To be involved in this Heritage project was a change from most of our recent work in the port which was in providing security and safety fencing to the extensive changes to the working of the port by the demands of Brexit.
Client Vision
This project, designed to preserve and develop the history of the Port by a ‘distributed museum’ of attractions across the Dublin docklands and into The Port. It involves the preserving and opening to the public of historic buildings from the beginnings of the Ports development. The Client wanted an area reflecting the significance of the project and the era of the preserved features which date in many cases to the Ports foundation in 1707.
Key Challenges
The special challenge of this project was the age and physical condition of many of the areas we were working on,especially the Old Graving Dock built c.1910. Approximately fifteen metres deep,with steeply sloping walls and flights of concrete steps to both sides which are now part of Heritage tours of the Port. Appropriate hand railing to prevent accidents to the public were required.The design of The large Sliding Entrance Gates involved onsite and offsite meetings with the designers to ensure that the design was compatible with the demands of The Hot Dip Galvanising Process which uses high temperature baths of molten zinc, the process can distort the fabricated item if critical design requirements are not followed. Careful liaison with Dublin Ports regular automation specialists was necessary in order for the design to accommodate the specific motors and access control they were installing....
Overcoming The Challenges
The designs of Gates and Railings required consultation and design changes with the Client and Professional team until the structural and safety considerations were successfully solved.This is an example of where our design and manufacturing team worked with the client on the design to suit the requirements of their project utilising our expertise in manufacturing, use of the Galvanising Process and the requirements of Gate Automation.Our installation department worked closely with The main contractor,client and associated other sub contractors.to ensure a co-ordinated programme and safe working environment.
Featured Products
This particular element involved as well as the custom designed Pedestrian Handrails the installation of Decorative Security Railings involving 20mm Round Bar Railings,80 x 12mm Flat Bar Railings and 2 sliding gates one of them a formidable,automated gate to the entrance.This gate is 6645mm wide x 3400mm high and weighs 2815kgs.The second gate which is manually operated is 20mm bar infilled 4075 mm high x 4000mm wide They were all manufactured in our Inchicore works and subsequently Galvanised and Powder Coated in Black Plasgalv®. finish. .
Successful Outcomes
The Port heritage tour is now a popular addition to the tours on offer in Dublin and the Handrail design we developed for this project has now been utilised on other Projects.
