Case studies

• Customer: Watkinson Lifting and Transportation Ltd
• Project: Escalator lift at John Lewis, London
• Date: June 2006
• View survey results

The Challenge

On the 14th September 2006 Watkinson Lifting and Transportation Ltd carried out the installation of 12 escalators at John Lewis Department Store on Oxford Street, London. The planning associated with the installation began several months earlier and resulted in a successful 10 hour shift.

The Solution

Watkinsons used a 300 tonne crane to carefully lift each escalator into place. Concerns over the presence of buried utilities and basements beneath the crane highlighted the need for underground mapping to assist in the overall risk management.

The Result

GEOTEC were engaged to detect and map utilities as well as voids beneath the footprint of the crane. The busy and congested site required careful planning and liaison. The underground mapping was carried out over 2 consecutive nights using 8 hour shifts. Full traffic management was needed to enable the safe collection of the data. GEOTEC were able to complete the whole operation from start to finish within a week.