Specialist Repairs for Heritage and Civil Infrastructure
Retain original material, restore structural integrity and protect historic character
When an irreplaceable cast-iron structure is cracked or damaged, replacement and hot work may not be appropriate. The cold Metalock repair process restores rigidity without introducing heat or distortion, helping to retain original material and appearance.
Metalock Engineering works with conservation bodies, engineers, contractors and asset owners on listed bridges, monuments, architectural ironwork and working heritage. Repairs can be completed on site or in our workshop, depending on the structure and project requirements.
Specialist Heritage and Civil Services
A complete repair and restoration service for historic structures, architectural features and machinery.
Cold Metalock Casting Repairs
- Cold mechanical repair of cracked or broken cast iron
- Repairs designed to retain original material and appearance
- Pressure-tight repairs where required
- In-situ or workshop-based delivery
Structural and Architectural Repairs
- Bridges, viaducts and aqueducts
- Columns, balustrades, pilasters, beams and copings
- Monuments, lamp posts and architectural ironwork
- Fixing locations and structural castings
Working Heritage
- Steam locomotives and traction engines
- Historic canal boats and vessels
- Vintage and veteran machinery
- On-site machining, surveys and condition assessments
Why Use a Cold Repair?
The Metalock process uses high-strength keys across the fracture and overlapping studs along the crack to restore rigidity. Because the repair is entirely heat-free, it avoids the heat distortion and additional stresses associated with welding sensitive historic castings.
Sensitive Delivery. Proven Experience.
Heritage and civil projects require careful planning, traceable workmanship and close cooperation with conservation stakeholders. Our teams have delivered long-term repair programmes and urgent structural work on nationally important assets while limiting disruption to the public and the surrounding structure.
We support:
- Listed and protected structures
- Live road, rail and public infrastructure
- Operational heritage attractions
- Planned restoration and urgent repair programmes
Retain More of the Original Structure.
The aim of conservation is often to preserve as much historic material as possible. Cold repair can reconnect cracked or broken castings and integrate carefully manufactured replacement sections without subjecting the surrounding component to heat.
Talk to a Heritage Repair Specialist
Responsible for a listed structure, historic bridge or piece of working heritage? Tell us what is damaged and what needs to be preserved. Our team can review the available information and advise on the next step.
- Discuss a repair or restoration requirement
- Request technical capability information
- Share photographs, surveys or drawings
Initial photographs and a short description are enough to start the conversation.
Submit an Enquiry
Heritage Projects Delivered
Nearly 100 metres of cold Metalock repairs were completed on broken and severely cracked core castings as part of the restoration of the Albert Memorial.
The programme retained as much original material as possible and supported the restoration team’s requirement to provide a further 60-year life.
Metalock carried out extensive cold repairs to cracked cast-iron elements on the Grade I-listed High Level Bridge, including fascia panels and support columns with fractures up to one metre long.
The quality of the initial work led to further repair orders across the structure, making it Metalock’s largest cold-repair project.
Dolphin Sturgeon Lamp Posts, London
Metalock’s cold casting repair team supported the refurbishment of the iconic cast-iron dolphin lamp columns on London’s Victoria Embankment. The original installation dates from the 1870s and forms part of a Grade II-listed structure.
Metalock completed specialist heritage repairs to the historic narrow boat DRAGON, helping preserve an operational example of Britain’s canal heritage.