Cement Works Model construction

The Wilson Cement Works Exhibition opened at the Warkworth Museum on Nov 1st 2023 - sharing stories about the Wilson Cement Works and the impact it had on the history of the Warkworth township.

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This model of the Wilson Cement Works is a 3-D interpretation based on an existing architecture site plan, informative documents & journals, and visual information gleaned from historical photographs taken over time, from different viewpoints. The site was never static, it was constantly evolving. During its entire period of industrial activity (1866 - 1929) the products and the manufacturing processes underwent many shifts and changes. Improvements in production methods often required the installation of new machinery. Existing buildings were adapted and/or new buildings were constructed. Some notable structures became redundant e.g. the vertical cylindrical kilns - and were eventually removed.

 

The model of the Cement Works plant took 2 months to make. With only one blueprint of an early site plan (enlarged to scale), a more recent hand-drawn map, an isometric drawing of the ruins, plus a selection of historical photographs from different angles, the buildings were identified and then constructed one by one. 

First a maquette of each structure was made from paper/card. Once the template fitted together well, and the scale seemed accurate (based on photos and surrounding structures), each building was constructed using balsa wood and sandpaper for the roofs. 

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Model construction - Ursula Christel; Frame & wharf - John Tate; Steamboat - Peter