Historic machinery which stood at the Port of Workington until recently have proven to be an asset to their new owners.

Two Nelcon cranes which formed part of Workington’s skyline from the early eighties were shipped off to Teesside earlier this month.

The cranes were sold and shipped to Teesport as they had become surplus to requirements in Workington.

However, they are set to become a key resource in Teesside’s flourishing ship repair facility.

The arrival of the 230-tonne cranes has been called a feat of engineering in itself. They were shipped 927 nautical miles to the Tees on the Terra Marique barge, removed from their positions and loaded using self-propelled modular transporters.

UK Docks restored the Tees facility to working order in 2014 following two years of hard work as it had lain derelict for a total of 30 years.

Director of UK Docks, Jonathan Wilson, said: “It is very satisfying to have had the cranes successfully transported and reassembled and we want to thank everyone involved for their expertise and professionalism.

"The move represents a seven-figure investment in our Teesside facility and one worth making as the docks continue to improve their working capacity.”

The Nelcon cranes are still emblazoned with ‘The Port of Workington’ and were fully refurbished in 2009.

Mr Wilson said: “New foundations and crane tracks have had to be installed to ensure their stability and with them being such sizeable constructions, a lot of care and engineering skill had to go into their deployment.

“But the effort is worth it because it will now give us two additional cranes with increased capacity operating alongside each other servicing both docks and that will make a major difference to our efficiency and speed in processing future contracts on the Tees.”