Ironbridge - Production of the Iron ribs for the BBC Timewatch programme

Firstly a base was laid down to cover the area of two of the ribs. The white bar coming from centre RHS is the radial pole for positioning the pattern equipment. The red pieces among the men are the pieces of patterns used. Segments of the rib were rammed with sand and then moved to form the next section of the mould.
The mould was 36 feet long with a cross section of the rib being 4.5" x 3".
The blue machine above the radial pole is the sand mixer. This mixer is computer controlled to allow resins and catalysts to be mixed with reclaimed sand. The temperature of the sand, ambient temperature and speed at which we require it to set are controlled automatically. The sand it produces is used to make the mould, into which we will pour the molten iron. It was imperative to have a flat bed as the iron like water would find its own level, if we were too high at one end the metal would overflow at the other and provide the BBC with a floor of metal.