Material handling and lift solutions specialists Lödige Industries recently brought a rather unusual UK project to completion. Delivered and completed on time and on budget in January 2011, this was not an industrial project; it took place within One Hyde Park, the world’s most expensive residential apartment and retail complex located in prestigious Knightsbridge, London. The development includes three retail units totalling 385,000 sq ft and 86 residential properties marketed at prices from £20m to £136m with an average 5 bedroom apartment going for £65m.
The aim of the £1.8m project was to install two 30 tonne scissor lifts to avoid service vehicles needing to stop and cause congestion in Knightsbridge when delivering or collecting from the complex.
The first and biggest challenge was the logistics of offloading, assembling and positioning the lifts with millimeter precision into the lift pits, taking into account restricted room to manoeuvre, the possibility of damage to the street due to the weight of the lifts, and the necessity to keep noise and disturbance to a minimum in this exclusive residential area. A section of Knightsbridge had to be closed for deliveries on two consecutive Sundays due to the size of the lift platforms, base frames and scissor mechanisms.
A second challenge was to ensure that the materials, finish and operation of the lifts were suitable for a prestigious residential complex, suited the modern architecture of the building and met the architects’ specifications. The lifts had to be operated from control panels within a Security Room at the complex, and had to work at an unusually high speed to ensure the correct throughput of vehicles and comply with a Traffic Analysis Report. They also had to work to pre-specified acoustic and vibration levels to ensure the noise couldn’t be heard from the apartments. Very high quality stainless steel was used to ensure that the finish was perfect from ground level, inside the lift, on each floor and even down to the button controls.
Up to twelve engineers at any one time worked on the installation of the lorry lifts on site and numerous resources were involved from the Lödige HQ and factory in Germany where the units were designed and manufactured. A number of sub-contractors were employed to undertake different aspects of the works, such as the bollards, doors, architraves, and lifting beams, and it was vital that their works were carefully integrated into the main programme of works.
Lodige Industries
Tel: 01784 221140
Email: uk@lodige.com
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