History

Plant House (572): Then And Now

The Plant House was the enormous brick blockhouse situated near the centre of Pyestock, easily one of the largest buildings on the site. Inside its dark interior, the space was divided into a turbine hall, with valve bays either side, which lead to dark cubicles in which component and scale model testing took place. Unlike the Air House, the Plant House was largely self-contained, with both plant producing compression and suction, and the testing cubicles themselves. It was also designed to supply an air supply for Cell 1 & 2.

The entombed compressors (two Metropolitan Vickers machines and a Parsons Air-Bleed compressor) took up the majority of the floor space in the large turbine hall. Both the original photographer and I climbed the ladder next to the control room up to the roof of the turbine hall to get this elevated shot of the entire turbine hall.

The Plant House Metropolitan-Vickers machinery.

Elevated shot taken of the Plant House turbine hall. 03|03|07 © Simon Cornwell 2007

The original photographer was probably asked to photograph the plant in the turbine hall, which explains this view of the Parsons Air-Bleed compressor and its control panel (located in the walkway behind the machine). The only shot I could find from my archive included a more general view, taken looking across the northern valve bay towards the turbine hall. The same compressor can be seen in the distance.

The Parsons air bleed gas turbine.

The Parsons air bleed gas turbine as seen from across the north valve bay. 03|03|07 © Simon Cornwell 2007