Designed to improve efficiency, enhance quality control, and meet higher levels of demand, Bellingham Marine Europe has opened the doors to its new production facility in the Polígono SKOL industrial area just outside Barcelona, Spain. The plant will serve as a casting production facility for the company’s Unifloat pontoons and will house offices for the production staff. The new facility replaces a smaller, temporary facility that was located within the city limits of Barcelona.
“With current large contracts to fulfill and increased demand anticipated for 2007, we needed a state-of-the-art facility with greater capacity” said Bellingham Marine Europe’s general manager Matthew Hardy. The new 1,600 square meter factory with 3,000 square meters of yard space provides ample capacity and an ideal environment for casting concrete.
Level floors and control of temperature and humidity are critical to achieving strength, durability, and crack resistance in concrete. The walls of the new facility have been foam insulated to assist in keeping the facility at a constant temperature. Specially constructed floors were designed for casting beds to ensure a level base with an accuracy of 3mm over the length of the pontoon moulds.
Strategically located alongside the main highway between Barcelona and France, the new location provides easy access into Europe and throughout the rest of Spain and is well placed to supply projects in emerging markets in North Africa. There are also a number of large Ports in Barcelona and neighboring provinces, which provide alternative options for transportation around the Mediterranean.
The ability to keep the new plant in close proximity to Barcelona was an important factor. The region offers a moderate climate and a central position within the Mediterranean. Bellingham Marine Europe has a strong network of suppliers in the area and a number of concrete plants are located nearby. In addition, Spain provides an opportunity for lower operational costs, access to innovative engineers who are knowledgeable in concrete, and access to a skilled labor force.
As the world’s leading marina design/build construction company, Bellingham Marine produces Unifloat saltwater systems, Unideck freshwater systems and Unistack dry storage systems for marinas worldwide.
Public Relations Contact: Bellingham Marine, P.O. Box 8, Bellingham, WA 98227; www.bellingham-marine.com.
Regional Contact: Bellingham Marine Europe Ltd, Calle Josep Pla 45, Local 1, 08019, Barcelona, España Tel: 93 356 1229 Fax: 93 356 1355
Unifloat, Unideck and Unistack are registered trademarks of Bellingham Marine.
