A giant banner has been installed across Battersea Power Station to raise awareness of the chimney rebuild programme.
The 100m long sign, on the western side of the iconic power station, aims to highlight the work being undertaken to replace the chimneys.
The chimneys have to be knocked down and rebuilt by 2016 because the 103-metre towers are deemed a danger to the public.
The process will start later this month on the South West chimney which will involve a circular rig slowly ‘munching’ its way down the chimney from the top, with debris funnelled down a chute in the centre of the chimney.
The chimney will be rebuilt from the bottom using the same materials as the original.
It is expected to take five months to dismantle the chimney and six months to fully rebuild it to its 50m height.
While the first chimney is being rebuilt the Battersea Power Station Development Company (BPSDC) will simultaneously dismantling the three other chimneys so the power station is never left without a chimney.
CGI image of how the building is expected to look
All four chimneys are expected to be rebuilt by early 2016.
The chimneys will even be the same colour as paint scrapings have been taken to ensure the new chimneys will be visually identical to the original chimneys when they were built.
However, they will have steel reinforcements in the concrete to protect their longevity.
Philip Gullett, chief operating officer at BPSDC, commented: “The four iconic chimneys are not only one of the most distinctive features of the London skyline, they are the very DNA of this historical building.
Inside the derelict power station
“After years of surveys, testing and consultation with English Heritage and London Borough of Wandsworth it has been agreed that the solution is to carefully dismantle and rebuild all four chimneys.
The station is being turned into luxury apartments
“The sooner we start this important part of the restoration work, the sooner all four chimneys will be reinstated and, in the meantime, we want to make sure that all those who care about this fantastic building are aware of what we are doing and why we are doing it.”
BPSDC have launched The Placebook: Battersea Power Station which lays out their strategic thinking behind the power station’s redevelopment.
Its release was all part of the 2014 London Festival of Architecture on June 10. To order a copy of the book visit batterseapowerstation.co.uk.
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