Town port workers have used 220 pallets of bricks to construct a thank-you note to the NHS.

The tribute at the Port of Ipswich is the latest in a string of tributes to the health workers combating the coronavirus crisis at ABP ports.

Different materials to spell out the letters of the NHS have ranged from packs of timber imported for Travis Perkins at the Port of King’s Lynn and pusher blades, concrete wall sections and bobcats in Teignmouth to heavy gauge chains in Barrow and fertiliser bags in Ipswich.

MORE – Greene King slashes rents for tied tenants as sector faces ‘existential threat’The bricks at Ipswich belong to Wienerberger – the world’s largest brick manufacturer – which regularly supplies customers via Ipswich. The team used just over 142,700 individual bricks to build the display.

Wienerberger UK sales boss Ian Caddick said: “It’s great to see our colleagues at ABP using Wienerberger products to show the appreciation that we all have for the NHS and our key workers. On behalf of all the team at WB UK we would like to say thank you, and echo the gratitude and respect of all within the UK construction sector.”

ABP’s Andrew Harston, who is responsible for the Port of Ipswich, thanked key workers on the quayside for their efforts in keeping vital cargoes coming in and out of the country.

“We have asked colleagues to work from home where possible but the majority of our employees are directly involved in handling goods, which means they need to be physically on the quayside,” he said.

The port workers had done “a magnificent job” in keeping the port at near-normal levels while following safety protocols, he said.

“This has allowed our customers to continue operating throughout the crisis and I am very proud of the job that we have done at this very difficult time.”

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