Lerch Bates, which says it has been involved in many healthcare projects over the past 20 years, ranging from planning, design, and implementation of new lift systems to project management of major repairs, modernisations, and completing lift safety audits, says hospitals are ‘among the most complex buildings when it comes to vertical transportation’.
It adds: “Having the right number, size, and location, of lifts is paramount to the smooth running of any healthcare facility.” The company adds: “With existing lifts in hospitals, safety and reliability are of the upmost importance. When capital funds for new lifts or major modernisations are not immediately available, a straightforward lift safety audit can be carried out to determine the existing level of safety and what works, if any, are required to ensure that the lifts meet today’s standards.”
All lift safety audits undertaken by Lerch Bates are carried out in line with EN81-80: Rules for the Improvement of Safety of Existing Lifts, and HTM 08-02: Lifts. Once completed, the hospital / healthcare facility receives a prioritised list of items which would need to be completed as and when monies become available.
The company cites a recent instance where it was commissioned to carry out over 40 lift safety audits for a hospital with a number of ‘old, worn, and unreliable’ lifts. It says: “From these audits we compiled a detailed works programme in priority order with budget costs and timescales for each item. As there is no significant budget immediately available to complete capital works, the hospital now has the information it needs to work on its lifts when funds become available, ensuring that the most important health and safety works are completed first, and on the lifts which need it most.”
Lerch Bates says its many years of working in the healthcare sector has afforded it ‘a wealth of knowledge’ on the specific application of lifts in a hospital environment. It says: “This knowledge and understanding benefits our healthcare clients when it comes to decision-making on project programmes, i.e. priority theatre lifts requiring minimal downtime for repair works, or modernisation and staggered programmes to ensure the least number of lifts are out of service at any one time. As no two hospitals are the same, we work closely with estates and maintenance managers to ensure that the specific requirements of departments and staff are met, and that disruption to the vital service that the hospital staff provide is kept to a minimum.”
