Secret of Spinnaker's Success | 20 Jul 2005 |
Spinnaker Tower, Britain’s visionary new landmark soaring 170 metres up into the sky at the entrance to Portsmouth harbour, is set to have its official opening in Summer 2005, an event, which the client Portsmouth City Council say will make international engineering news. The tower partially funded by the Millennium Commission is part of the £38M “Renaissance of Portsmouth Harbour” project.
At the heart of this project is the stunning 170m tower, which the BBC’s Engineering Solutions programme described as one of the most spectacular design projects of the decade, is a steel framework produced by Angle Ring, Britain’s foremost specialist in the manufacture of curved steel and metal sections for the construction and engineering industries.
The unique shape of the structure, its proximity to the busy Gunwharf Quays tourist and shopping centre at its foot, and the tiny base on which the tower had to be built, all created extraordinary design and construction challenges for the main contractor Mowlem plc and their steelwork contractors Butterly Engineering Ltd, which required the use of exceptional building materials and high levels of expertise from the construction team.
Paul Middleton, Marketing Manager for Angle Ring, said: “With shops and restaurants just 10m away and boats berthing around its seaward side, the tower’s structure had to take into account extra hazards such as high winds blowing in from across the Channel and the possibility of a vessel hitting the tower’s base. The framework had to be curved to accommodate the elegant design, but also had to be super-strong”.
“The steel frame was assembled on a platform just 50m by 30m out in the sea, but because of the very specialist nature of the metal bending skills and capabilities which Angle Ring has, and with the many other architecturally unusual construction projects we have been involved in worldwide, we were able to handle the Spinnaker Tower’s core framework without any undue problems.”
The tower’s stunning steel sail, stretching 120m and weighing 1100 tonnes, is already a shining white beacon on the coastline, the first British landmark to be seen by millions of visitors as they approach Portsmouth on ferries from the continent, and which offers a ‘welcome home’ to Royal Navy ships as they enter the historic harbour.
Mr Middleton said: “With Spinnaker Tower already being compared to the Sydney Opera House for its soaring design, its construction and its strong seafaring imagery, we are proud to have provided its heart.”
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