Morehouse originally supplied container elements to the Antarctic base station in 2002, when the 1988-built station was renovated and extended. In 2015, the existing Morehouse solution was extended.
The harsh Antarctic conditions are particularly demanding on buildings and their insulation; the metal-clad wall elements contain 10-20 cm deep polystyrene insulation. The powdery airborne snow that can reach speeds of more than 40m/s is particularly penetrating, and structures have to be extremely weatherproof.
Prior to being transported to the South Pole, the research unit was preassembled at the Morehouse facility. There is no room for errors at the site on polar ice where the nearest hardware store is thousands of kilometres away!
Long-term product data management made it possible for the newest extension to be supplied fully compatible to the existing Morehouse solution even after 13 years.
Additional information:
The Finnish Meteorological Institute - Antarctica