Scaffold and Shrink Wrap – Residential Project Chiswick

It’s been another busy month here at Stronghold Hire. One of the many installs completed was a residential project in Chiswick. The project required a full perimeter scaffold with a re visit to erect a temporary shrink wrap shelter later along in the program.

Stage 1 – Scaffolding

The residential scaffold was straight forward except for the way that we had to secure it to the facade. The property was a high-end building, with a beautiful face brick that could not be penetrated. This meant that the usual basic scaffold tie pattern could not be used. We overcame this by working with the builder to leave out small areas of the face break to allow our anchors to be used. We also used some extra plan bracing and a counterweight. Here at Stronghold, we always try to create a positive outcome, by finding solutions and not problems. We like to think that there is always a way.

Stage 2 – Shrink Wrap

The second stage of the project required us to provide a temporary shelter over a section of the roof. The ideal scenario for the builder would have been to cover the entire roof space. Unfortunately, with the limited anchor spots and the span being close to 10m this was simply not possible to achieve without imposing a huge financial cost. It is important to note that the project is close to a river and is subject to very high wind loads.

Shrink Wrap Compromise

As with many projects, when it comes to shrink wrap there sometimes must be a compromise. The main area that needed to be sheltered from the elements was only around 5m wide by 10m long with a clearance of around 5m. It was understood that this area needed to remain dry as the client was installing finished timber, that would sit under cover when the upper roof was installed. The compromise was that we would need to build a scaffold through the main structure of the building, through the frames of the bedrooms and roof trusses. This scaffold would be in place to accommodate the fitting of the timber, and then dismantled when there was a small window of guaranteed dry weather.

Construction Labour Shortages

The shelter was erected in the space of 3 days and served its purpose well. Unfortunately, on this project, there was a miscommunication with the dismantle date, with not enough lead time given for us to book in the dismantling. We gave permission for another contractor to dismantle this scaffold at short notice as we simply did not have the resources to turn it around in such a short space of time. This is a sign of the times in Australia, with shortages in labour in the construction, health care and hospitality sectors.

Unique Project, Unique Footage

Like we always do with our most unique scaffold projects, we got Michael from HLH Marketing to come out and record drone footage of the project to provide our social media followers and now you are a glimpse of it’s location.

Scaffolding & Shrink Wrap – Pow

Scaffolding and Shrink Wrap a re like Batman & Robin – a dynamic tag team duo. If you have a project that needs both of them make sure to give us a call now on 02 89852020 or contact us online for more info.