Posted on December 11, 2018
A ship loaded with 4,500t of equipment by Bam Nuttall has been sent on a month-long journey to Antarctica, where it will be used for building a new wharf at Rothera Research Station.
The new wharf, being built over the next two Antarctic seasons, is set to provide berthing and unloading for a new polar research vessel called the RRS Sir David Attenborough.
Bam oversaw the loading of plant, 83 containers, permanent and temporary materials and 1,000t of steelwork onto the DS Wisconsin at Teesport in North Yorkshire.
The last of 83 containers was loaded onto the DS Wisconsin at Teesport before heading south to Antarctica.
The RRS Sir David Attenborough is expected to become operational in 2019.
Bam engineer and project manager Martha McGowan said: “We spent 10 days working with Transglobal, DS Multibulk and AV Dawson, and all of the cargo specialists said this was a one off for them in terms of the complexity of the cargo for stowage, how much was being shipped at once and the detailed bio-security checks.
“Now we are looking forward to being able to unload in Rothera and begin work deconstructing the old wharf, then building the new one.”
The redevelopment of the Rothera Research Station wharf is a project represents the undertaking of part of Bam’s agreement to help modernise British polar research facilities during a £100M partnership with research group British Antarctic Survey (BAS).
The seven to 10-year partnership was commissioned by the UK’s Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), and sees Bam Nuttall team up with European design consultants Sweco on project delivery. It is hoped the modernisation programme will help Britain remain at the forefront of climate, biodiversity and ocean research in the Polar regions.
Other Antarctic development projects will include modernising buildings and facilities at BAS stations in Signy (South Orkney Islands), Bird Island (South Georgia) and King Edward Point (South Georgia).
Source: New Civil Engineer
