From The Ground Up

Partnering with Brosnan Construction to revolutionise the complex process of recladding high-rise buildings.

In June of 2018, Farra installed the first of its kind, bespoke building facade maintenance system which has ultimately revolutionised the re-cladding process of high-rise buildings.

The project was for the Spencer on Byron apartment complex, a complex that spans 23 stories high. The platform is being used to support a complete replacement of the building's facade. To engineer such equipment took about 1 year and the maintenance unit will be on site for up to 2 years.

Key Facts

Installed: June, 2018

Completed: March, 2021

Payload: The 7.8-tonne unit is rated to carry eight workers, with a combined payload of workers, tools and materials of 1 tonne; or 125 kg per worker.

"We did research into other alternatives and we even looked abroad for suppliers and manufacturers. Farra were the only ones who could create what we needed. They have great problem-solving skills and we are really impressed with their ability to stick to the game plan and accommodate variations within brief in the design stage."

Gavin Smith, Construction Manager
Brosnan Construction

The working platform encompasses all sides of the building and spans two stories high. The wires that suspend the platform are held from multiple davits on the buildings roof, using a combination of cables and a specialist wedging system which locks on to the wire cables.

Through the design phase, it was important to choose a solution that fitted with the look of the building and didn't stand out & jeopardise the view. We think we nailed it, the platform looks like it should be there and doesn't look out of place.

Building Maintenance Units

Farra has spent more than a decade designing and constructing bespoke ‘building maintenance units’ for safe maintenance and cleaning.

Talk to us about your building maintenance needs.