Pilkington Activ™ answers demand for safe access solution at Lindrick House

A four storey housing complex in Eston near Redcar has been fitted with Pilkington Activ™ self-cleaning glass as part of a wide-reaching refurbishment programme undertaken by Coast & Country Housing.

The Pilkington Activ™ units, installed by main contractor Wrekin Windows of Coast & Country Housing, is one of the largest social housing providers in the Tees Valley area, located on the north-east coast of England. The company operates within the Borough of Redcar & Cleveland, where it owns and manages over 11,200 dwellings in addition to other premises such as shops, offices and depots. Lindrick House is one of several multi-storey blocks owned by the housing group and was recently ear-marked by Coast & Country for a number of refurbishments, including window replacement.

However, because Lindrick House is a four storey building, the company was faced with some difficulty regarding specification. "Current safe access regulations do not allow the use of a ladder longer than 9 metres in length for window cleaning," says Jim Brook, Procurement Manager for Coast & Country. "To clean the top storey windows conventionally would have meant the use of complex equipment such as cradles or cherry pickers. It is hard to find cleaners that use this type of  equipment, and those that do are specialists who charge far more for their services."

After consultation with Wrekin Windows, Coast & Country chose Pilkington Activ™ self-cleaning glass as the best possible solution to the dilemma. Indeed, this is the second time that Coast & Country have specified the product for one of its multi-storey properties, having previously 'road-tested' Pilkington Activ™ in multi- storey properties on the nearby Bankfields Estate. Says Jim Brook: "We already knew from the Bankfields project that Pilkington Activ™ is the real deal - it does exactly what it says on the tin. I doubt it will be the last time we specify the product as it answers so many of our concerns."

Ian Spokes, National Product Manager for Pilkington Activ™, can see a definite trend towards increased use of the product in this area: "We said when we initially launched the product that it would change everything, and this is proving to be particularly true within the social housing sector. Increased regulation with regard to safe work at height has meant even higher maintenance costs for landlords who use window cleaners.

Self-cleaning glass that really delivers results like Pilkington Activ™ does represents the future for high rise windows. No high cleaning access isrequired,  which makes it the safest and most low maintenance solution around, not to mention the most environmentally sound as less water, detergents and chemicals are required. For care homes and sheltered accommodation, the product is particularly appropriate, providing ease of maintenance for stretched staff and pride in a clean environment for residents."