Stannah’s Recent Projects

Stannah Lifts Holdings Ltd. of Hampshire, U.K., has been serving the lift industry for more than 150 years. Founded by Joseph Stannah, the company’s first lift was designed to move ship cargo in the 1860s. Five generations later, Stannah is still a family owned and operated business. Employing 1,500 people globally, it manufactures and distributes lifting products, including elevators, escalators, goods lifts and stairlifts, and maintains more than 83,000 lift products throughout the U.K.

Kings Cross Station

The Kings Cross Station in London is undergoing a refurbishment project to improve accessibility and expand. Stannah was awarded a contract to supply and install various lifts in all three areas of the station: the train shed, western concourse and western range building. The refurbished train shed has three layers, which include the train platforms at ground level, a new bridge above the platforms for additional access and service tunnels below ground.

The first noticeable passenger lifts within the historic train shed are five scenic units with two stops and eight-person, mobility-impaired capacity. The lifts were installed to provide easy travel from the bridge to each of the platforms below. The one-way downward travel of these lifts is part of the overall design of traffic flow throughout the station.

On the platform level, Stannah installed four passenger/goods lifts with a 24-person capacity to provide direct access to and from the service tunnels to individual trains. The lifts feature bumpers low on solid walls to add protection in a busy, demanding environment.

For the train shed, all work had to be completed during service blockades, as these platforms were operational throughout most of the working period. The machine rooms are housed in pits beneath the platforms, covered by a pair of heavy steel shutters set into the platform walkways.

The service tunnels are equipped with lifts to move goods to and from all areas of the station and include:

Two 2500-kg-capacity service lifts to be used from delivery area to service corridor.

Two 2000-kg-capacity service lifts to be used from level 2 (main delivery area) to level 1 (service tunnel), ground floor, main concourse and level 1, the retail mezzanine

Stannah also installed seven lifts within the Western Range of the building. One 630-kg-capacity lift played a part in moving contractors during the building work and is now used by the public. Four 1200-kg-capacity lifts, one of which was challenging to install tight to a low-pitched roof atop the shaft, were also provided. One 2000-kg-capacity lift with seven stops from the basement to the roof was installed to move goods. One platform lift within the First Class Lounge on the first floor was installed to provide passengers with impaired mobility access from the bridge area in the Train Shed to the platforms below.

Four additional lifts were installed in the Western Concourse and include:

Two 1200-kg capacity lifts, finished in brushed stainless steel with York stone floor and special lighting. Both lifts are used for public access to and from the mezzanine food court, and one travels with three stops to the London Underground.

Two 3100-kg-capacity goods/passengers lifts were installed for service personnel only and provide movement over four floors. The lifts were installed in existing shafts extended to increase travel distance.

The Kings Cross Station will see its final stages of refurbishment completed in 2013, and all 24 lifts will be maintained by Stannah’s Dartford branch.

Paddington Station

In February 2012, after six months of accelerated work, London’s new Paddington Station taxi facility opened. Stannah provided the station with two escalators and two lifts to improve access to the main concourse and platforms to the lower levels.

The duplex, hydraulic bespoke passenger lifts have a 1200-kg capacity and meet the requirements of Lifts Directive (95/16/EC) 1995 and EN 81-1/2 safety rules for the construction and installation of lifts. Both lifts are fitted with electronic 3D safety edges on all car doors, alarm push buttons and two-way communication systems in the cars and at each landing. Operating at a speed of 0.64 mps, each lift features landings with a clear access of 1,100 mm X 2,100 mm. 

The pair of escalators run each side of the central stairway to the main station concourse. The heavy-duty units feature variable-voltage, variable-frequency drive systems and comply with Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method requirements. Stannah’s Dartford branch will maintain the Paddington Station equipment.

Edinburgh Waverly Station

Scotland’s Edinburgh Waverly railway station underwent a major lift replacement and refurbishment program in 2012. The project included a bespoke passenger duplex on the station roofline. Stannah was awarded the lift contract, which included removing a 33-person-capacity hydraulic lift on platform 8/9 and replacing it with a two-floor, semi-scenic hydraulic lift with the same capacity; Stannah installed an eight-person-capacity machine-room-less lift as a temporary solution while the lift was being installed. The replacement also involved extending the existing two-floor, 16-passenger New Street Car Park hydraulic lift to serve three floors to include the new bridge level and new entrance on Market Street. The lifts comply with the Equality Act 2010 and are serviced by Stannah’s Scotland branch.