A new floating caisson will be created for the Sturrock Dry Dock operated by Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) in the Port of Cape Town. This will enable one of the biggest dry dock facilities in the Southern Hemisphere to double its productivity.
The new caisson is part of an overhaul that is taking place at the port’s ship repair facilities under South Africa’s Operation Phakisa programme. With this programme, ship building and ship repair have been identified as a strategic competence for the port.
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The caisson is a large steel gate structure that acts as a secondary seal and subdivides the dock. This enables the simultaneous docking of multiple commercial vessels within the facility. The old, defective caisson was not operating since December 2016.
Refurbishment of the old caisson covered a condition assessment and finite element analysis, along with stabilisation of the old caisson before the new one being introduced.
The first phase was completed between July and August 2018, and included the installation of special greenheart timber to seal water leaks around the old caisson. The second phase was completed in November 2018 and incorporated the replacement of shut off doors and three sinking tank valves, as well as the addition of ballast weights to make up for lost weight because of corrosion and blanking off valves that would not be used going forward.
Civil infrastructure at the Sturrock dock has also received concrete repairs and replacement of corroded tunnel piping. 29 capstans – rotating machines that help in pulling the vessels into position inside the dock – are being replaced in Cape Town, including the Sturrock Dry Dock, the Robinson Dry Dock and the Synchrolift.
In line with Operation Phakisa’s aim to fast track delivery, TNPA decided to execute the replacement of capstans at its dry docks.
Moreover, under operation Phakisa the port’s Robinson Dry Dock is also undergoing a major upgrade. While the Robinson Dry Dock’s floating caisson was recently refurbished, the intention is to replace this structure with a modern, fit-for-purpose caisson structure.
