Bleriot Project

In May 2009 we were approached to tender on one of our more unusual job enquiries. Dover District council working with a local landscaping firm were in the process of building a new memorial to mark where Louis Bleriot, the first man to fly across the English Channel, had landed. Part of the plan for the new memorial consisted of a horse shoe shaped retaining wall made up of large Oak posts let into the ground standing side by side so as to hold back an earth bank.

We priced the job knowing there was a time pressure involved, as there was to be a big televised celebration at the memorial site marking the 100th anniversary of the flight.

On securing the contract we set about working on the timbers. Every post needed to be rebated down its length on two sides. This would total nearly one mile of cutting using hand held electric skill saws. Everyone involved worked flat out to make the deadline, and the project was completed in time for the centenary celebrations.