While in Cologne for a bike show, I happened across a lovely old clothing factory – I only had time to take a few pictures, sadly…
Industrial
BVT Surface Fleet
BVT is a merger between BAE Systems and VT Shipbuilding, formed in July 2008. BAE owned some shipyards in Glasgow – Govan and Scotstoun. VT was based in Portsmouth. They build and service naval vessels, including the new Type 45 Destroyers. Some of the buildings at the Scotstoun yard were being demolished, so I got in for a look before they were all gone.
This is what they looked like from the water, taken three weeks before:
Howden Engineering Works
Howden’s Engineering Works in Scotland Street, Glasgow, are next to the Mackintosh-designed Scotland Street School. Howden is now a huge company, but this is where they started, building turbines and various other heavy engineering. Some of the last things built at Scotland Street were the tunneling machines for the Channel Tunnel.
The first of the large sheds:
Ballantine’s Distillery
Ballantine’s distillery dominated the town of Dumbarton for over 60 years before being mothballed in 2002, but when Allied Distillers was taken over by Pernod Ricard in 2005, the site was earmarked for “redevelopment”. When I visited, only the main tower remained standing.
Rockvilla Mushroom Factory and School
Right next to the Spier’s Wharf branch of the Forth & Clyde Canal stands this rather ugly building – it’s been a very visible landmark just to the north of Glasgow city centre for as long as I can remember. Rockvilla is, as it sounds, an enormous rock – Possil road tunnels through it and under the canal, and there used to be a school perched on the rock, but all that remains of that is the boy’s and girl’s entrances which spiral up through the rock.
This building was once a bonded warehouse, but later it was used for growing mushrooms – hence the bricked-up lower windows. It’s most interesting for the fantastic views.
