Aggregates overseas
Marine aggregate dredging – Britannia Aggregates, Volker Dredging
Britannia Aggregates and Volker Dredging are two Brett joint venture companies concerned solely with the extraction of aggregates from the seabed.
Britannia Aggregates was formed in the late 1980s to relieve the increasing pressures being put on land resources, and ensure that there is a continuous supply of consistently high quality aggregates.
The Company owns and operates the £12 million 'A' class dredger, 'Britannia Beaver'. Custom built in Devon, the Beaver became operational in 1992 and is capable of dredging to a depth of 45 metres, and working some 360 days a year.
The Beaver delivers sand and gravel to Brett-owned wharves in the South East of England, and in addition, delivers to other customers outside the Brett Group both in England and other EC countries; markets the Company is actively developing.
Britannia Aggregates has extraction licences for extensive reserves in the Thames Estuary and, through Volker, has access to sand and gravel deposits in the North Sea and in the English Channel near to the Isle of Wight.
Both companies are continually prospecting for new reserves as it may take anything from five to eight years to obtain a new dredging licence. Echoing the environmental concerns which permeate the Brett Group, Britannia and Volker both rigorously observe all marine controls which monitor and regulate the effects dredging has on shorelines, fishing and marine life.
Granite Products, Jersey
Jersey based Granite Products has been operating a granite quarry since 1946. Robert Brett and Sons acquired a majority stake in the company in 1973 and it is now a wholly owned subsidiary.
Granite Products is its own biggest consumer of the raw material. The manufacture and supply of ready-mixed concrete together with the modern automatic block making plant and high quality pre-cast products for the local building and retail trades account for most of the granite quarried.
A fully equipped NAMAS accredited laboratory monitors consistency and quality of all manufactured products and membership of the QSRMC scheme ensures that the ready-mixed concrete meets the most exacting standards.