 The docks' maintenance facility was established on the land exposed by the damming of the river to construct the harbour and remains sited at this location to the present day.By the 1830s the Floating Harbour was suffering from severe silting and Isambard Kingdom Brunel devised the "underfall sluices" based on William Jessop's original plans and recommended the use of dredgers as a solution .The Bristol Docks Company never achieved commercial success and was taken over by Bristol City Council in 1848.