DESIGN OF THE THAMES BARRIER FOR MAINTENANCE

The Thames Barrier, which is designed to prevent abnormal tides from the North Sea flooding London, comprises a series of piers in the river with gate sill structures at bed level between them and with movable hates to close off the openings. The concrete piers house the machinery to drive and control the gates. This paper describes the project in broad terms with particular reference to the features relating to reliable operation and ease of maintenance.