Bilco’s standard and bespoke roof access and ladder safety solutions have been chosen to aid smooth and safe maintenance of the newly built Depford Green School in London. A large, bespoke, twin-leaf aluminium D-50T roof access hatch was installed with a permanent staircase to provide access for routine cleaning and maintenance, with five Bilco E-50T CL roof hatches with curb liners and a further three F-50T roof hatches. Both the E-50T and the F-50T roof hatches are standard Bilco products which meant that they were a cost effective option for providing full compliance with building regulations and safety requirements in the new school.
Also installed were 14 ladders from Bilco’s comprehensive range of fixed and retractable ladders. These included four BL-Z-4 retractable aluminium alloy zip ladders, and five B-L-A-SS fixed vertical ladders with heavy duty rungs and stainless steel fixings.
As health and safety legislation recommends maintaining three points of access at all times for maximum safety, Bilco advocates the use of retractable ladders which are set at an angle similar to a steep staircase. This helps the user to maintain their balance and helps to prevent falls from height. On the roof hatches with a high lip, a very short fixed ladder was installed in order to allow a safe egress through the lip of the hatch.
In order to maximise safety still further, five of Bilco’s innovative LadderUp Safety Posts were also installed. The LadderUp Safety Post is permanently attached to the fixed vertical ladder and can be lifted in a one-handed motion by the user at the top of the ladder, and locked into place to provide an extended handhold while the hatch is in use. This increases safety at the critical entry and egress point of the hatch itself, reducing the potential for falls or accidents.
Each Bilco hatch also features compression springs and a mechanism which locks in the open position but which can be released one-handed by an operative on the ladder. This design allows the hatch to stay open in high winds and prevents it from closing unexpectedly on the user as they exit or enter the roof hatch.
The school itself received much media attention because it was one of the last schools to benefit from the Building Schools for the Future scheme. It has been designed with the aim of inspiring young minds and encourage creativity and learning in every possible way. As a result of using high quality Bilco products, regular routine maintenance and repair can be carried out in safety, allowing this prestigious new school to enjoy a long and illustrious career.
Bilco’s products are regularly used in prestigious locations, such as King’s Cross Station and the Riverside Museum in Glasgow because it manufactures consistently safe, effective products.
