Case Study:Eight-Story Silicone Render Cleaning Via Rope Access Next To A Railway Line

Spectrum was called to a large residential building in Willesden Green, London, to provide render repair and render cleaning services.

Through rope access, discover how our specialists tackled the eight-story building to deliver on time and save the client a considerable amount of money. 

The Logistics

Recommended by another contractor for our render cleaning capabilities, we took the call from a housing association to assess the render works and provide our expert opinion for the necessary cleaning and repairs.

During our pre-site assessment, we built a strategy for the job on the following three issues:

·        The property was located between a busy high street and a railway line, making accessibility more challenging.

·        We identified the property required Sto and silicone render cleaning/ repair, wood staining to timber, efflorescence removal, and stone cleaning/repointing services.

·        The project was so substantial that we’d need to apply our signature PAST cleaning process using DOFF cleaning equipment.

The client was unwilling to invest in scaffolding and recruited us on our rope access capabilities. But with budget restraints and accessibility challenges, our team got to work on finding an effective solution for this large-scale project.

The Project

After our Managing Director and a Level 3 rope access technician walked around the site to discuss the best strategy for the job, we began to plan the job with safety, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness for our clients as the main priorities.

Once our strategy was in place, we established portable anchorage on top of the three blocks alongside the necessary steps to implement a safe system of work for our technicians.

Next, with our preparation in place, we began to apply our PAST (Preparation. Access. Steam. Treatment.) process with our DOFF cleaning equipment.

We used the PAST process on the high-level areas of the render and worked our way down the building. While on the ground level, we put our patented DOFF pole system to practice, cleaning the render and the stone.

Spectrum created the PAST process to ensure all our clients that regardless of the condition, we could always clean a building exterior to appear like new again.

Following our application of a biocide solution, the team applied steam and targeted treatments for the wood staining and stone cleaning areas.

While the portable anchorage on the property roof allowed us to abseil down two blocks of the building, we had no choice but to utilise a 25-meter mobile elevating work platform (MEWP) for one block offering no roof access. Conscious of the budget constraints, we limited our time using the MEWP to one day.

Despite most of the work involving the Sto and silicone render cleaning, thanks to the experience of our technicians, we were also able to do other cleaning and repair works, such as pointing stonework around joints and removing stains and efflorescence on the brickwork.

The Site

Erin Court, located in Willesden Green, London, was a site comprised of three residential blocks. Each block had a modern silicone or Sto render. These residential apartment blocks represented a suitable project for us at Spectrum due to the structure and location suiting rope access capabilities.

As the buildings were between a busy high street and a railway line, rope access presented the ideal solution while saving the client significant costs otherwise spent on scaffolding.

Two of the three blocks allowed for portable anchorage to be established on the roof. The other block required a MEWP before patented equipment could continue the render cleaning from the ground.

Challenges

The first challenge we had to navigate was the location. Positioned between a busy high street and a railway line limited our access possibilities.

Tight budget constraints from the client also presented an issue to our team, so we ensured we limited the MEWP hire to just one day.

There were dangers due to the building's size and location. We had to ensure this would not become an issue later by establishing a safe work system for our team.

Another challenging factor was that we had no access to water, meaning our team had to bring our own ionised water to the site. Having access to water is an integral element of our DOFF cleaning equipment.

We identified more issues on the job, such as render repairs, efflorescence, and repointing joints. Due to the experience of our technicians, they were able to remedy these factors at no additional cost to our client. 

Being a large block with a high volume of residents required our rope access technicians to reduce disturbance as much as possible while applying the DOFF cleaning process.

The Result

This project was an excellent example of when good access planning meets state-of-the-art cleaning processes and experienced technicians who can also provide multiple building maintenance services.

With all areas of the property fully cleaned and damages repaired, we were happy to leave the project with a satisfied client and another successful case study under our belt.

Here’s a quick overview of the process from start to finish:

• Our pre-site visit enabled us to devise the most cost-effective and efficient access and render cleaning strategy.
• The team established portable anchorage on two flat blocks, safely cleaning the render and making repairs via rope access.
• We used a MEWP for one day while on-site to gain high-level access to the third remaining block.
• The team cleaned the render using our signature PAST process and patented DOFF cleaning equipment.
• We delivered necessary restoration services across all three buildings, including stone cleaning, repointing, and removing efflorescence.
• The project took three weeks to complete, with the entire building exterior cleaned and repaired across the three residential apartment blocks.

During another complex assignment for the Spectrum team, we were delighted to get the job done to the highest standards under tight budget constraints.

Our signature PAST cleaning process and rope access capabilities allowed us to restore the property exterior to its original condition quickly and cost-effectively. 

“This was a challenging site for access, with close proximity to the public footpath. So, it was good to see the team get together and establish solutions regarding the access challenges and minimising disturbance through the duration of the works.”

Lucian Ivan – Founder of Spectrum

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