Fate Acquired Founded 1873 Defunct 1969 | ||
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Key people Sir William Arrol (Chairman) |
Sir William Arrol & Co. was a leading Scottish civil engineering business founded by William Arrol and based in Glasgow. It built some of the most famous bridges in the United Kingdom including the Forth Bridge and Tower Bridge in London.
Contents
Early history
The company was founded by William Arrol at Dunn Street in Dalmarnock in Glasgow in 1873. It later expanded to incorporate the Parkhead Crane Works in Nuneaton Street.
Bridges
Bridges built by the company include:
Cranes
Titanic
The company was contracted by Harland and Wolff Shipyard, Belfast, to construct a large gantry (known as the Arrol Gantry) for the construction of three new super-liners, one of which was called the RMS Titanic. Like the ships themselves, the gantry crane was one of the largest built at the time, comparing with transporter bridges in length, height and capability.
Hikitia
The company also built the crane for the Hikitia in 1926, which is thought to be the last fully operational self-propelled steam crane in the world.
Demise of the business
The company was acquired by Clarke Chapman in 1969 and the Dalmarnock Works were closed in 1986.