Glass cleaning at the Post Tower in Bonn High-level access required

At 370,000 square meters, and with architectural features that make some of its glazed areas quite difficult to reach, the 162-meter high Post Tower in Bonn is not only one of the tallest, but also one of the toughest cleaning challenges in Germany. Work platforms make the job easier.Ever since it first opened its doors – which are made of glass, by the way, just like every other door and divider in the building, except for the sanitary areas – the Post Tower in Bonn has been in the expert hands of Klüh Service Management for all matters regarding building maintenance and specialty cleaning services. For those areas that cannot be reached with the two perma- nently installed rope-operated work platforms, Klüh depends on working platforms provided by Mobilift to keep glazed areas neat and tidy. “Besides practically all cleaning and waste management services in the Tower, we also provide specialized services. Drying out the underground car park after the recent flood is a good example,” explains Jürgen Wester, who sits on Klüh’s Board of Directors and manages the Cologne branch. What quickly becomes clear is that the service provider faces new requirements almost every day and that they need to be resolved quickly. “What helps us tremendously, especially with the Post Tower, is that we have a reliable partner for work platforms who can provide the equipment we need and has extensive experience with challenging architecture. On top of that, Mobilift delivers excellent customer service,” Wester emphasizes. With more than 150 trailer-mounted, jointed and scissor lifts as well as 30 truck-mounted work platforms Mobilift is a major player with a solid reputation. “Before, whenever we needed special access equipment,” he tells us, “we had to haul it from Berlin or some other location. Today, all it takes is a phone call and the gear we need for the job is there in no time.” A team of 40 on-site Klüh has 40 employees permanently dedicated to this site, 15 of which are glass cleaners, to ensure that all the work specified in the contract gets done right and on time. In addition to daytime cleaning routines, which include the facade, interior glazed areas and offices, the Klüh team also works nights cleaning the elevators and handles ad hoc tasks like removing algae from the pond and grooming outdoor areas. Snow removal in the winter, as well as cleaning the various pieces of glass art that are attached to the building round off the wide spectrum of diverse missions handled by Klüh’s cleaning professionals. The services provided by Klüh in the Post Tower are coordinated 24/7 from an office on the ground floor. The supervisor based there is in charge of scheduling the tasks at hand and deploying the resources to tackle routine work as well as address special requirements and unforeseen tasks. “ At the core of the way we do things, and of our success for that matter, is our organizational preparedness for pretty much any eventuality,” says Jürgen Wester. In buildings with such large interior and exterior surfaces, needs are continuously evolving. And when they are weather-related, which can happen quite often, close coordination with the person in charge on the client side is very important and a mark of good project management. Any requests arising throughout the day and submitted by phone, fax and email are discussed at the daily briefing and integrated into project planning. Wester: “Since the Tower contains only management offices and it is the promotional face of the company, the requirements for reliability, thoroughness and speed are especially high, of course.” Four different platforms at workUnless special tasks are on the schedule, Klüh works with four different platforms for all the standard work: a Ruthmann Steiger 270 truck-mounted telescopic boom for cleaning the exterior facade up to a height of 30 meters, plus three Mobilift platforms for the interior. Where a trailer-mounted Dino A 180 platform with a maximum working height of 18 m is used for the sprawling lobby, self-propelled all-wheel-drive access equipment powered by gasoline and electric motors (Mobilift G125 and G290) get Klüh’s cleaners up in the air quickly and safely in other inside areas. “The workspace between the elevators is extremely limited and the turn-stiles are only wide enough to let wheelchairs through. That’s why we have to depend on access platforms that combine compact dimensions with outstanding maneuverability,” says Jürgen Wester. When it’s not deployed, the G125 shrinks to a height of 2.10 meters and width of 1.82 meters for transport. The G290, on the other hand, has a total width of only 96 cm. Both machines have a small footprint that makes them ideal for the job at hand in Bonn. They always work from load distribution plates to protect the glass floors. The G290 is operated by a technician dispatched by Mobilift, the three other work platforms by specially trained Klüh staff. Jürgen Rönsch | heike.holland@holzmann-medien.de