Construction work to enhance the sailing facilities at Weymouth & Portland for 2012 is racing towards the finishing line, the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) announced today.

The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) and its contractors Dean & Dyball began construction work in March to enhance the existing sailing facilities with the construction of a new permanent 250m slipway and new race-boat parking, lifting and mooring facilities.

Construction work is now well over the halfway stage with 70,000 tonnes of Portland stone put in place to reclaim 18,000m2 of land in front of the sailing academy to form the new slipway. Work has also been completed on a 200m breakwater to protect the enhanced facilities, and work is well underway on a new pier offering two yacht lifting cranes, and a new pontoon to provide 70 berths for race-boats.

The progress means the project is expected to be completed in November, keeping Weymouth & Portland on track to be the first venue ready for the 2012 Games, delivering an early legacy of world-class facilities for elite athletes and the local community to use.

The construction work carried out so far at Weymouth & Portland has been delivered with an impressive safety record, with no reportable accidents on site, mirroring work on the Olympic Park construction site in east London where the ODA this month achieved another million hours without a reportable accident.

Together with the ODA’s enhancement works at Weymouth & Portland, Dean & Reddyhoff, developers for the South West Regional Development Agency (SWRDA), are also well underway on work on a new 560-berth commercial marina at Osprey Quay of which 250 berths will be used during the 2012 Games. The marina will include retail and industrial development bringing enormous social and economic regeneration
to the local area.

Image courtesy e-architect.co.uk