A major hot repair project at Watson Street Works has included a complete rebuild of the furnace checkerwork and both canals. In addition, the two month downtime has been used to upgrade the lehr end, make-machine and cutting systems, redesign the packing area, refurbish the batch plant silos and clean and repaint throughout the factory. "This has been a massive challenge," aid Operations Manager Anis Ahmed. "The hot repair itself was completed with the assistance of BP Engineering and Refractory Services, but all the other work has been implemented entirely by our in-site engineering and operations teams." The hot repair on the furnace began at the start of May with the furnace cooled to 1150 deg C. Unlike a standard float furnace, the Watson Street tank has two long canals feeding the two make-machines which produce the patterned glass and both these canals, together with the checkerwork of the furnace itself, were completely demolished and rebuilt with new materials. Glass making restarted at the beginning of July. Plant-wide, the work programme also included: Cleaning and relining one of the two 500/t sand silos, where accumulated rust had become a contamination threat for the low-iron glass that Watson Street now produces.
