Page 18 - NewsLester Issue 02

NHS & PUBLIC BUILDINGS
HYDRAULIC LIFT MODERNISATION IN A CENTURIES
OLD LISTED HISTORIC BUILDING
With its sole purpose to promote and celebrate the creation of visual arts through exhibitions and education, the Royal Academy of Arts (RA), situated in the heart of Piccadilly, London, has been led by famous artists and architects
for over 250 years. The RA including Burlington House, Galleries and the Royal Academy School’s Buildings are all listed and hold historic status as part of Historic England.
Burlington House, the 3-storey principal building of the RA, has two hydraulic lifts that needed modernisation. The modernisation was awarded to GF Lifts who in turn, approached Lester Controls to supply the control solutions for these two hydraulic lifts. As reliability had previously been an issue, the decision
was made to specify and manufacture each ALMEGA II controller to incorporate an ALGI VVVF hydraulic twin valve system. To accompany the controllers,
Lester Controls also supplied a full shaft kit including CEDES absolute positioning system, terminal limits, car top control and trailing flexes.
LSE SUCCESS
Despite many Brexit concerns, London is still considered as one of the world's top international and connected financial hubs. Underpinning this are the institutions and universities that support the need for academics, covering a spectrum of economics and social sciences. One of these universities and considered as one of England’s elite, is the LSE (London School of Economics). The LSE has over 30 buildings in its Westminster Campus and estate, resulting in the need for multiple passenger lifts.
During the early part of 2020, Lester Controls were asked by LSE’s lift contractor to assist with a modernisation programme on six of the university’s
lifts comprising of a Triplex and three x simplexes ranging between 11 and 13
floors, one being a fire-fighting lift to EN81-72. The project required Lester Controls to manufacture six ALMEGA II MRL traction with regeneration modules to assist in achieving BREEAM credits, along with these controllers we also supplied a full plug and play wiring system incorporating our Flexibus indicator & push network. The package also included the CEDES dual camera absolute positioning system with our overtravel switch & bi stable switch
for the up-test limit, this system has replaced the need for a traditional limit tree which helps to accelerate installation & setup time.
We delivered the six controllers in phases, with the last two during the latter part of 2020. As with all projects of this kind, great care was given to
ensure that as well as the Lester’s equipment being fully integrated, that 3rd party equipment was also factored in for ease of interfacing.
NEWSLESTER Issue 2 :: Page 18