Disabled Products & Services
‘Over the last five years we have seen considerable improvements in drive tech-
nology and this is set to continue.’ Craig Merry, director, Invalifts Limited
Some units are capable of negotiating curves, which can be useful if the landing position for the lift can not be at the foot of the stairs.
Why specify a platform lift? Each situation will bring its own list of requirements but the reasoning for a platform lift could include: 1. Cost – platform lifts are a cost effective method for dealing with height changes in a building. Both from an installation and an ongoing maintenance point of view.
2. Practicality – some part M compliant lifts have small foot- prints such as 1,250mm X 1,560mm.
wheelchair. Some of these home lifts have a floor footprint as small as a standard armchair. These lifts are quite different to the ‘through the floor’ lifts that have been seen in homes for many years. The ‘through the floor’ lifts do not have a full shaft or full height doors, the bottom of the lifting platform becomes the ceiling on the ground floor when the lift has risen to the next floor and visa versa, the roof becomes the floor of the upper floor when the lift is at the ground floor.
4. Inclined platform units are used where the lift is to follow the angle of a flight of stairs. These lifts should not be con- fused with stairlifts seen in private homes where the user sits in a chair that is part of the mechanism. An inclined unit has a platform for a full wheelchair to access although some units do have the option of a flip down seat to be added to the unit.
3. Efficiency – power consumption of some platform lifts is incredibly small (less than a boiling kettle). Most platform lifts only require a normal 240V supply rather than three phase.
4. Customisation – a specific shaft colour or door colour can be incorporated into the design along with glazing of the shaft. Some manufacturers can actually produce a fully glazed shaft thereby making a quality feature of the lift.
Future for platform Lifts Manufacturers are continually looking to advance the platform lift product both aesthetically and mechanically. Over the last five years we have seen considerable improvements in drive technology and this is set to continue. Applications for the units are growing with platform lifts being used now for small goods lifts and residential lifts.
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