St. Saviours, Knightsbridge

Landmark Lifts Limited are pleased to present their latest project, a stunning bronze, round glass lift within a stone staircase which ascends four levels and undoubtedly is the focal point of the house.

During its redevelopment, this £50 m St. Saviours House in Knightsbridge, London’s premier residential district, has retained many of its original and delightful architectural features such as a drawing room, and has sympathetically been blended with the new, modern elegance of this stunning lift design.

Project Scope

The scope of the project was to provide a high quality, bespoke lift design to complement the unique internal configuration of the redeveloped church while providing a modern desired living space.

A direct acting hydraulic lift drive was established early in the project to maximise the quality of the lift ride and control, but this set some specific challenges due to the proximity of underground services and high-water tables.

A bespoke compact drilling rig was commissioned, and a vertical bore hole was formed some 15 m below finished floor level.

The configuration of the floor plans made it necessary for a remote pump room, that resulted in specialist design calculations to minimise noise, hydraulic pressure loss and start up lag. All of the technical issues were resolved by Landmark Lifts, resulting in a superior lift ride and experience.

Aesthetics

The design and functionality of the lift were paramount to achieving consensus from the different parties within the design team. It was decided this could only be achieved with visual imagery offered by 3D projections where every element of the car frame, doors and canopy could be viewed, inspected and agreed upon before manufacturing commenced.

Particular attention to design and detail were paid to the under driven glass curved doors as concealed operation was requested. This was achieved by installation of a bespoke drive unit to the underside of the lift car masked by a floating floor skirting that also covered the guides and their fixings.

The external finishes to the car and frame were dressed in bronze and chemically aged on site to match the stone spiral staircase which formed the shaft.

Conclusion

An extremely rewarding project, which has been show cased in the majority of leading home buyers guides and architectural journals. The difficult design aspects surpassed all aspirations resulting in a striking and spectacular installation that:

• was designed with attention to detail
• manufactured impeccably
•  installed professionally
• within budget

 

This project is now five years old and continues to provide the standard that sets the benchmark for quality lift installations.

Reflecting in its all inspiring setting, St. Saviours continues to be the flagship installation of Landmark Lifts that generates interest and commissioned projects.