Building Works - Hoverport
- Ross Miller
- Location: London Road, Dover
- Registered: 17 Sep 2008
- Posts: 3,707
3 November 2010 15:0178279Anybody got any idea what the two octagonal towers are that are being built close to the edge of the slipway in the old Hoverport?"Dream as if you'll live forever. Live as if you'll die today." - James Dean
"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength,
While loving someone deeply gives you courage" - Laozi - 3 November 2010 17:5278327Ross, I done a thread and picture on this back in August I think, and did get a reply. I thought it was something exciting being built at last, but apparently not. Were you down there today? I was along the PoW pier early afternoon, and I was looking at it all. I didn`t get any picture`s this time though as I`d already covered it.Tell them that I came, and no one answered.
- 3 November 2010 20:1278340They are concrete bits being pre-cast for the repair works to the berth (7?) in the Eastern DocksBeen nice knowing you :)
- Ross Miller
- Location: London Road, Dover
- Registered: 17 Sep 2008
- Posts: 3,707
3 November 2010 22:5178372Thanks Paul
Colin I took a stroll along the POW this afternoon, watched the guys on one of the barges struggling to connect huge bits of kit up, one of which was dangling from the end of a crane. With the wind gusting the way it was they gave up after a while and decided to move the barge to a better position."Dream as if you'll live forever. Live as if you'll die today." - James Dean
"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength,
While loving someone deeply gives you courage" - Laozi - 4 November 2010 19:0178479The construction works are in respect of extending Pier E, which serves berth ED7, to accommodate the P&O newbuildings. The first of these, Spirit of Britain, is due to enter service in January with the Spirit of France to follow in September.
Currently the largest ferries operating from Dover are the 186 metre long 35,000 gross tonne DFDS trio and these fit in almost all the berths. The longest ferry is the long and thin (ex Superfast) SeaFrance Moliere at 204 metres and 30,000 gross tonnes.
The new vessels will be 213 metres long and 49,000 gross tonnes. They will normally use Pier F, which serves berths ED8 and ED9. These berths, and the associated passenger terminal, were opened not all that long ago by the Queen (together with the Sea Sports Centre) and I believe the pier was constructed to be long enough for any future ferries envisaged. A lot of work has been carried out on this pier in the last few months, not least the removal of an automatic mooring device which appears not to have worked satisfactorily. Pier E is being extended to furnish an alternative berth.
The port has been the customary hive of activity with this operation to install several piles off Pier F followed by a huge monopile on the end involving a fleet of crane barges and tugs, coincident with the operation to remove the wreck of the Spanish Prince by the Western Entrance. The piles are all in place now and the whopping great pile driver has been deposited on the Eastern Arm. The next operation will be to install the decking on top of the piles. I have seen the plans and seem to remember that the platform on top will be octagonal so parts for this are presumably what Ross has seen over at the Hoverport.
Conclusion of this work will see the Port of Dover able to handle the largest ferries envisaged. P&O describe their newbuildings as Dover-Max as they will be able to berth in up to 50 knot winds without the use of tugs and manage a turnaround within an hour. It should be added that the DFDS trio were built with jumboisation in mind should the trade warrant it so may also be of a similar size in future years.
There are a large collection of photos of the Pier E extension taking place on my fotopic site at :
http://shipsintheportofdover.fotopic.net/c1906836.html
Here is a small selection. First one shows one of the giant DFDS trio on Pier C, the piles going in at the end of Pier E, the ultra-modern passenger building and facilities on Pier F with a crane progressing works and one of the updated P&O Darwin twins on the berth, the truck parking reclamation area of recent years, and the new dock exit road.
The others show the piles and monopile being installed.
- Ross Miller
- Location: London Road, Dover
- Registered: 17 Sep 2008
- Posts: 3,707
4 November 2010 19:0578480Thanks Ed for the explanation"Dream as if you'll live forever. Live as if you'll die today." - James Dean
"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength,
While loving someone deeply gives you courage" - Laozi - 19 November 2010 03:0680752Progress since the last post has been slow due to the weather and there is still some way to go in driving the piles. The monopile itself has to be driven 25 metres into the seabed. Have included a cropped low-resolution image of the schematic as it is copyrighted.
- 19 November 2010 08:3780762Great stuff there Ed..star posts with excellent illustrative pictures.
The new ship due in January, well thats exciting news, and it will be fascinating to see it operate on a daily basis. I think they had some trouble fitting The Moilere in didnt they at the start of its operations, as you say its long sleek and fast. Despite the prevailing gloomy economic situation its still all optimism and full steam ahead for the ferry companies....as long as nobody mentions Port Privatisation
email: dover7@msn.com - Brian Dixon
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 23 Sep 2008
- Posts: 23,940
19 November 2010 12:1880766the moilere is nice inside to,clean,comfertable and invigerating.
- 29 January 2011 05:0790619Latest state of play with the extension to Pier E. They are adding the octagonal cladding around the monopile. Jack-up rig Octopus seen conducting the work. A crane barge called Atlantis has been helping with the heavy lifts from time to time, it is in one of the photos earlier in the thread, and was the source of the comments on the front page the other day speculating whether this was the start of T2!
- 24 March 2011 16:3198522Pier E extension today, looks nearly finished.
- 15 May 2011 14:59106356This is the finished article, part of the continuous rolling improvement programme as being discussed on the front page.
