We have created a Facadexs solution for the court complex in Kuwait City. The two court buildings each contain 80 courthouses for the Farwaniya governate and the Al Jahra governate. The design of the complex symbolizes strength and transparency.
The unique glass facade at the front of the building will illuminate the public lobbies with daylight. For that reason, the glass would have to be cleaned frequently. However, this downwards sloping glass facade could never be accessed with standard facade access equipment. Also, the high parapet of the roof makes it hard for a roof car to position a cradle in front of the facades of the complex.
Therefore, Facadexs was commissioned to design a customized solution.
Our solution
We have created four BMUs (Building Maintenance Units) that will help to keep both the internal and external facades of the court complex in good condition. The first BMU is a special traversing roof car that moves over a rail track with a total length of 280 meters (918 feet).
It has an elevated base of more than 6 meters (20 feet). This, combined with a jib that can be raised up to 20 degrees, ensures that the cradle can be lifted to a level that is higher than the parapet.
Then, the roof car rotates 180 degrees to position a fixed pantograph cradle in front of the facade. When it is not in use, this roof car is hidden behind the parapet.
Also, a second traversing roof car covers the adjacent multi-storey car park, moving over a rail track with a total length of 285 meters (935 feet). This roof car is equipped with a two-person self-hoisting cradle, which can be detached from the system.
See how BMU 01 and BMU 02 can lift a cradle over the
parapet of the building.
Cradles and restraint systems
The inside of the sloping glass facade can be accessed with a special self-hoisting extendable pantograph cradle , suspended from a monorail track. This type of cradle ascends vertically, but can extend itself to get closer to the sloping facade. This particular pantograph cradle has a maximal horizontal range of 2 meters (6.5 feet).
On the other side of the glass, a standard self-hoisting cradle (that is also suspended from a monorail track) is restrained to the sloping facade with wire ropes which can be attached from a distance, and reeled in from inside the cradle.
BMU 03: Self-hoisting extendable pantograph cradle.