The Brace Rack operation involved the assembly or jointing of the tubular sections for leg and brace components, which typically formed Jacket and Deck structural framing. The assembled lengths would comprise of tubular sections manufactured within the Pipemill which were then transferred to the Brace Rack for further jointing to form the complete or required length of assembly. Similar in operation to the Pile Rack the welding of the assembled joints was carried out using rail mounted welding carriages straddling a rotator and tubular handling arrangement which provided control of the external welding process. Handling of material on the Brace Rack was primarily carried out by a pair of rail mounted gantry cranes. Prior to establishing the Coping Shop the end profiling of brace tubulars was also carried out on the Brace Rack using hand-made card templates to provide a basis for guidance of the flame cutting machine.
