Following the Grenfell tower disaster, there has been a huge change in the approach to construction and the materials used.

Among the latest regulations, changes to culpability and drive for new, fire rated materials, one of the biggest repercussions of Grenfell is the call to replace all dangerous cladding from the exterior of high-rise buildings.

This poses the question at the top.

With all the benefits previously discussed around mast climbers, the next thing you need to know is whether a mast climber can be used for recladding and why it should be considered as a viable and valuable choice.

What Money is Available for Recladding?

After almost 5 years, the Government has set aside £3.5bn with the aim of fixing dangerous cladding on high rise buildings. On top of this, a scheme to offer the same problems on low-rise buildings is also available.

Part of what is known as the government’s building safety fund, it’s there to be used for the removal of unsafe cladding on those buildings in England above 18 metres. It is important to note that this fund is purely for the removal of unsafe cladding and cannot be used for any other fire safety or construction work.

While you’re looking at helping to create safer high-rise buildings, you want to know those mast climbers are options that can do the job to the highest possible standards.

Using Mast Climber for Recladding?

Before discussing why it’s important to use a mast climber, it’s important to know ‘if’ a mast climber can be used for recladding work.

The simple answer is yes.

85% of all construction jobs could benefit from using a mast climber, using it as the access platform to remove and replace the dangerous cladding.
With a motorised platform that can travel up and down the façade of the building, a mast climber provides you with an alternative to scaffolding, but one with a plethora of advantages.

Mast Climbers: No Disruption To Residents

Consider the residents for a moment. After all, they are the most important people who, at no fault of their own, have been left in this predicament. When the time to finally make their homes safer arrives, there’s still a disruption to everyday life.

With traditional scaffolding, constant noise, no natural light and an ever-present security threat are all issues residents might have to be stuck with for months on end. The bigger the building, the longer this concerns will continue.

A mast climber helps alleviate them all with the resident only really disrupted during the short time the work platform will be on their level. As it ascends the building’s façade to complete the recladding, it’s back to normality for those residents and when the job's done, the MCWP is quickly dismantled and moved on to the next project.

Why Choose A Mast Climber?

These cladding panels cover almost every inch of high-rise buildings and finding quick ways to access the façade is essential. You want to be able to complete the job as quickly and effectively as possible, creating minimum disruption to those in and around the building.

Another main advantage Mast climbers have over scaffolding that makes is the reduced tie points into the building. This makes them easier to work around with less remedial work when stripped, providing significant efficiency benefits and time savings. This leads us onto cost.

With most of these recladding projects on buildings 18m and above, you have to consider how long it would take to erect the scaffolding to that height, and then dismantle it when the job is complete.

The diagram attached explains more.

When the government is handing out what is essentially taxpayers money, you want to optimise and ensure that you are helping save as much of it as possible, that’s where a mast climber makes sense. On average, a mast climber comes in around 5 times cheaper than scaffolding, and are installed 80% faster, too.

Choosing Vertical Access For Recladding

BFT Mastclimbing has spoken extensively about the right time to use mast climbers and how they compare against scaffolding, but it’s important to emphasise it isn’t a binary choice and the perfect solution is often both!

The advantages a mast climber can bring to your project is obvious. What perhaps isn’t, is the list of construction jobs a mast climber can help you complete.

Recladding is going to take up such a large portion of the vertical access workload in the next 12-18 months and with money essentially coming from the pocket of taxpayers and those directly affected, you want to know you’ve done everything you can to help.

Mast climbers should be the obvious choice because of the reasons BFT Mastclimbing has discussed.

If you’d like to discover more and speak to experts who will create a vertical access solution for you, then get in touch with BFT Mastclimbing today.