TOP TEAM
"The dry berth structure built after World War II turned out not to have been built according to the of icial records of its construction"
spellbound when they enter the dry berth and see the suspended ship.
Why did the costs rise so much? There were many unforeseen fac- tors. For instance, when we removed the concrete in the ship’s bilges, the wrought iron frames were so badly cor- roded that we had to add steel to the ship to be able to put it back together again. That was an unexpected blow. We also had huge problems in the
ground – the dry berth structure built just after World War II turned out not to have been built according to the offi cial records of its construction. We had to grout the entire structure, rebuild the foundations and recast the entire top of the dry berth. All those things added hugely to our costs and created signifi cant delays.
What are your aims for the Cutty Sark over the next year or two? Our initial aim is to achieve our busi- ness objectives and ensure the ship is properly maintained and reserves are built up to safeguard her future. The Trust will also be looking at ways to enhance the interpretation offer through a rolling programme of improve- ment works and the development of diverse learning and family activities. We’ll continue to work closely with our patrons and trading partners. It is also conceivable the Trust will undertake fur- ther capital works to augment facilities. Royal Museums Greenwich has taken over operational responsibil- ity, although ownership of Cutty Sark remains with the Trust. All estab- lishment staff have transferred to Royal Museums Greenwich including myself, where I’ll sit on the Museums Executive Board with directorial responsibility for Cutty Sark.
46 Chris Nash
Partner, Grimshaw
How and when did you get involved with the restoration of the Cutty Sark? We got involved in the project in 2004.
Note that it’s a conservation project – the task was to halt the decline of the historic original fabric of the Cutty Sark, rather than restore her to original condition – an important distinction. The Cutty Sark Trust wrote to us out of the blue, having recognised other exciting public projects we’ve been architects for, such as the Eden Project in Cornwall. While we had no previous experience of conservation of a historic ship – these projects are
Read Leisure Management online
leisuremanagement.co.uk/digital
rare anyway, the sin- gular recent examples are SS Great Britain in Bristol, and Mary Rose in Portsmouth – we have worked with Grade 1-listed historic build- ings before.
Why do you think you were chosen, and what attracted you to the project?
The Cutty Sark project required a good application to the Heritage Lottery Fund in a competitive fi eld for grants, and it was recognised by the Cutty Sark Trust that our experience and rep- utation could help with this. It also helped immensely to fi nd an immediate rapport between the client, Richard Doughty, and myself. I have a great enthusiasm for sailing ships and for London, and I personally wanted to do this project very much.
ISSUE 3 2012 © cybertrek 2012
Visitors can explore the hold where cargo was stored
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76