Clements recently had an opportunity to assist the first phase of repair work on a 400 year old Warwickshire landmark. Our Dingli BT24ERT 24m Lithium Boom Lift came to the assistance of Arden Construction to remove the sails from Chesterton Windmill.
Following a recent inspection at the 17th century built windmill, one of the timber sales was showing signs of deterioration. Although inspections to the Windmill are regular, the sails were last taken down for repairs in 2007. As a result, with the machines on site, the decision to remove all four sails and centre stocks was logical.
Arden Construction based in Alcester, Warwickshire immediately contacted Clements Plant & Access Hire to hire the 24m lithium boom lift to enable the team to dismantle each sail carefully. The requirement for the job was an access platform with a long telescopic boom and a large 454kg capacity basket to carry two operatives and tools. Similarly, the three day operating capacity of the machine assured the team that the job would be successful without the need to recharge the machine.
In addition, the BT24ERT boom lift would prove ideal for the job to work in tandem with a 60ton Demag Crane supplied through ABA Crane Hire.
The structure, built on raised ground and protected by a retaining wall required the machine to be positioned 10m away. The machine, therefore needed to extend close enough to allow two operatives to complete the work. The process involved unbolting the wooden sails from the centre stocks. The crane steadied and supported each of the 500kg sails as they were carefully removed.
Dingli 24m Lithium Boom Lift Takes The Sails Out Of The Wind
Following the removal of the sails, the next stage of the process involved lifting the centre stocks from the mechanism. Again, the boom lift would be used to detach the centre stocks and the crane to lift the timber clear.
The whole process to remove the sails and stocks took around 6 hours to complete. The Windmill looked different by the end of the day. However, the sails should re-appear once the inspection and repair process is complete, by the spring of 2022.
If you would like more information visit our Dingli BT24ERT 24m lithium boom lift page.