The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1909-01-12


tide at Pearl >Harbor are such that the
largest battleship may enter the dock
at any stage of the tide. Concrete will
be used throughout in the walls and
floor. Granite lining will be used only
at the caisson seats and coping at
entrance and material slides. The con-
ditions for the use of concrete are be-
lieved to be more favorable at Pearl
Harbor than at any point in the United
States on account of the equable climate
and absence of frost.
Level and Clear Floor.
"5. A marked improvement over
all previous docks has been developed |
in connection with the dock for Pearl |
Harbor, in that the working floor viii |
be absolutely level from end to end,
giving level working surface, free
from the usual distractions, such as
bilge block slides, docking keel block
bearers, bilge block chains, temporary
electric wires, temporary compressed
air lines. etc. The attempt has been
made many times previously to accom-.
plish this object, but never with suc.
cess. 1t has been accomplished in this
case by an entirely new design for
bilge block bearers and docking keel
block bearers. The bearers are made
in the shape of castiron boxes EN-.
bedded in the dock floor with top
flush with the concrete. The wide
flanges on the top form the bearers for
the keel blocks and bilge blocks and a
slot is provided through the top of the
box to take the anchor bolts for keel
blocks and the holding-down device for
the bilge blocks. The castiron box is
large enough also to take the chains
for the hauling of bilge blocks across
the floor of the dock while a ship is
being placed. Another most important
function of the castiron boxes is to
drain the floor. The water passes
through the slots and flows along the
| sloping bottom of the boxes and is
discharged into four large longitudinal
| subfloor drains These, in turn, carry
the water into the drainage chambers
near the middle of the dock. The
inner dock and outer dock each have
an Independent system of longitudinal
drains and drainage chamber. Three
! 54-inch pipes with gate valves pass
from each drainage chamber into
common wet chamber outside of the
drydock structure. The four 54-inch
suction pipes from the pump well,
which is close by, open into the wet
chamber, thus removing water which
| flows in from either one or both of
the drydock. The slots, castiroa
boxes and drains have been So design
| ed that the velocity of water being
pumped will be sufficient to remove
any silt which may have collected.
''6. The system of castiron boxes
with slots and longitudinal floor drains
will also be used for filing the dock.
Four filing culverts, two on each side
of the drydock, having inlets in the
quay wall at the entrance of the dock,
are connected with the longitudinal
drains in the inner and outer docks in
such manner that either dock may
be filed Independently of the other.
The water will be discharged into the
dock body through the slots, having
thus an upward velocity on entering
and being uniformly distributed over
the entire floor. This is much supe-
rior to having the water enter at the
ends or sides with velocity sufficient
to cause harmful movements of the
ship.
Sixteen Flights of Stairs.
"7. Sixteen flights of stairs extend
from the coping to the floor. This
number is liberal in order that the
workmen may enter and leave the dry
dock with expedition. An idea of the
depth of the dock is gained from the
fact that it will take sixty-fve steps
| to go from the floor to the coping,
The stairways have been so designed
that the affairs are not interrupted, but
pass around the stairs with slightly
reduced width. The design is similar
to that previously used in drydock No.
2 at Philadelphia.
"S. There will be $50 keel blocks
extending from the entrance to the
head of the drydock. These are for
the purpose of carrying the weight of
the ship when the dock is pumped
Two lines of docking keel blocks will
extend on either side of these to take
the weight of turrets, ETC., of battle
ships.
"9. The pump well will be located
near the middle of the dock and about
thirty feet away. 1t will be of octag-
onal shape and contain four 54-ineh
pumps. In addition to the four sue
ton pipes which lead to the wet cham,
Der of the dock to be built at the
present time, short ends of pipe will
be built into the masonry SO that q
second drydock may be pumped by
means of the same pumps. The dis.
charge from the pumps will be carried
in discharge culvert leading to the
bay. The general dimensions of the
drydock will be as follows: Overall
length, 1895 feet; width between cop
ing, 100 feet; width overall, 140 feet;
depth at sill, at mean high water, 80
feet; depth over keel blocks, at mean
high water, 32 feet inches.
An Encircling Railroad.
$40. A track for a Acton crane
will be built around the drydock struc
ture with the inner rail close to the
edge of the coping The total length
of rail in this track will be within a
few feet of one mile.
"11. The construction of the dock
will necessitate the disposal of 100000
cubic yards of material. This will be
utilized in filing some of the low
areas on the station property. The
depth Of the excavation will be 5S.t
feet. This is more than the height Of
| an ordinary' four-storv huildinp The