An innovative ‘flat-pack’ wharf: overcoming construction challenges in Antarctica Available to Purchase

A new longer and deeper wharf was completed in 2020 for the UK’s largest Antarctic research station. The £40 million structure replaced the life-expired wharf at Rothera Point on Adelaide Island and enables the station to accommodate British Antarctic Survey’s new polar research and supply vessel RRS Sir David Attenborough. Design and construction at this remote and environmentally extreme location presented many challenges, leading to the development of an innovative ‘flat-pack’ modular solution. This paper describes how the new 74 m long wharf was designed, manufactured, delivered and built in just two short austral summers.