Hired glass lifter saved labour on cultural centre

A 500kg capacity, self-propelled glass lifter, hired from Kennards Lift & Shift, proved a great labour saver for the installation of glass panels in the new Blue Mountains Cultural Centre, being built at Katoomba.

Due to open by the end of the year, the centre will house the Blue Mountains City Art Gallery and World Heritage Exhibition.

Richard Crookes Constructions was the main contractor for the project, a collaborative enterprise involving Blue Mountains City Council, NSW Government and the Coles Group, with funding support from the federal government.

The installation of 32 glass panels was carried out by Commercial Windows, which supplies and installs framed and frameless glazing products for the commercial construction industry.

The panels containing 28mm thick double glazed glass were between 2200mm and 2700mm, wide and weighed up to 350kg.

Commercial Windows operations manager Simon Janissen said limited access prevented the use of a crane with suction lifter.

“I searched the Web and found this machine at Kennards,” he said. “It was perfect.

“We had already installed the first few panels manually, and we had needed eight people each time. With this machine, you have one person operating it and three standing back and guiding the glass in. It takes the weight of the glass, which is easier and safer.

“The first panel took us quite a while as we got used to the machine. The second was much quicker, and the third one took about 10 minutes. You learn the little tricks as you go along.”

Kennards Lift & Shift offers a wide choice in glass lifting equipment, including smaller, ride-on, self-propelled machines, with 350kg capacity, which are compact enough to fit through doorways.

A range of 12V glass lifts varying in capacity from 320kg to 635kg can be hired from all Kennards Lift & Shift branches around Australia

Visit: www.liftandshift.com.au