Exterior Cleaning – 66 Oxford Terrace

Client/Scope of Work:

Russell Property Group. Exterior cleaning and external window inspection of a 12-storey residential tower, Christchurch Central.

Specific issues to be addressed:

66 Oxford Terrace was an earthquake-prone building, written off by insurers.
Russell Property Group acquired this building to strengthen and refurbish as a high-end apartment complex, enhancing its seismic resilience for resale. Seismic solutions completed by Tectonus saved the building avoiding approximately 500,000 tonnes of carbon emissions that would have resulted from demolition.

Special considerations:

As a result of further investment into the building, special considerations had to be made to ensure the longevity of the refurbished building and to keep warranties intact for insurers. Abseil roof anchors previously installed by another company were insufficient to carry out external cleaning and window inspection. Special rigging had to be used to abseil the building, with feedback provided for more strategic anchorage and upgrade of the abseil system for future use. Windows along the building’s west face had to be inspected externally due to delamination of the double glazing.

What was done and why?

Rigging from the structure and certified anchorage points were used by four abseil technicians to scale the building to perform the work. The building was washed with demineralised water and soap using a water-fed mop and then rinsed clean, removing all dust, bird waste, and spider webs. The building was abseiled again to wash the windows using a mop and squeegee, followed by a blade to leave windows clean and streak-free. A physical inspection was conducted of the west face windows, with a photo report provided to the client for future repairs.