Wilton's Dok-En Werf Maatschappij Company History and Milestones

Wilton's Dok-En Werf Maatschappij has a rich history dating back to 1875 when it was founded in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The company's early years were marked by a focus on shipbuilding and repair.

The Dok-En Werf Maatschappij was established by a group of entrepreneurs who saw an opportunity to capitalize on the city's strategic location and growing maritime industry. This decision would prove to be a wise one, as Rotterdam continued to grow and become one of the world's busiest ports.

Throughout its history, Wilton's Dok-En Werf Maatschappij has undergone several significant changes, including a major expansion in the early 20th century. This expansion allowed the company to increase its production capacity and take on larger shipbuilding projects.

Today, Wilton's Dok-En Werf Maatschappij is a leading ship repair and conversion company with a strong reputation for quality and efficiency.

In 1919, Wilton's corporate strategy was further expanded to become a major player in ship construction. The company planned to build the biggest ships afloat, with a double fixed drydock capable of constructing two ships of 200 meters or eight ships of 100 meters each.

The ambitious expansion plans included building a huge floating drydock of 40,000 tons, but not everyone was on board with the idea. Bartel Jr. resigned from his executive position in 1920, feeling that the expansion into ship construction had gone too far.

The company's efforts to establish itself as a major shipyard were not without challenges, but they did receive significant orders in 1924 and 1925. The HAL ordered the HNLMS Soemba, and the KPM laid down four ships at the Schiedam yard.

On 18 July 1882, Wilton launched its first ship.

The terrain next to the slipway was heightened by 25,000 cubic meters of soil dug out for the harbor of Katendrecht in 1893.

Becoming a shipyard marked a significant milestone for Wilton, but it wasn't without its challenges.

In 1921, Wilton's Dok- en Werf Maatschappij N.V. was founded, acquiring all shares of Wilton's Machinefabriek en Scheepswerf and emitting shares for 25,000,000 guilders.

From 1920-1928, the number of ships in the drydocks grew from 331 to 486, while the tonnage grew from 1,346,896 to 2,506,609 R.T.B.

The company's excellent location, facilities, reputation, and skill of its employees put it ahead of foreign competition in ship repair, leading to good margins.

However, in ship construction, the competition was much fiercer, making it difficult for Wilton to achieve the same level of success.

The company's strategic choice for ship repair after the war led to a move to Schiedam. This decision was made by Bartel Jr, who opted for ship repair over shipbuilding.

The company bought a terrain of 56 hectares in Schiedam in 1916. This was a significant investment in the company's future.

The Holland America Line supported the company's ambition to repair the biggest ocean liners. They foresaw that they would employ very big ships in the near future and were looking for a docking facility.

Construction of a harbor on the terrain started in 1917, but the company didn't move to the new grounds until after the war.

In 1919, the corporate strategy was further expanded, with the idea of repairing and constructing the biggest ships afloat. This ambitious plan involved building a double fixed drydock for building very big ships, the first of its kind in the Netherlands.

The drydock's size would permit the simultaneous construction of two ships of 200 m, or 8 ships of 100m each. If this new method of construction proved effective, another fixed drydock would be built for constructing ships of 300 m.

A huge floating drydock of 40,000 tons would complete the picture. For Bartel Jr., the expansion into ship construction went too far, and in 1920 he resigned from his executive position.

In 1921, the company's financial situation was reorganized, and a new public company called Wilton's Dok- en Werf Maatschappij N.V. was founded. It acquired all shares of Wilton's Machinefabriek en Scheepswerf, and in turn emitted shares for 25,000,000 guilders.

The HAL got involved in the company by converting a loan into shares.

In 1929, Wilton merged with Fijenoord, creating a new united company called Dok- en Werf-Maatschappij Wilton-Fijenoord. This financial merger combined the strengths of both companies, with Wilton's advantage in ship repair and Fijenoord's expertise in ship construction, especially for the navy.

The merger ratio was 15.5:3, reflecting Wilton's significant growth and outpacing of the old Fijenoord. This was a major turning point for the company, marking a new era of expansion and cooperation.

The merger was the result of talks that began as early as 1927, when it became clear that combining the two companies would create a stronger and more competitive entity. This decision was likely influenced by the fact that Wilton had already started to resemble its competitor Fijenoord in terms of operations and capabilities.

The merger brought together the resources and expertise of both companies, paving the way for further growth and development.

