Huge Glasgow ‘frigate factory’ planning permission granted

Planning permission has been granted for a huge new shipbuilding hall at the BAE Systems site in Govan, with work on the first ship to be built in the facility starting in 2024.

The wet basin at Govan will now be drained and a covered build hall will be constructed on the site, allowing for later Type 26 frigates to be built indoors.

It is hoped that Type 26 ships 4 to 8 will be built in this facility, with the first three being put together outdoors.

HMS Glasgow is is shown below when she was being put together on the hard standing, adjacent to the wet basin area after she was built in sections in the existing build hall and joined together.

The new drydock/build hall would allow ships to be built indoors, protecting them against the elements and would form part of an effort to modernise the yard to make it more attractive to future orders.

Project Background

In their Govan Assembly Hall planning consultation, BAE say that at present, full ships longer than 75 metres cannot be constructed undercover at Govan, something which is a major constraint to their business.

Shown below is the current arrangement, the ‘SBOH’ is the facility in which ship hull sections are currently built before being moved outside and welded together.

According to the consultation:

“As such, BAE Systems intends to develop a new ship building hall which is capable of meeting the United Kingdom’s ship building requirements. This necessitates the construction of a new ship building facility in Govan, one that will allow for at least two ships to be built simultaneously under cover and in single hull format.

“The opportunity to provide a new modern ship building hall of this nature would allow BAE Systems to adopt improved shipbuilding techniques together with improved construction access and state of the art, dedicated, on-site office and amenities accommodation.”

The roof

One interesting detail that has emerged from the planning application process, in my view at least, is that Glasgow City Council requested that the option of integrating a green roof into the current Wet Basin Hall design be explored. It is understood, however, that the architects explored this alongside BAE and the wider design team but through further review and assessment, collectively determined this is not viable within the parameters of the current design.

They explain why, saying that the purpose of the building didn’t lend itself to such a feature and, more importantly, adding the feature would have a “fundamental impact” on delivery dates for the new frigates.

“Due to the scale, span and height of the building, the requirement to free span over these ships is significant and maintaining the lightness of the roof is imperative to the design. Any amendment to the roof that leads to an increase in water retention and increased loading requirements will have a direct material effect on the structural design. This in turn changes the structural frame depths and weights, including increased path loads into the building plinth and foundation design. This will inevitably have a direct impact on the substructure and baring capacity of the foundation design.

These factors will have a fundamental impact on the programme delivery, as stage 4 design which is currently being completed will require a full redesign. If instructed at this late stage, it will result in a delay to concluding the design of the building which will have a direct impact on the construction commencement date.  This delay in commencement and completion of the scheme will fail to meet the MOD requirements to build the first ship under cover by 2024 and thus significantly impact the viability of the scheme.”

The Ship Building Hall and Supporting Accommodation

The firm state that the shipbuilding hall will occupy part of the existing shipyard wet basin and will provide accommodation to allow for at least two ships to be built simultaneously under cover and in single hull format.

In terms of dimensions, the proposed shipbuilding hall will be approximately 81 metres wide, 170 metres long and 49 metres high to the building ridge line.

This represents a massive expansion of capabilities and capacity at the yard, as let’s not forget, the original build hall will still be available for use.