NSC pool and its shortcomings, one of which is having the diving within an eight-lane 50 m pool. Without a separate pool for diving or warming up, Bermuda will not be able to host any major regional games such as CAC (Central American and Caribbean Games), CARIFTA and the Pan American Games.

"You need a separate pool for synchronised swimming, diving and water polo at major events such as this.

"BASA is hopeful that we will still be able to sit down with the NSC Trustees and present our case. We have been trying to do that for some time.

"We have supporting documents for all the costs and technical layout. We've done due diligence on all sorts of things."

But Mr. Tucker of the NSC Trustees said last night: "We have written proof from our consultants and experts that our method of construction is better.

"We also have written proof from Myrtha that their pool would be no less expensive than a concrete and tile pool.

"BASA are saying Myrtha could build the design for $17 million but we asked Myrtha and they said they can't support that price.

"We have hundreds of pages of drawings and cost analyses from the individual contractors. And we have been advised by overseas independent engineers that our way is the best way."

He said the aquatics centre would be built using construction managers and hiring individual subcontractors and tradesmen. So far tenders have been advertised for the mechanical and electrical parts of the project.

"We're trying to get as many Bermudians as we can," said Mr. Tucker.

He said the pool and diving boards would cost a total of $15 million.

On the issue of a separate diving pool, he said: "There's not enough diving going on in Bermuda to justify it at this stage."

Mr. Tucker also claimed a stainless steel pool would rust.

"We've been strongly advised against a stainless steel pool in this Bermuda environment. Everything rusts in Bermuda," he said.

"Is there a similar environment somewhere else to Bermuda? I can't think of any place with as harsh an environment as we have here."

He said: "There's nothing wrong with Myrtha Pools but we disagree with the view of some people that a Myrtha pool would be cheaper."

Asked about Mr. Tiffany's invitation to visit Rome, Mr. Tucker said: "He never invited us. He spoke to our architect who passed the invitation on to us but no one was able to go at that time. It was around May last year."

Commenting on Mr. Tiffany's lack of feedback from the presentation, Mr. Tucker said: "I don't know. I wasn't a part of that presentation, I don't know."

As for a future meeting with BASA, he said: "We have no objection to meeting with BASA, we'll meet with them any time.

"I don't think this pool will be everyone's ideal solution but we have a certain amount of money to build it and we will build something which BASA and Bermuda will be proud of.

"It will meet FINA (Fédération Internationale de Natation) and international standards."

Sports and Environment Minister Glenn Blakeney said last night: "An eight-lane pool compared to a ten-lane pool is far more cost-effective and a traditional pool development is something which I'm quite satisfied with."