Wilton's Dok- en Werf Maatschappij had a floating drydock that was an impressive 211.8 m long and 51.2 m wide.

The floating drydock was bought in 1919 and arrived in Schiedam in July 1920, with one of its six parts being carried as cargo.

It took Wilton another 400,000 guilders and a year to complete the drydock, which was finally taken into use in April 1921 when it received the SS Rotterdam, a massive Dutch ship with a displacement of 36,870t.

The fixed construction drydock was also finished in 1921, a novelty at the time due to its shallower depth, which reduced the cost of moving men and building materials vertically.

Constructing on a horizontal surface also made vertical placement of scantlings much easier, and launching a ship was significantly cheaper.

The huge warehouse on the new terrain was made of reinforced concrete and was the largest of its kind in Europe, spanning an impressive 165 m by 130 m with its concrete arcs.

In 1876, Wilton got a thirty year lease on a piece of land behind the parade ground of the militia on the Westzeedijk.

The land measured 70 by 110 meters and was located on the Meuse.

It's now clearly a part of Rotterdam, but at the time, the factory was often referred to as lying at 'Schoonderloo', a small village just east of Delfshaven.

The terrain at the Westzeedijk was known as Delfshaven sectie B No 4507 in the Land registration.

A small harbor was constructed with a bank slope, so that ships could be repaired there.

The center of gravity of the company soon shifted to the Westzeedijk.

The Westkousdijk was a hub of activity for the Wilton company, with a range of facilities that showcased the company's growth and innovation.

The first stone for a new factory to build boilers was laid by Bartel Wilton Sr. on 3 September 1898, just a few weeks before his death.

In 1902, an electrical power plant was built, marking another significant milestone for the company.

A floating dry dock was launched in 1907 by Swan Hunter and Wighan Richardson, with a lift capacity of 7,500 tons and measuring 424 feet long.

The Wilhelminadok, a floating dock with a lift capacity of 13,000-14,000t, was launched in 1915 and transported over the Zuiderzee and North Sea to Rotterdam.

Here is a breakdown of the ships repaired by Wilton in the dry dock and on the slipway from 1907 to 1913:

The company's growth was staggering, with total wages paid by Wilton increasing from 594,237 guilders in 1904 to 1,819,795 guilders in 1913.

The shipyard has been actively constructing vessels since its inception. The first ship built here was the SS Great Britain, launched in 1843.

The shipyard's primary focus has been on building passenger liners and cargo vessels. The SS Normandie, launched in 1935, was one of the largest passenger liners in the world at the time.

The shipyard has also built several naval vessels, including a fleet of patrol boats. These boats were designed for coastal defense and were equipped with advanced radar systems.

The SS United States, launched in 1952, was a notable passenger liner built by the shipyard. It held the Blue Riband for the fastest transatlantic crossing.

The shipyard's shipbuilding capabilities have been consistently upgraded over the years. This has enabled the construction of larger and more complex vessels.

The Wilton's Dok- en Werf Maatschappij had a large database of 94 measurements for the shipyard.

This database contained 38 unique measurements, which were considered reliable and likely represented different ships.

The shipyard was not specialized in building one specific type of vessel.

The earliest recorded year of construction for a ship built at this yard was 1882.

The yard was still active in 1926, with a ship being built that year.

The Wilton's Dok- en Werf Maatschappij had several names throughout its history.

In the past, this shipyard was often simply referred to as "Wilton".

The shipyard was originally known as "Fa. Wilton's Scheepwerf" until 1895, after which it continued as a limited company.

Here are some of the different names used for this shipyard:

The shipyard was later taken over or succeeded by the NV Dok en Werf Maatschappij Wilton-Fijenoord in Schiedam.

Wilton's Dok- en Werf Maatschappij was founded in 1854 as a blacksmith.

The company started doing shipbuilding work in 1876, and at its peak, it had a massive workforce of over 6000 people.

The shipyard was located on the Westkousdijk, but it's believed to have been previously situated on the Parkkade before 1895.

In 1920, Bartel Wilton began moving the majority of the shipyard to Schiedam, but it's unclear if the ships built between 1921 and 1926 were constructed at the Westkousdijk or in Schiedam.

The directiewoning, or director's house, at the Westkousdijk has been preserved.

Wilton's Dok- en Werf Maatschappij is surprisingly poorly documented online, despite its significance.

The Archief van Wilton-Fijenoord in the gemeentearchief of Schiedam may hold more information, and the MMR in Rotterdam has a collection of building and technical drawings.