Work is under way on a multi-purpose cargo berth project at Port Canaveral that will also accommodate facilities for the growing commercial space industry.
Scheduled for completion in mid-2019, North Cargo Berth 8 (NCB8) on the port's north side will provide the infrastructure and capabilities to handle a growing portfolio of heavy and oversized cargo.
NCB8 is designed and engineered as a multimodal and intermodal berth that will provide flexible capacity and capability to accommodate more diverse commerce at the port.
Crews from Orion Marine Group are currently are installing 413 concrete relieving piles, each about 27 metres long. Once the piles have been placed, construction will start on a seawall with a concrete cap.
The 275-metre seawall and planned 30-metre pier extension will be capable of handling a 260-metre ship.
NCB8 will be constructed with a capacity of 9,765 kilograms per square metre, a necessary requirement for handling aerospace cargo and other heavy project cargo. The berth will be dredged to a depth of -11 metres.
Orion Marine Group was awarded a US$17.9 million-dollar contract earlier this year for construction of the bulkhead, seawall, relieving platform and dredging after the Canaveral Port Authority Board of Commissioners unanimously approved construction of NCB8 in January. Site work began in March.