Port & Harbour Maintenance

Three pairs of lock gates were recently refurbished by Nuttall John Martin at Liverpool's Gladstone Dock using a specially built limpet dam.

Constructed using modular steel sections and designed to be reversible so it can work on both gates of each pair, the 17.5m-long dam provided a dry environment for each gate's pintle (hinge pin) to be replaced once the gates were removed.

Work began in October last year, with the first two lock gates lifted out by the floating crane Mersey Mammoth and replaced by a reserve pair of gates. Both 450-tonne lock gates were then refurbished on the quayside and lifted back into position in January to replace the centre pair. The latter were then refurbished in March and reinstalled in place of the outer gates. And the old outer gates will now be given a quick lick of paint and stored away as a reserve pair for the next time maintenance is due.

Throughout the works, ships were redirected to an alternate, smaller dock, though vessels over 30,000dwt had to remain in the existing dock.

Article courtesy of Dredging & Port Construction (May 2007)

Further Info

For further information, contact Peter Bishop, Head of Public Relations at:
Edmund Nuttall Limited
St James House, Knoll Road, Camberley,
Surrey GU15 3XW
Tel: 01276 63484
Fax:01276 66060
E-Mail: peter.bishop@edmund-nuttall.co.uk