By the mid-nineteenth century concrete was being explored by engineers for use in maritime structures, the most well known being Bindon Blood Stoney’s radical use of precast concrete quay wall elements in the extension of the north quay in Dublin in the 1860s. Though quite unlike what would be understood as concrete today, this experiment nevertheless galvanized the interest of engineers across Ireland and Britain, leading to a seismic shift in the accepted constructive techniques for harbour structures.
