ABP Multidecks

ABP Multidecks was designed in mind of the lack of commercial car parks around the Port of Southampton

Challenge

Combining functionality with aesthetic appeal

In 2017, Calcinotto was appointed as the lead consultant to provide structural and civil services for contracts worth a combined total of £24.5 million.

This entailed delivering two multi-level car storage facilities at the Port of Southampton, and two new vehicle export terminals were delivered as part of a £50 million investment by Associated British Ports (ABP) in the Port of Southampton.

Solution

Prioritising safety and durability

The port handles exports worth £40 billion and is one of the busiest in the UK. Almost one million vehicles passed through the port in 2017, an increase of almost 10 percent on the year prior. Between them, decks six and seven can accommodate almost an additional 10,000 vehicles, and help to further extend car storage and handling facilities at the Port of Southampton. The Port of Southampton is the UK hub for automotive shipping by enabling leading British car manufacturers to reach global marketplaces.

The first facility, the Pacific Terminal was the sixth multi-deck facility at the port and was impressively handed over three weeks ahead of schedule. The seventh deck was completed four weeks early and just seven weeks after the completion of the Pacific Terminal.

There were some initial challenges in the construction of both terminals; The Pacific terminal was built over an existing abandoned dry dock which had been filled with material unsuitable for supporting any type of structure, piled foundations were used to support the new facility from the original dry dock. The site of the seventh terminal was targeted during World War Two, increasing the risk of potential unexploded ordinance. In order to keep these risks at a minimum, it was imperative that Calcinotto operated as cautiously as possible.