Report - Autovon Exchange Mast – Kesgrave – October 2020

[mockney reject]

Autovon Exchange Mast – Kesgrave – October 2020


The History

There’s not much history to be found regarding the actual mast itself. What I can tell you is that it is 160 feet tall and it was used for transmitting messages under the name Autovon.

Autovon, stands for Automatic Voice Network, it was an American military phone system built in 1963 to survive nuclear attacks.

Autovon was first used in America, then, in the mid 70’s, was installed in England, Asia, the Middle East, and Panama.

Today it is unused, succeeded in the 80’s by the Defence Switched Network. Part of the site is completely sealed, part of the site is trashed and another part is an aviation museum.

Although some might say it’s the home of a “bunker”


The Explore

Just one of those places we kept driving by on our way around the sunny roads of Suffolk.

“We should climb that one day”

“Yeah”

“Why not now?

And that ladies and gentlemen is pretty much how it happened

Once over the fence and through the various kinds of “spikey bastard” brambles we found ourselves at the foot of the mast.

Then up we went

 

[Scoobysrt]

Still magnificent structures when you see all the iron work and the complexity of it.
I can't remember the name if the guy who came up with that design of lattice work but it revolutionised masts.

 

[Snowhead]

I can't remember the name if the guy who came up with that design of lattice work but it revolutionised masts.

Eiffel (of the tower) was a pioneer of it but I don't think he came up with the original concept.
Possibly DaVinci, although he probably pinched (perfected) the idea from someone else earlier.

 

[Bikin Glynn]

Thats pretty cool, never done a mast but it kinda appeals

 

[Airfix]

Great photos, gave me vertigo :

 

[Scoobysrt]

The first standardised comminucation towers i think were designed by a Milliken Brothers and as usual in those times his was the winning design of many entries/attempts of an ongoing 'race'.

Gustave Eiffel also involved with the statue of liberty and previously became well known for his bridge designs was known for expanding/using other peoples ideas, he wasn't the originator of lattice work towers.

Da vinci although credited by most with inventing a lot of things actually didn't, he mostly took existing ideas and got them to designs that could work which is seem as inventing but they weren't his ideas, although admittedly its the same as someone saying how about making something that lifted an object from there to here by winding a handle, he would design a crane. He didn't invent the clock for example which is a common misconception but rather made it accurate.

Filippo Brunelleschi is credited as being one of the earliest architecture/engineering designers and it may very well have been him who brought lattice works to the masses but I think it goes earlier than that.

However I was more meaning the design methods used today, I watched a documentary on history once where they went through it but i can't remember the guys name, he took the exiting metal lattice work tower designs that were heavy and could only go so tall because they always ended up at a point (I think) to a design that could be built in a modular fashion, stay strong and use less material and as such lighter. Im pretty sure it was 19th century and not earlier.

The pictures on this report are a perfect example, you can see tiers, each one constructed the same, you could take any segment and it would have legs and a top and go quite high on that size without needing to be a pyramid shape.
Previously such towers were a single entity designed to be that height from the start and the higher they were the bigger the base had to be.

I'll see if I can do some research and find out.

 

[Seffy]

Luvs a good mast I do !