 Since it was abandoned in favor of LPG in 1977, the vertical retort was left to fall into ruin with large piles of droppings cover the floor and machinery due to the pigeons that used the building as a roost because of the many openings in its brickwork.In late July 2012, most of the building underwent cleaning to remove the accumulated waste from the interior before scrapping and internal demolition stripped the building of its heritage value to make way for a building proposal.Located between the Chief Engineers Cottage and the Vertical Retort, the Laboratory was an essential part of the site.