Brigadier Sir Bruce Gordon White, KBE

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

, FCGI, FICE

Institution of Civil Engineers

Founded on 2 January 1818, the Institution of Civil Engineers is an independent professional association, based in central London, representing civil engineering. Like its early membership, the majority of its current members are British engineers, but it also has members in more than 150...

, FIEE (1885-1983) was one of the leading British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 consulting engineers of his generation. Son of the engineer Robert White (1842-1925), Bruce White joined his father's practice in 1919 together with his brother Colin White in 1923. On his father's death Bruce White became senior partner. After World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 Bruce White was knighted, and the practice became known as Sir Bruce White, Woolfe Barry and Partners. On Sir Bruce's retirement Allan Beckett

Allan Beckett

Allan Harry Beckett MBE was a brilliant and practical engineering designer whose floating roadway was crucial to the success of the Mulberry harbour that was used in the Normandy Landings...

 became senior partner. The family firm continues today as marine consulting engineers Beckett Rankine where Sir Bruce's grandson Gordon Rankine and Allan Beckett's son Tim Beckett are directors.

Born on 5 February 1885, White saw military service in Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

 during World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 as a Major in the Royal Engineers; he was involved in the design and construction of Richborough military port near Sandwich in Kent; the port was notable for being equipped with the UK's first electric gantry cranes for cargo handling. White was appointed MBE

MBE

MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...

 in 1919.

During World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 White returned to military service with the rank of brigadier

Brigadier

Brigadier is a senior military rank, the meaning of which is somewhat different in different military services. The brigadier rank is generally superior to the rank of colonel, and subordinate to major general....

. He held the posts of Director of Ports and IWT at the War Office

War Office

The War Office was a department of the British Government, responsible for the administration of the British Army between the 17th century and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the Ministry of Defence...

 and Deputy Director, Department of Transportation Tn(5). He was part of the team involved in planning and designing of the "artificial" Mulberry harbour

Mulberry harbour

A Mulberry harbour was a British type of temporary harbour developed in World War II to offload cargo on the beaches during the Allied invasion of Normandy....

s, having been responsible for the development of the four-legged floating pontoon

Pontoon (boat)

A pontoon is a flotation device with buoyancy sufficient to float itself as well as a heavy load. A pontoon boat is a flattish boat that relies on pontoons to float. Pontoons may be used on boats, rafts, barges, docks, floatplanes or seaplanes. Pontoons may support a platform, creating a raft. A...

s and the floating roadways that became the Spud pier heads and the Whale piers of these two harbours. These were used to supply Allied forces

Allies of World War II

The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...

 in France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 after the D-day

D-Day

D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...

 landings in Normandy

Normandy

Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...

. In this capacity he was chairman of the Harbours committee, which was principally made up of civilian consultant civil engineer

Civil engineer

A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...

s who undertook the design of Mulberry

Mulberry harbour

A Mulberry harbour was a British type of temporary harbour developed in World War II to offload cargo on the beaches during the Allied invasion of Normandy....

.

He was appointed a CBE

CBE

CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...

 in 1943 and a KBE in 1944. After the war his company was responsible for the design of the Chiswick

Chiswick

Chiswick is a large suburb of west London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It is located on a meander of the River Thames, west of Charing Cross and is one of 35 major centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, with...

 flyover, Bhavnagar Port, Bombay Marine Oil Terminal, Damman Port, Muara Port, the UK's first container terminal

Container terminal

A container terminal is a facility where cargo containers are transshipped between different transport vehicles, for onward transportation. The transshipment may be between container ships and land vehicles, for example trains or trucks, in which case the terminal is described as a maritime...

 at Tilbury's Berth 30 and Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

's first container berth

Berth (moorings)

A berth is a location in a port or harbour used specifically for mooring vessels while not at sea.-Locations in a port:Berth is the term used in ports and harbors to define a specific location where a vessel may be berthed, usually for the purposes of loading and unloading.Most berths will be...

. White worked into his nineties.

He died on 29 September 1983.

Publications

The artificial invasion harbours called Mulberry, a personal story by Sir Bruce White KBE, 1980. Published privately and downloadable from here

Acquired by Acer Consultans in 1987, Sir Bruce White Wolfe Barry & Partners is now Hyder Consulting.

Sources

• Who was Who
• Mulberry – The return in Triumph by Michael Harrison, 1965.
• A Harbour Goes To War: The Story Of Mulberry And The Men Who Made It Happen - J.Evans, R.Walter, E.Palmer; Publisher - South Machars Historical Society, 2000
• A casual interview