diff --git a/.github/workflows/docker.yml b/.github/workflows/docker.yml
index faa50ac8dc..971954a5e1 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/docker.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/docker.yml
@@ -196,3 +196,60 @@ jobs:
           # Use tags / labels provided by 'docker/metadata-action' above
           tags: ${{ steps.meta_build_solr.outputs.tags }}
           labels: ${{ steps.meta_build_solr.outputs.labels }}
+
+      ###########################################################
+      # Build/Push the 'dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto' image
+      ###########################################################
+      # Get Metadata for docker_build_postgres step below
+      - name: Sync metadata (tags, labels) from GitHub to Docker for 'dspace-postgres-pgcrypto' image
+        id: meta_build_postgres
+        uses: docker/metadata-action@v4
+        with:
+          images: dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto
+          tags: ${{ env.IMAGE_TAGS }}
+          flavor: ${{ env.TAGS_FLAVOR }}
+
+      - name: Build and push 'dspace-postgres-pgcrypto' image
+        id: docker_build_postgres
+        uses: docker/build-push-action@v3
+        with:
+          # Must build out of subdirectory to have access to install script for pgcrypto
+          context: ./dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto/
+          dockerfile: Dockerfile
+          platforms: ${{ env.PLATFORMS }}
+          # For pull requests, we run the Docker build (to ensure no PR changes break the build),
+          # but we ONLY do an image push to DockerHub if it's NOT a PR
+          push: ${{ github.event_name != 'pull_request' }}
+          # Use tags / labels provided by 'docker/metadata-action' above
+          tags: ${{ steps.meta_build_postgres.outputs.tags }}
+          labels: ${{ steps.meta_build_postgres.outputs.labels }}
+
+      ###########################################################
+      # Build/Push the 'dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto' image ('-loadsql' tag)
+      ###########################################################
+      # Get Metadata for docker_build_postgres_loadsql step below
+      - name: Sync metadata (tags, labels) from GitHub to Docker for 'dspace-postgres-pgcrypto-loadsql' image
+        id: meta_build_postgres_loadsql
+        uses: docker/metadata-action@v4
+        with:
+          images: dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto
+          tags: ${{ env.IMAGE_TAGS }}
+          # Suffix all tags with "-loadsql". Otherwise, it uses the same
+          # tagging logic as the primary 'dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto' image above.
+          flavor: ${{ env.TAGS_FLAVOR }}
+            suffix=-loadsql
+
+      - name: Build and push 'dspace-postgres-pgcrypto-loadsql' image
+        id: docker_build_postgres_loadsql
+        uses: docker/build-push-action@v3
+        with:
+          # Must build out of subdirectory to have access to install script for pgcrypto
+          context: ./dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto-curl/
+          dockerfile: Dockerfile
+          platforms: ${{ env.PLATFORMS }}
+          # For pull requests, we run the Docker build (to ensure no PR changes break the build),
+          # but we ONLY do an image push to DockerHub if it's NOT a PR
+          push: ${{ github.event_name != 'pull_request' }}
+          # Use tags / labels provided by 'docker/metadata-action' above
+          tags: ${{ steps.meta_build_postgres_loadsql.outputs.tags }}
+          labels: ${{ steps.meta_build_postgres_loadsql.outputs.labels }}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index 40b4ce064e..dd26d6cf15 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -62,13 +62,16 @@ services:
       while (!</dev/tcp/dspacedb/5432) > /dev/null 2>&1; do sleep 1; done;
       /dspace/bin/dspace database migrate
       catalina.sh run
-  # DSpace database container
+  # DSpace PostgreSQL database container
   dspacedb:
     container_name: dspacedb
+    # Uses a custom Postgres image with pgcrypto installed
+    image: "${DOCKER_OWNER:-dspace}/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto:${DSPACE_VER:-dspace-7_x}"
+    build:
+      # Must build out of subdirectory to have access to install script for pgcrypto
+      context: ./dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto/
     environment:
       PGDATA: /pgdata
-    # Uses a custom Postgres image with pgcrypto installed
-    image: dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto
     networks:
       dspacenet:
     ports:
@@ -77,6 +80,7 @@ services:
     stdin_open: true
     tty: true
     volumes:
+    # Keep Postgres data directory between reboots
     - pgdata:/pgdata
   # DSpace Solr container
   dspacesolr:
diff --git a/dspace/src/main/docker-compose/db.entities.yml b/dspace/src/main/docker-compose/db.entities.yml
index 8d86f7bb83..32c54a5d0b 100644
--- a/dspace/src/main/docker-compose/db.entities.yml
+++ b/dspace/src/main/docker-compose/db.entities.yml
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ version: "3.7"
 
 services:
   dspacedb:
-    image: dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto:loadsql
+    image: dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto:dspace-7_x-loadsql
     environment:
       # This SQL is available from https://github.com/DSpace-Labs/AIP-Files/releases/tag/demo-entities-data
       - LOADSQL=https://github.com/DSpace-Labs/AIP-Files/releases/download/demo-entities-data/dspace7-entities-data.sql
diff --git a/dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto-curl/Dockerfile b/dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto-curl/Dockerfile
index 0e85dd33ce..1f51d299f2 100644
--- a/dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto-curl/Dockerfile
+++ b/dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto-curl/Dockerfile
@@ -6,14 +6,20 @@
 # http://www.dspace.org/license/
 #
 
-# This will be deployed as dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrpyto:loadsql
-FROM postgres:11
+# To build for example use:
+# docker build --build-arg POSTGRES_VERSION=11 --build-arg POSTGRES_PASSWORD=mypass -f ./dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto-curl/Dockerfile .
+# This will be published as dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto:$DSPACE_VERSION-loadsql
+
+ARG POSTGRES_VERSION=11
+ARG POSTGRES_PASSWORD=dspace
+
+FROM postgres:${POSTGRES_VERSION}-alpine
 
 ENV POSTGRES_DB dspace
 ENV POSTGRES_USER dspace
-ENV POSTGRES_PASSWORD dspace
+
+# Install curl which is necessary to load SQL file
+RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y curl && rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*
 
 # Load a SQL dump.  Set LOADSQL to a URL for the sql dump file.
-RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y curl
-
 COPY install-pgcrypto.sh /docker-entrypoint-initdb.d/
diff --git a/dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto/Dockerfile b/dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto/Dockerfile
index 84b7569a2b..0f0f4f0efb 100644
--- a/dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto/Dockerfile
+++ b/dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto/Dockerfile
@@ -6,13 +6,17 @@
 # http://www.dspace.org/license/
 #
 
-# This will be deployed as dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrpyto:latest
-FROM postgres:11
+# To build for example use:
+# docker build --build-arg POSTGRES_VERSION=11 --build-arg POSTGRES_PASSWORD=mypass -f ./dspace/src/main/docker/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto/Dockerfile .
+# This will be published as dspace/dspace-postgres-pgcrypto:$DSPACE_VERSION
+
+ARG POSTGRES_VERSION=11
+ARG POSTGRES_PASSWORD=dspace
+
+FROM postgres:${POSTGRES_VERSION}-alpine
 
 ENV POSTGRES_DB dspace
 ENV POSTGRES_USER dspace
-ENV POSTGRES_PASSWORD dspace
-
-RUN apt-get update
 
+# Copy over script which will initialize database and install pgcrypto extension
 COPY install-pgcrypto.sh /docker-entrypoint-initdb.d/