When we were asked to waterproof an external lift shaft, stretching over 100 metres high, for The Nethern Water Tower in Coulsdon, Surrey, we faced a significant challenge: Directors of the building did not want to use scaffolding.
Built between 1903 and 1905 as part of Netherne Asylum, the Water Tower was converted into housing around 2009. At this time, the architects installed a unique lift. Unlike conventional elevators, the lift is on the outside.
Whilst an external lift enables inhabitants and guests of The Tower to take in its amazing view – spanning over 180 acres of Greenbelt – an external lift shaft faces a range of weather-related vulnerabilities
Though incidents and fatalities related to lifts are rare occurrences, failures of lifts can be disruptive and dangerous. It is just as important to abide by the Health & Safety Executive Passenger Lifts guidance and the Lift Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 act.
Under these guidances, the lift owner – usually the freeholder, landlord or property management company - has a legal responsibility to ensure that the lift is thoroughly examined and safe to use.
Weatherproofing is a vital consideration for both installation and maintenance for external lifts and lift shafts.
However, weatherproofing a lift shaft that measures over 100 metres is no easy feat. Scaffolding, whilst having many merits, can quickly add up in cost. At over 100 metres high and extending over eight floors, the scaffolding structure would've been complex, timely to erect and dismantle, and expensive for leaseholders.
Our team devised an effective solution: Utilising a tall cherry picker (also known as a boom lift or an access platform) we could apply a [specific weatherproofing method] to every appropriate part of the external lift shaft.
As a result, we were able to apply the waterproofing within one day, with minimal disruption to the development's residents, whilst keeping costs minimal.
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