Graythorp, Graythorp, Hartlepool, UK, 1972 (b/w photo)

Contractor, Laing Pipelines Offshore; Photographer, John Laing and Son Ltd; A view of progress on preparing Graythorp for the construction of North Sea oil platforms, showing cranes at work in the dry dock In the early 1970s Laing Pipelines Offshore constructed the Graythorp fabrication yard and dry dock on the site of the old William Gray Shipyard. The company created a dry dock which was used for the construction of fixed platform North Sea drilling rigs for the BP North Sea Oil Project. The work carried out on site included dredging the dry dock and earthmoving with the aim of creating a very large dry dock 500 metres long and 250 metres deep, to be excavated to a depth of 8.4 metres below sea level and capable of holding a vessel or rig with a 8.5m draught.