17.04.2002

Denton Wharf Contract Award to John Mowlem by PLA

The contract to demolish the existing riverside facility and rebuild a new jetty at Denton Wharf, East Gravesend, has been awarded to Mowlem Marine, a division of John Mowlem and Company plc, by the Port of London Authority (PLA).

Demolition and removal of the existing jetty and cranes will start this week (15 April). It is expected that the entire contract will be completed by the end of the year. Part of the jetty was previously used by PLA as its maritime operational depot, while the remainder was used for handling commercial cargo by Thames Tideway Ltd.

The jetty was closed to all commercial operations, both those of the PLA and Thames Tideway, late in 2000 following an inspection which found the structure to be life-expired and unsuitable for continued use.

Designed by Charles Haswell and Partners as an operational facility, but also to accommodate 1000 tonne ships, work on the jetty will be carried out by Mowlem Marine from their base on the River Thames at Northfleet, Kent. Mowlem Marine submitted the lowest tender out of five international contractors who were invited to bid on a very tight timetable.

The new jetty will stand on pairs of large steel tubular piles with precast concrete crossbeams, precast pre-stressed concrete deck beams and an in-situ reinforced concrete deck. The area will be significantly reduced from the current size but will extend slightly further into the river.
A 70 tonne boat lift will be installed to enable the PLA’s craft to be lifted out of the water at high tide. An additional 40 tonne hydraulic ship's crane will also be provided at the jetty head, which will be sufficient to lift any of PLA's launches at any state of the tide, plus all operational equipment lifts.

Berthing facilities for the PLA's Marine Services craft and other PLA boats undergoing engineering repairs and servicing, will be provided at the new facility by using one of the former Tower Pier pontoons, in use in central London until the end of 1999.

Once commissioned, it is intended that opportunities will be sought to defray the costs through commercial use of the boat lifter and crane where appropriate on behalf of other river users.