dummer wished to ensure that naval dockyards were efficient working units that maximised available space, as evidenced by the simplicity of his design layout at plymouth dock. he introduced a centralised storage area (the quadrangular great storehouse) alongside the basin, and a logical positioning of other buildings around the yard. the southern boundary of his yard was formed by a 'double' rope-house (combining the previously separate tasks of spinning and laying within a single building); the upper floor was used for the repair of sails and a separate rigging house stood nearby. the smithery with its fire and forge was positioned to the north, safely separate from the other buildings. on high ground overlooking the rest of the yard he built a grand terrace of thirteen three-storey houses for the senior dockyard officers (the first known example in the country of a palace-front terrace); the commissioner was accommodated in the centre, and at each end of the terrace was a two-storey block of offices (one for the commissioner, the other for the clerk of the cheque). a chapel was built in 1700, alongside the porter's lodge at the main gate (it was destroyed by a fire in 1799).