25.11.2013
An opportunity?
An article, which appeared in yesterday's UK Sunday Times, reported that Heathrow Airport has failed to find a single piece of access equipment to reach the light bulbs in its Terminal Five. According to the article, there are 120,000 light fittings in the main terminal and around 60 percent of the bulbs have now failed.
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London Heathrow Terminal 5
The ceiling height varies with the highest point having an external height of around 39 metres, so something that can reach that height is probably required, although many will be lower than this.
The airport apparently looked into boom lifts and suspended platforms but claimed that no examples it came across were suitable, reluctantly deciding to go for rope access using abseilers to change the bulbs instead.
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The check in area of Terminal 5
Now there is nothing wrong with using abseilers as a last resort solution, however it seems odd that no more usual form of access could not be found? A spider lift perhaps?
Either Heathrow has some unusual limitations in T5 or this is an opportunity for an enterprising company or sales person?
accessboy
I suppose it is a problem with floor loading and also running an engine indoors, all the big machines tend to be diesel power only.
Niftylift do a 28m battery powered self propelled articulating machine that only weighs 14,500 kgs, maybe that could do some of the lower ones.
schwabe
I agree with the author, that a spider lift would be the best choice. Maybe a 32 metres scissor could be the most cost efficient way, leaving the few remaining bulbs above 32 metres to climbers but doing the rest pretty quick.
Unless the floor is not supposed to carry such a weight. In that case it is yet the spider lift.
Sherm
This smells of a lawsuit against the architects for incompetent planning. They'd probably shrug their shoulders and say "what do you mean?" They must have been on another planet when they designed this terminal.
The lift(s) employed should have panniers or "saddlebags" to hold the bulb supply and a reservoir or tote for storing spent bulbs so the technician(s) harnessed can work efficiently.
The "yard art" (obstructions on the floor) will require two or more attentive traffic directors, a good driver and patient supervision. It might necessitate many hours spent raising and lowering the boom while maneuvering around the obstacles.
During construction I carried out IPAF training for a rope access company.
I cannot remember exactly the work they intended to carry out but it was in the same area.
The training was on a nifty 170 SE and It was intended to use the Nifty to get on to the structure at the bottom and work there way up