Our Services

Inspection and Surveys
One of the best ways of gaining an accurate knowledge of the condition of a building or structure, is by using Wallwalkers inspection and safety services. Such work can be quickly and cost effectively carried out by a range of methods. Many clients are finding that a video survey is most useful, the camera operator on the end of a rope has a live link to a monitor where the client decides what they would like to record on video tape. Radio contact between the two gives a closely controlled system, tailored to meet the clients needs. A video tape can also be shown by an Architect or Surveyor to their client, often a Parochial Church Council or Fabric Committee and is useful in explaining the work involved. A wide format of reports are available, which again help to target the services exactly to the clients needs.

Maintenance and Repair
A series of recent conferences, hosted by the National Trust, have highlighted the importance of routine maintenance. The Hardwick Hall event saw a gathering of the country's leading experts, listening to Fiona Reynolds, the Director of the National Trust, extolling the cost effectiveness of regular work. At that conference Wallwalkers were able to carry out a Roped Access Demonstration on Hardwick Old Hall. Maintenance and repair by Roped Access can be a vital part in the overall management plan, especially on heritage buildings which often have specific needs.

Safety Systems
In order to comply with modern legislation, building owners are faced with the difficult decision of what sort of system to install. Many off-the-peg systems do not have the sensitivity or the flexibility to cope with the demands of older buildings, although some sort of protection is often required. Wallwalkers have successfully installed low impact systems and, using many years of experience, can often install some judicially placed anchor bolts which, together with quickly installed lightweight Roped Access methods, can meet the demands of the legislation. Eastnor Castle and Salisbury Cathedral are but two buildings to benefit from such treatment.

Specialist Access Solutions
Wallwalkers have been working on sensitive heritage buildings since the mid 1980s and have experience of churches, castles, abbeys, cathedrals, towers, minsters, spires and bridges. No two situations are the same, they all represent a specific challenge which results in a considerable body of access expertise. There is a great deal of information in the construction industry concerning access, the key lies in having the ability to process information and the expertise and knowledge to apply it in a specialised way to heritage buildings. A sensitive and sympathetic approach has always been carried out by Wallwalkers, who have a close contact with specialist manufacturers in the access industry. These relationships include companies who supply mobile elevated work platforms and cranes. Such a partnership allows Architects, such as Julian Harrap Partnership, to reinstate a fifteen metre high refurbished weather vane to the very top of the delicate slate clad spire of Dulwich College, South London, using a fifty metre crane running on a temporary roadway. The whole operation was planned, managed and coordinated by Wallwalkers, whose specialist hung from the jib of the crane to ensure the base of the weathervane was able to fit into a fifteen millimetre bearing.

Conservation Work
The ability to access a building is one matter, the ability to carry out skilled conservation work, in conjunction with that access, is entirely another. This combination is what helps Wallwalkers maintain its unique place in the market. The only way to gain these skills is by blending training and experience and this is done both in-house and by using specialists such as the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings and the Wield and Downlands Open Air Museum. Clients, such as English Heritage, National Trust, Julian Harrap, Donald Insall, Caroes and Linfords, all find that Wallwalkers can meet their needs. For repointing work we have an in-house service which can analyse existing mix to find out its constituent parts, make recommendations for suitable mortars, make up sample biscuits, point up trial panels and then report to the specialist involved. We also have access to other conservation workers, including those skilled in stained glass, lead and stone.

Safety Cover for other Professionals
In some cases, as well as looking at video reports, there are situations when an Engineer, Surveyor or Architect really feels that they need to have 'hands on' look for themselves. Providing such a service is becoming an increasing usual feature for Wallwalkers' Roped Access Services. Wallwalkers will set up a system which enables a client to look at any part of a building. They can be lowered from the top, hauled up from the bottom or, in some cases gently swung into place. We will provide all parts of the safety system and will have one expert alongside the client to provide tender loving care and another specifically situated to manage the back up safety systems. We also have used such systems to allow clients to monitor and inspect work done by other contractors and to have a close up visual inspection after scaffolds have been removed and also to enable them to look at any other areas that may need future work.

> Range of Work