History

The Grade I listed Palm House at Kew Gardens had very low light transmission to the specimens due to years of biological growth on the glass.  

To improve the visitor experience and help plants to thrive, it was necessary to formulate a sympathetic cleaning plan.

Approach

Working closely with the conservation team, site stakeholders and FM main contractors; we devised a schedule of works to renovate the interior and exterior glazing.

A multi-disciplinary approach was required with abseilers, MEWP operators and Reach&Wash specialists on site. 

Work Summary 

The cleaning of the conservatory took over two months, working in restricted hours to achieve an invisible service delivery. 

With much media attention from newspapers and the BBC, this was a high profile clean working safely around visitors and staff.

Figures

Royal Botanic Gardens Kew

April 2017

Total Budget – Five Figure Budget

16,000 panes of glass renovated with not a single breakage(Abseilers, MEWP Operators, Reach&Wash technicians)

Added Value

Single point of contact for all works.

Works completed without closing the house to visitors. 

Our First Aiders responded to a visitor medical emergency.

Flexible management to allow for additional jobs (Gutter Cleaning).

Results

Featuring both in the Press and in a BBC documentary, we achieved exceptional results in renovating the glass.  

Light transmission to plants increased by some 20% and commendation was received from Head of Estates and Stakeholders.