The team from Ardent Lift Consultancy share some lessons learned from a near-disastrous incident.

We had the phone call Project Managers always fear last week… “There has been an accident on site”. The moment those words are heard, the mind goes into overdrive and automatically prepares for the blow of bad news.

The project in question is the replacement of a lift installation in a 1930s mansion block in North London, where the original lift is being removed from the lift shaft leaving a void where the lift used to be.

We had identified the risks with our Pre-Construction Information, reviewed the Contractor’s methodology in their Construction Phase Plan and walked the site two weeks prior to starting, to ensure we had covered all of the key risks associated with working in a live residential building:

• Landing protection – ensuring the hoardings are erected, provide secondary fall barriers, and remain locked whenever the operatives are not working in the immediate vicinity
• Site logistics – making sure the access/egress of engineers (particularly when encumbered with heavy materials) is safe and does not put the engineers or residents at risk
• Dangerous materials – ensuring the lift’s ageing components are free from asbestos, mercury and other harmful items found in the lift industry and that all other hazardous materials – oil, rubble, etc. were disposed of in the correct manner.

“How are the engineers?” the first question to come to mind in this scenario… “anyone from site injured?” immediately afterwards. The response is met with a sigh of relief, “No, everyone is ok”.

Thank goodness for that!

The conversation continues and the potential for harm becomes apparent. The engineers, as part of their agreed access route, need to access an external cast iron staircase at the rear of the property (another route to the motor room is available through the building, but was deemed higher risk due to the access ladder blocking the stairwell for residents).

The staircase is suspended 15m above ground, passing from 5th floor to the roof and it was last inspected in 2019. We had identified it as a potential risk item but trusted the inspection would have revealed any insufficient structural elements (had they been apparent at the time).

When accessing the stairs, the engineer felt a tread break and immediately leapt back to the safety of the landing behind him. Not only did the tread break, but it completely sheared at both ends, falling the 15m to the ground and smashing a paving slab below!

Had the engineer not been as quick with his reflexes or had someone been below the staircase at the time of the accident, there would have been a fatality.

Closer inspection of the staircase in the immediate aftermath revealed a second step had also sheared and would have come down in the same manner if left unchecked.

The engineer tied the tread to the staircase to prevent this item falling whilst the staircase was taken out of action for immediate investigation and repair.

Our role is generally confined to the lift and its immediate vicinity; however, we all have a duty of care to anyone working on or involved in any scheme we are involved with.

The issue encountered has far reaching ramifications for our industry, but also any other industry which involve buildings of this similar age and design.

External cast iron staircases, such as fire escapes and roof access, often have weak treads that are not immediately obvious due to years of overpainting; hiding structural faults which could result in serious accident.

The roof of the property is accessed frequently via this staircase by the concierge, property manager, lift engineer, plumber, electrician, TV aerial engineer, and any one of them could have had this accident. In fact, the lift engineer was young and agile, an older or heavier individual may not have been so lucky.

If you manage or live in a block with an external cast iron staircase, take this near miss as a timely reminder to have the area fully inspected for metal fatigue, particularly with the onset of winter, where frost and snow can exacerbate the problem further.

Do not leave this to chance as you may help to ensure someone does not receive a similar phone call to our own…

Lift Maintenance Requirements

Whilst the above article may not have been lift specific or in keeping with this month’s Flat Living theme, we felt the important issue was worthy of raising to all involved in property.

We have previously written articles on the maintenance of lifts (E41 – Maintenance) the statutory obligations when managing/owners of lifts (E47 – Statutory Requirements) and also how to plan for the inevitable decline in lift performance (E49 – Section 20) – so feel free to check those back issues out.

As always, we are happy to discuss specific questions you may have on lifts and lift regulations, so please feel free to contact us on the usual channels:

www.ardentlc.co.uk | [email protected] | 01394 200328.