Client
Pendrich Height Services (a PTSG Group company). Working on behalf of Blackpool Council, the towers owners.
The Project
Blackpool Tower is a Grade I listed building and one of the UK’s most recognisable landmarks. Erected and opened to the public in 1894, it was the tallest man-made structure in the British Empire at the time.
Standing 518 ft (158 m) tall, the tower’s distinctive steel structure presents unique challenges when providing safe access for inspection and maintenance.
The Requirements
A survey by Pendrich and structural engineers Arup identified that the existing access ladders were no longer fit for purpose.
Safety Fabrications was invited to design and manufacture replacement ladders to provide safe access between the roof of the tower buildings and the SkyDeck (Tower Eye), approximately 380 ft (120 m) above ground level.
The new ladder system needed to provide safe, reliable access while accommodating the tower’s unusual geometry and preserving the appearance of the Grade I listed structure.
The Challenges
The unique design of Blackpool Tower presented a significant engineering challenge. The tower is inclined in two planes, meaning that none of the ladders installed between the platforms could be vertical.
This also meant that no two fixing bracket positions were identical. Each bracket had to be individually positioned and secured to the latticework of steel members that form the tower’s intricate structure.
The design also needed to accommodate the natural movement and flexing of the tower in high winds.
In addition, the position and configuration of the ladders were dictated by the existing landing platforms. Retaining these locations was essential to minimise alterations to the historic structure and ensure that the new access system did not detract from the tower’s appearance.
The Solution
Following approval of the design, manufacture of the replacement ladders commenced at Safety Fabrications’ Sheffield manufacturing facility.
Once fabrication was complete, the steelwork was galvanised and specialist painted to provide enhanced protection against the harsh coastal environment and exposure to weather from the Irish Sea.
A bespoke approach was also developed for the fixing brackets. Initially, aluminium brackets were manufactured to allow the ladders to be temporarily installed by Pendrich’s on-site team of specialist steeplejacks and abseilers.
Once the ladders had been positioned and the precise fixing geometry established, the temporary aluminium brackets were removed and used as templates for the manufacture of the permanent mild-steel brackets.
This approach enabled each fixing to be tailored to the tower’s complex steel latticework, providing a permanent access solution designed specifically around the geometry and constraints of this historic Grade I listed structure.
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