8 PONTOONS
Refurbishment at UK’s busiest lifeboat station
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major refurbishment project on the Royal National Lifeboat Institution’s (RNLI) busiest station was completed earlier this year by Walcon Marine. Located on the North side of the River Thames in central London, RNLI Tower not only handles over 500 call-outs each year, it is also one of the RNLI’s few stations that are afloat. As such, it has to contend with a tidal range of six metres and the challenges that come with being on what is by far the UK’s busiest inland waterway. The works undertaken by Walcon involved the fabrication and installation of two 20 metre aluminium bridges plus a ramp for disabled access that together connect the platform to the Embankment towpath behind. The ramp was a bespoke project
involving detailed design plus high precision manufacture to ensure fast and smooth passages for injured persons being taken ashore on wheeled stretchers en route to hospital. The full scope of the project
required the replacement of a single steel bridge, which had reached the end of its life. However, as there are two landing recesses built into the embankment wall, it was decided that two aluminium bridges should be installed to give
redundancy in the event of one or the other requiring maintenance. The upstream bridge was fitted first into the vacant opening. The original bridge was then removed and the new downstream bridge installed in its place. The on site assembly and installation works, overseen by infrastructure specialist Herbosch Kiere NV, took four weeks to complete, with the station fully operational throughout. The entire project was a major logistical challenge as the new structures were delivered by road to Tilbury and then taken up the Thames by crane barge to the site in the heart of London, where the old bridge was lifted out and new ones lowered into position. Walcon Marine Ltd sales@walconmarine.com www.walconmarine.com
Danish harbour installs floating concrete docks Less than 65 km West of Copenhagen, Roskilde Fjord is a scenic part of Denmark, which is well-known for its natural beauty and is recognised as a boating paradise. Roskilde Havn
MARINA INDUSTRY • JUNE 2022
(harbour) recently completed an ambitious improvement project with the addition of 240 metres of state-of-the-art SF Marina floating concrete docks. The expansion accommodates over
40 vessels and provides wavedampening protection to the marina. SF Marina floating concrete docks are virtually unsinkable. Thick-walled and steel-reinforced, they regularly overcome violent weather, so the occasional bump from a berth-holder’s craft offers little chance of damaging them. The individual pontoons at Roskilde Havn are connected via an advanced energy-absorbing coupling system and are secured to the seabed with 27 metre long x 50 cm wide external piles. Installed by SF Pontona ApS of Denmark, the Roskilde Havn layout includes a 105 metre long x 3 metre wide angled dock and walkway comprising six SF1024 pontoons that add 12 berths. This terminates at the centre of a straight 135 metre long x 6
metre wide dock section of seven SF1040 pontoons, with space for an additional 30 boats. All finger piers are ten metres in length to serve a wide range of vessel lengths. The fjord-side of the large portion can accommodate larger vessels parallel to the dock. Connected to an older portion of the marina is a new angled 30 metre long x 2 metre wide segment that dampens incoming wave action. Founded in 1972, Roskilde Havn provides 310 on-water berths and a marine service facility. It hosts sailing and rowing clubs, and a Viking ship museum. The fjord itself is a Danish National Park, with 30 islands and inlets to explore. SF Marina info@sfmarina.com www.sfmarina.com
