A new CEMEX UK conveyor system will improve the handling of water-borne building materials and support efforts to take traffic off the roads. Liam McLoughlin reports.
The Port of London Authority (PLA) is backing a new conveyor system at
As part of its recently launched Investment Plan targeting greater river use, the PLA is providing over £3million for the installation.
CEMEX UK Marine director Laurence Dagley says that London needs approximately 10million tonnes of sand, gravel and crushed rock every year to build, maintain and improve housing, buildings and infrastructure.
“The use of water to transport building materials to the heart of the city reduces the need for long distance lorry movements, with every dredger reducing the need for 250 lorries on our busy roads,” he adds.
CEMEX UK Marine dredgers bring sand and gravel from the North Sea and other off-shore locations into three wharves along the Thames including Northfleet, primarily for use in the London construction market. The new conveyor will improve the discharge performance of the material from the dredger onto the Northfleet site for processing. The site currently handles approximately 500,000tonnes of material a year.
The tidal Thames is one of the UK’s busiest waterways and is home to the country’s second biggest port by tonnage of goods handled.
